Photo: Valentin8107 · CC BY-SA 4.0Vernon is older than 83% of Canadian towns: a median age of 49.2
In Vernon, 14% of residents are under 15, beside 16% across Canada’s towns. Statistics Canada puts the town’s population at 49,527 for July 2025. For Vernon, the census puts residents with no religion at 55%. On households in single-detached houses, Vernon sits lower than 71% of Canadian towns: 48%.
What stands out about the people of Vernon
Many older residents
28% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 88% of Canadian towns; 8.6% are 80 or over, and 34% of households are one person living alone. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Vernon’s population changed by +11% since 2016, more than in 85% of Canadian towns
Unless a figure says otherwise, it is from the 2021 Census. Residents at the 2016 and 2021 censuses and the latest estimate, with the 2016–2021 change beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
Across British Columbia’s towns the median is +6%, and across Canada’s towns +4%.
More residents aged 65 and over than 88% of Canadian towns: 28%
Age bands of five years, the town’s bars against the typical town’s ticks.
Compared with 11% across Canada’s towns, 9.1% of residents are aged 15 to 24 here. The biggest five-year age group is 60–64, with 8% of residents. As a reference point, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Vernon, 49.2. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 91 men for every 100 women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
One-person households make up 34% in Vernon, more than in 74% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
The typical household size is 2.2 people, against 2.4 across Canada’s towns. Census figures put one-parent families at 8.3% in Vernon. For comparison, 27% of households are one person living alone across Canada’s towns.
Married residents 15 and over make up 44% in Vernon, less than in 57% of Canadian towns
Residents 15 and over by marital status; the census counts common-law couples separately.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Single and never married: 24% of adults, against a typical 27%. For comparison, 46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns. Common-law partners account for 11%.
Vernon: 34% of households rent their home, above 66% of Canadian towns
Occupied homes by type, by owners and renters, and by when they were built. Prices, rents and shelter costs are on Cost of living.
Type of home
Owners and renters · share of households
When homes were built · share of homes
Newer homes outnumber old: 27% date from 2001 or later, 12% from before 1961. At 1.7%, the share of households in buildings of five or more storeys is higher than in 63% of Canadian towns. As a reference point, a quarter of households rent their home across Canada’s towns.
$73,500 a year is the median household income here
The census asked about income in 2020: a pandemic year, with CERB and other emergency benefits counted in. Total household income: the median household, and the spread from low to high.
Households by income · share of households
Vernon’s median household took in $73,500 before tax, 15% less than the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Within British Columbia’s towns, the household in the middle had $87,000. COVID-19 benefits went to 24% of residents with an income (typical: 28%).
A larger share of residents who moved in within the year than 83% of Canadian towns: 16%
Immigrants, newcomers and movers.
Immigrants, by continent of birth · share of all residents; the bar runs to 20%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
Immigrants: 12% here and 17% across Canada’s towns. Across Canada’s towns, residents who moved in within the year come to 11%. Most immigrants were born in Europe (53%) or in Asia (26%).
7.3% of residents have an Indigenous identity, a share 80% of Canadian towns don’t reach
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
The figure for visible minority residents is 8% in Vernon and 15% across Canada’s towns. The wider picture: 2.8% of residents have an Indigenous identity across Canada’s towns.
87% have English as their mother tongue; 6.3% also speak French
Knowledge of the two official languages, first languages, and the language of home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
At 1.2%, the share of residents whose mother tongue is French is lower than in 62% of Canadian towns. Across Canada’s towns, the share of bilingual residents is 7.5%; Vernon has 6.3%.
Vernon sits below 65% of Canadian towns for degree holders aged 25 to 64 (21%)
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
Holding no credential: 10% (typical 9.5%). As a yardstick, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
In work on census day: 52% of adults
Census day was in May 2021, mid-pandemic: some of these rates are lower than in a usual year. The census’s labour rates, in brief. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
Across Canada’s towns the typical rate is 58%, above this 52%; 28% of residents are 65 or over.
In its size band (42,989 to 58,010), the 3rd oldest of 41 towns
Median age of the Canadian towns nearest in population; hover a dot.
The youngest is Whalley (34.9) and the oldest Shawinigan (54.4). Next to Vernon on this scale come Rimouski (47.2), Salaberry-de-Valleyfield (47.2), West Vancouver (50.8) and Shawinigan (54.4).
Nearby, 2 of 5 towns have older populations than Vernon
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vernon | 49,527 | — | 49.2 | 28% | 12% |
| Electoral Area C, North Okanagan | 5,029 | 5.2 km | 47.2 | 21% | 11% |
| Electoral Area B, North Okanagan | 3,415 | 5.6 km | 50.4 | 26% | 12% |
| Coldstream | 11,380 | 5.7 km | 48.4 | 23% | 11% |
| Okanagan (Part) 1 | 3,482 | 9.1 km | 65 | 50% | 8.2% |
| Spallumcheen | 5,843 | 17.5 km | 48 | 23% | 7.6% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Against British Columbia’s towns and Canada’s towns. The middle of British Columbia’s towns of 2,500 or more comes first, the middle of all Canadian towns second; cities as a whole and First Nations reserves stay out, and percentiles are within Canada.
- What these tables don’t give. Not in the Census Profile: unpaid care, cars, internet access, and how each age group has changed since 2016. We also chart no ethnic origins besides visible minority and Indigenous identity.
- The census’s own words. “Visible minority” is the census’s term from the Employment Equity Act: people, other than Indigenous peoples, who are non-white in colour or race. Indigenous identity, immigrant status and religion are as residents answered. The page compares them with other towns and never labels a town by them.
Questions about Vernon’s residents
Is Vernon bilingual?
English and French: 6.3% speak both (Canada’s towns: 7.5%). English only: 93%. French only: 0%. French mother tongue: 1.2%.
How diverse is Vernon?
Immigrants: 12% (Canada’s towns: 17%). Visible minority: 8%. Indigenous identity: 7.3%.
What religion are people in Vernon?
55% said they have no religion and 41% that they are Christian; 4.1% named another faith.
Is Vernon good for families?
14% of residents are under 15 (Canada’s towns: 16%); couple families are 47% of households and one-parent families 8.3%. Schools near Vernon are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Vernon?
Half of Vernon’s households had more than $73,500 in 2020, before tax; across Canada’s towns the median was $86,000.
What is the population of Vernon?
About 49,527, by Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025. The 2021 Census found 44,519 people in Vernon, 11% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Vernon?
The median age is 49.2, older than 83% of Canadian towns. 14% are under 15 and 28% 65 or older.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population · Statistics Canada, population estimates for 1 July 2025 (table 17-10-0155). Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).