Photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/72874821@N03/ · CC BY 2.0A median age of 56.4: Fogo Island is older than 96% of Canadian towns
25% of households rent their home across Canada’s towns, against 8.3% in Fogo Island. The share of children under 15 stands at 12%. Lower than in 99% of Canadian towns: 4.8% of residents lived at another address a year earlier. There are 6% fewer residents than in 2016.
What stands out about the people of Fogo Island
Older than most towns
Fogo Island’s median age is 56.4; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 31% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Fewer people than before
Fogo Island went from 2,244 people in 2016 to 2,117 in 2021, −6%: slower growth than in 97% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
From 2016 to 2021, 97% of Canadian towns grew faster than Fogo Island: −6%
All figures are the 2021 Census’s unless another date is shown. The census counts of 2016 and 2021, the estimate after them, and the change set beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
By July 2025, the estimate was 7% lower. Medians for comparison: +4% across Canada’s towns; −2% across Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns.
Residents aged 65 and over: 31%, a higher share than 94% of Canadian towns
Residents by five-year age band, each beside the typical town (the tick).
Residents aged 15 to 24 make up 7.1%, against 11% across Canada’s towns. By way of comparison, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
2.2 people per household, fewer than in 74% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
The share of one-parent families is 6.7%, against 8.2% across Canada’s towns. In Fogo Island, 27% of households are one person living alone.
Married residents 15 and over make up 57% in Fogo Island, more than in 87% of Canadian towns
Married, common-law, single: residents 15 and over.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Singles who have never married make up 18% of adults, beside a typical 27%. 10% of residents 15 and over live common-law.
95% of households live in a single-detached house, a share 96% of Canadian towns don’t reach
Dwelling types, tenure and age of the housing. 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
33% of homes were built before 1961 and 7.8% in 2001 or later. Typically, 64% of households live in a single-detached house across Canada’s towns. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns.
Median gross household income: $62,400 a year
Incomes are 2020’s, the census’s reference year, and include pandemic benefits such as CERB. What households took in before tax, at the middle and across income groups.
Households by income · share of households
At $62,400, the middle household in Fogo Island earned 27% less than the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). $63,600 is the median household income across Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns. The pandemic’s benefits: 27% of income recipients, against 28% in the typical town.
0.5% of residents are immigrants
Where immigrants were born and when they came, and how recently residents moved in.
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
17% of residents are immigrants across Canada’s towns, against 0.5% in Fogo Island. Residents without Canadian citizenship are rarer here than in 99% of Canadian towns.
Fogo Island ranks below 99% of Canadian towns on residents with no religion: 4.1%
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Set against 2.8% across Canada’s towns, 4.8% of residents have an Indigenous identity in Fogo Island. Across Canada’s towns, the share of residents with no religion is 35%.
English is the mother tongue of 100%, and 1.4% speak French as well
The official languages residents can speak, and the ones they learned first.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
7.5% of residents speak English and French across Canada’s towns, against 1.4% in Fogo Island. Across Fogo Island, 0.2% of residents have French as their mother tongue.
A smaller share of degree holders aged 25 to 64 than 96% of Canadian towns: 9.5%
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
At the other end, 24% hold no certificate, diploma or degree, against a typical 9.5%.
41% of adults were employed in May 2021
Counted in May 2021, during COVID-19, these rates catch the job market before it had recovered. Work, briefly: employment, unemployment, participation and working from home. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
The employment rate of 41% is below the typical 58% across Canada’s towns; 31% of residents are 65 or over.
A younger town than 1 of the 3 around it: Fogo Island
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are. Fogo Island has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 40–43 km out.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fogo Island | 1,979 | — | 56.4 | 31% | 0.5% |
| Division No. 8, Subdivision H | 1,798 | 40.0 km | 56 | 32% | 0% |
| Twillingate | 2,044 | 41.1 km | 58.4 | 37% | 0.7% |
| Division No. 8, Subdivision L | 2,724 | 42.7 km | 53.6 | 29% | 0% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- What these tables don’t give. For origins the charts stop at visible minority and Indigenous identity, and the Census Profile has nothing on unpaid care, cars or the internet, or on change by age since 2016.
- 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 Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns and Canada’s towns. The middle of Newfoundland and Labrador’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.
Questions about Fogo Island’s residents
What religion are people in Fogo Island?
Most often Christian (96%) or no religion (4.1%); other religions make up 0.2%.
Is Fogo Island good for families?
Children under 15 are 12% of residents, against 16% across Canada’s towns. Couple families make up 63% of households and one-parent families 6.7%. Schools near Fogo Island are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Fogo Island?
Median total household income in Fogo Island was $62,400 in 2020, against a median of $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Fogo Island?
The latest figure is an estimate: 1,979 residents in July 2025. At the 2021 Census, Fogo Island counted 2,117, 6% fewer than 2016.
What is the average age in Fogo Island?
Half the residents are older than 56.4 and half younger; 12% are children under 15 and 31% are 65 or over.
Is Fogo Island bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 1.4% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 99% speak only English and 0% only French; 0.2% grew up with French.
How diverse is Fogo Island?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 17% are immigrants; here, 0.5%. A visible minority makes up 0% and Indigenous residents 4.8%.
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).