Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0Belledune is older than 99% of Canadian towns: a median age of 59.2
35% of residents said they have no religion across Canada’s towns, against 15% in Belledune. The town is home to some 1,379 people (July 2025 estimate), in 690 households at the 2021 Census. On the census count, nine in ten households live in a single-detached house. Few places have as many one-person households: 38% here, more than in 86% of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of Belledune
Older than most towns
Line Belledune’s residents up by age and the one in the middle is 59.2; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 39% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Fewer people than before
Belledune went from 1,417 people in 2016 to 1,325 in 2021, −7%: slower growth than in 98% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
From 2016 to 2021, 98% of Canadian towns grew faster than Belledune: −7%
All figures are the 2021 Census’s unless another date is shown. How the population moved between the last two censuses, and since.
Change, 2016 to 2021
Across Canada’s towns, the typical town changed +4%; across New Brunswick’s towns, +3%.
Residents aged 65 and over: 39%, a higher share than 99% of Canadian towns
Every five-year age group as a share of residents; ticks mark the typical town.
Children under 15: 7.9% here and 16% across Canada’s towns. As a reference point, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
49% women, 51% men
About 105 men for every 100 women.
1.9 people per household, fewer than in 94% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against New Brunswick’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
Here 10% of households are one-parent families, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 8.2%.
Fewer married residents 15 and over than 60% of Canadian towns: 43%
How adults live as couples, or don’t, with common-law unions shown on their own.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Just over a quarter of adults are single and have never married; the typical town has 27%. For comparison, 46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns. The share of common-law partners stands at 11%.
19% of households rent their home, below 65% of Canadian towns
The kinds of homes people live in, who owns and who rents, and how old the homes are. 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
Nearly a quarter of homes were built before 1961 and 3.6% in 2001 or later. Set beside that, a quarter of households rent their home across Canada’s towns. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in 74% of Canadian towns.
Half above, half below $48,400 a year in household income
The income year is 2020: a year of pandemic benefits such as CERB, which the figures count. Total household income: the median household, and the spread from low to high.
Households by income · share of households
The median across Canada’s towns is $86,000; Belledune’s, at $48,400, is 44% lower. Across New Brunswick’s towns the median is $73,300. The pandemic’s benefits: 24% of income recipients, against 28% in the typical town.
9.1% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, below 71% of Canadian towns
Birthplaces and arrival years of immigrants, citizenship and recent moves.
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
Where 5.8% of residents are not Canadian citizens across Canada’s towns, Belledune has 0.8%. At 1.9%, the share of immigrants is lower than in 94% of Canadian towns. Across the comparison, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns.
Belledune ranks above 82% of Canadian towns on Indigenous residents: 7.9%
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Visible minority residents are rarer here than in 99% of Canadian towns. The comparison figure for Indigenous residents is 2.8% across Canada’s towns.
13% of residents have French as their mother tongue, more than in 76% of Canadian towns
Who can speak English and French, mother tongue, and the language spoken most at home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
At home: English 93%, French 6%. Compared with other places, bilingual residents are common here: 21%, more than in three quarters of Canadian towns. Measured more widely, 1.5% of residents have French as their mother tongue across Canada’s towns.
Degree holders aged 25 to 64 make up 9% in Belledune, less than in 97% of Canadian towns
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
Without any certificate: 24% of 25- to 64-year-olds (typical: 9.5%).
In work on census day: 33% of adults
These rates date from May 2021, during the pandemic, and run lower than a normal year’s. Four labour figures from the census. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
33% of residents 15 and over have a job, against a typical 58% across Canada’s towns; 39% are 65 or more.
The towns around Belledune are all younger
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are. The nearest places to Belledune with figures are 23–29 km away.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belledune | 1,379 | — | 59.2 | 39% | 1.9% |
| Petit-Rocher | 2,019 | 23.1 km | 56 | 33% | 1.3% |
| Beresford | 6,543 | 23.1 km | 50.8 | 23% | 0.9% |
| Carleton-sur-Mer | 4,175 | 24.5 km | 52.8 | 30% | 1.5% |
| Nigadoo | 1,102 | 26.1 km | 50 | 25% | 2% |
| Maria | 2,770 | 28.6 km | 53.2 | 32% | 1.8% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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.
- Against New Brunswick’s towns and Canada’s towns. Provincial and national yardsticks: New Brunswick’s towns and neighbourhoods of at least 2,500 residents, and all Canadian towns of that size. No whole city and no First Nations reserve is in either median.
- 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.
Questions about Belledune’s residents
What is the average age in Belledune?
The median age is 59.2. 7.9% are under 15 and 39% 65 or older.
Is Belledune bilingual?
21% of residents can speak both English and French (typical across Canada’s towns: 7.5%); 1.5% speak French only and 78% English only. French is the mother tongue of 13%.
How diverse is Belledune?
Immigrants: 1.9% (Canada’s towns: 17%). Visible minority: 0%. Indigenous identity: 7.9%.
What religion are people in Belledune?
15% said they have no religion and 86% that they are Christian; 0% named another faith.
Is Belledune good for families?
7.9% of residents are under 15 (Canada’s towns: 16%); couple families are 44% of households and one-parent families 10%. Schools near Belledune are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Belledune?
Half of Belledune’s households had more than $48,400 in 2020, before tax; across Canada’s towns the median was $86,000.
What is the population of Belledune?
About 1,379, by Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025. The 2021 Census found 1,325 people in Belledune, 7% fewer than 2016.
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).