Photo: Kyla Curtis · Public domainHouseholds in Botwood have lower incomes than those in 96% of Canadian towns
Botwood counted 52% of its 15-to-64s in jobs at the 2021 census; the middle of Canadian towns is 73%. Commutes from Botwood average 19.3 minutes, and 4.6% take an hour or more. In May 2021, unemployment in Botwood reached 22%, and the middle of Canadian towns sits at 9.9%.
Jobs and income in Botwood: what the figures say
Fewer people in work than most towns
The 2021 census found 52% of 15-to-64s with a job (73% in the middle of Canadian towns). Count every adult, retirees too, and the figure is 34%. In work ↓
More unemployment than most towns
On census day in 2021 22% were unemployed, against 9.9% in the middle of Canadian towns; by October 2026 the Labour Force Survey put the area at 10%. Unemployment ↓
Lower incomes than most towns
Half the households here had more than $54,800 in 2020, against $85,900 in the middle of Canadian towns. Household income ↓
Shorter trips than most towns
The average trip to work is 19.3 minutes (26 in the middle of Canadian towns), and 4.6% last an hour or longer. The trip to work ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada’s 2021 Census, its commuting tables, Employment Insurance and the Labour Force Survey.
On jobs and income, Botwood grades D
Better than 13% of Canadian towns on three measures together, #26 of 32 in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Its strongest measure is trip times; its weakest, the share of 15-to-64s in work.
Graded against Canadian towns of 2,500 people or more; less unemployment and a shorter commute count in its favour.
How the grade works
Census 2021 measures, weighed equally against every Canadian town and neighbourhood of 2,500 people or more: the share of residents aged 15 to 64 in work, median household income (2020), the unemployment rate and the average commute. Each becomes a percentile; their average sets the letter.
In and out of work in Botwood
None of the 3 other places of 2,500 people or more in Census Division No. 6 has a smaller share of 15-to-64s in work.
Take in all adults, retirees with them, and only 34% were working. In October 2026, 43% of the wider area’s adults had a job, on the Labour Force Survey’s count. Working or looking, 43% of everyone 15 and over was in the labour force. The census was taken on 11 May 2021, mid-pandemic, when lockdowns had pushed unemployment up and sent many to work from home.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: people in work of any age over residents aged 15 to 64, and the census unemployment rate (15 and over); the 25-to-54 rate is Statistics Canada’s own (98-10-0485). The Labour Force Survey and business counts are context, not grade inputs.
$54,800 a year: the median household in Botwood
Every other place of 2,500 or more in Census Division No. 6 has a higher median. Botwood’s median is 14% below the middle of Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns ($63,700). In 2020 emergency benefits topped up many low incomes, and the census counts them here.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: median total income of households in 2020, before tax (a neighbourhood’s estimated from its dissemination areas’ income groups).
How long the commute from Botwood takes
Statistics Canada’s own average, timed exactly rather than by band, is 16.6 minutes. A quarter-hour or less for 60% of commuters, against 56% in the middle of Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: commuting duration in five bands; our average uses each band’s middle (75 minutes for an hour or more), so it runs about two minutes above Statistics Canada’s own.
About as many people come in to work in Botwood as leave
56% of residents who commute work inside the municipality, against 70% in the middle of Canadian towns.
People with no fixed workplace are in neither count.
44% of Botwood’s residents in work leave it to work; Grand Falls-Windsor takes the most
- Grand Falls-Windsor55
- Peterview50
- Northern Arm45
- Bishop's Falls30
- Division No. 8, Subd. E15
- Division No. 6, Subd. C10
- Badger10
- Point of Bay10
- Leading Tickles10
- Grand Falls-Windsor140
- Point Leamington55
- Bishop's Falls15
- Gander10
- Lewisporte10
- Enfield10
- Fort McMurray10
- Qikiqtaaluk, Unorganized (NO)10
In the other direction the biggest source is Grand Falls-Windsor, with 55.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census (98-10-0459): commuting flows between municipalities (census subdivisions), rounded to 5; linked names have their own pages.
Botwood gets to work without a car for 5.3% of commuters
The car takes 88% of commuters here, under the 92% in the middle of Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns. Fewer worked at home than in the middle of Canadian towns: 4.4% against 21%. Transit barely figures here, against 3.5% in the middle of Canadian towns.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: main mode of commuting; average durations by mode from table 98-10-0458 (whole municipalities only).
In Census Division No. 6, 16% fewer people receive EI than in 2019
That works out to around 9.4 beneficiaries per 100 people aged 15 to 64 across the division. Over the year to August 2026, the count fell by 11%. February 2021 was the busiest month, with 5,240 people on EI, 1.8 times 2019’s average.
Statistics Canada, Employment Insurance beneficiaries by census division (14-10-0323): all income benefits, not seasonally adjusted. EI beneficiaries published for Census Division No. 6, not by town. EI counts are context, not part of any grade.
People receiving Employment Insurance each month, as a share of the 2019 average (100).
Botwood on foot: a B+ grade
Better than 68% of Canadian towns on two measures together, #6 of 32 in Newfoundland and Labrador.
OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL); active commuting from the 2021 Census.
For jobs and income, Botwood is 477th of 553 Canadian towns of 2,500 to 3,900
| # | Place | People | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Upper Mount Royal Alberta | 2,758 | 83% | 12% | $188K | A+ |
| 2 | Central River Heights Manitoba | 2,736 | 84% | 5.4% | $137K | A+ |
| 3 | Crescentwood Manitoba | 3,060 | 87% | 5% | $123K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 15 | Logy Bay-Middle Cove-Outer Cove Newfoundland and Labrador | 2,601 | 78% | 9.5% | $130K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 382 | Channel-Port aux Basques Newfoundland and Labrador | 3,379 | 61% | 17% | $63K | C |
| … | ||||||
| 413 | Holyrood Newfoundland and Labrador | 2,749 | 67% | 12% | $89K | C− |
| … | ||||||
| 475 | Black River-Matheson Ontario | 2,899 | 72% | 8.6% | $76K | D |
| 476 | Placentia Newfoundland and Labrador | 3,374 | 62% | 16% | $59K | D |
| 477 | Botwood Newfoundland and Labrador | 2,884 | 52% | 22% | $55K | D |
| 478 | Burrows-Keewatin Manitoba | 2,506 | 65% | 8.1% | $58K | D |
| 479 | Richmond County, Subdivision C Nova Scotia | 3,444 | 61% | 15% | $62K | D |
| … | ||||||
| 553 | Division No. 8, Subdivision L Newfoundland and Labrador | 2,724 | 43% | 30% | $51K | D− |
Ordered by Jobs & income Grade: the top three, the places either side of Botwood, and others among Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns.
Jobs and income in the places around Botwood
No closer places have figures: these lie 17–30 km from Botwood.
| Place | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Average trip | Jobs | Walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Botwood | 52% | 22% | $55K | 19.3 min | D | B+ |
| Bishop's Falls 17.1 km | 56% | 19% | $59K | 20.4 min | D | C+ |
| Lewisporte 24.7 km | 59% | 19% | $59K | 18.4 min | C− | B |
| Grand Falls-Windsor 30.2 km | 62% | 16% | $66K | 13.9 min | C | B |
The people of each place: the share in work, unemployment, household income and the average commute, with both grades once they come.
What this data can and can’t tell you
What each figure measures for Botwood, where it comes from, and what it leaves out.
- The Labour Force Survey. The most recent unemployment rate on the page comes from this monthly survey, which covers the wider metro area or economic region, not the town.
- In work. Working residents per resident of working age (15 to 64), from the 2021 Census.
- Unemployment. The census-week jobless rate for residents 15 and over. Its base is the labour force, those employed plus those actively looking.
- Household income. The census median total income of households in 2020, before tax; a neighbourhood’s is estimated from its dissemination areas’ income groups.
- Trip times. The census asks how long the trip to work usually takes, in bands; our average uses each band’s middle, so it runs a little above Statistics Canada’s timed average.
- Where people commute. Jobs count everyone whose usual workplace lies in the municipality, residents or commuters from elsewhere, from Statistics Canada’s home-by-workplace table.
- Employment Insurance. How many people in the census division drew Employment Insurance each month; it moves with layoffs and hiring, yet people who don’t qualify are absent from it.
- Which towns we compare. Every town and city neighbourhood with 2,500 residents or more; whole cities and First Nations reserves are left out. Each middle figure is a median.
Questions about work in Botwood
How long is the commute from Botwood?
About 19.3 minutes on average, with 60% under a quarter-hour and 4.6% at an hour or longer.
Where do people in Botwood work?
56% work in Botwood itself; of those who leave, the most go to Grand Falls-Windsor (140), then Point Leamington (55).
How many jobs are there in Botwood?
Some 605 people worked in Botwood at the 2021 census: 1 jobs per working resident with a fixed workplace. Statistics Canada counted 87 businesses with employees in June 2026.
What is the unemployment rate in Botwood?
At the 2021 census 22% of the labour force had no job and was looking (9.9% in the middle of Canadian towns). The latest monthly survey, for the South Coast-Burin Peninsula and Notre Dame-Central-Bonavista Bay economic region, gives 10% in October 2026.
What is the average household income in Botwood?
At $54,800 before tax in 2020, the median household in Botwood compares with $85,900 in the middle of Canadian towns.
How do people in Botwood get to work?
Driving takes 88% of commuters to work, 5.3% walk, and on census day 4.4% of those in work were at home.
Sources: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census of Population (Census Profile) · Statistics Canada, tables 98-10-0458 and 98-10-0459 (commuting) · Statistics Canada, table 14-10-0323 (EI beneficiaries) · Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey (14-10-0459, 14-10-0462) · Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Counts (33-10-1176) · grades: TownRatings. 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).