Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0A median age of 54.8: Fortune is older than 95% of Canadian towns
Against a figure of 64% across Canada’s towns, the share of households in single-detached houses in Fortune comes in at 94%. Here, just over one in ten residents said they have no religion. Immigrants are rarer here than in 99% of Canadian towns. The latest estimate, for July 2025, is 1,249 residents; the 2021 Census found 615 households.
What stands out about the people of Fortune
Fewer people than before
Between the 2016 and 2021 censuses, Fortune went from 1,401 to 1,285 residents (−8%), slower growth than in 99% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Older than most towns
The middle resident of Fortune is 54.8; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 32% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
A −8% change since 2016: slower than 99% of Canadian towns
Every figure here comes from the 2021 Census unless it carries another date. The census counts of 2016 and 2021, the estimate after them, and the change set beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
For comparison, the median is +4% across Canada’s towns and −2% across Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns. By July 2025, the estimate was 3% lower.
Fortune ranks above 96% of Canadian towns on residents aged 65 and over: 32%
Residents by five-year age band, each beside the typical town (the tick).
11% of residents are aged 15 to 24 across Canada’s towns, against 9.7% in Fortune. To put it in context, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About 96 men for every 100 women.
2.1 people per household, fewer than in 83% 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-person households is 30%, against 27% across Canada’s towns. The census found that 7.3% of households are one-parent families in Fortune.
In Fortune, 54% of residents 15 and over are married, more than in 77% of Canadian towns
Married, common-law, single: residents 15 and over.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Never married and not common-law: 20% of adults (typical: 27%). The census found that 10% of residents 15 and over live common-law in Fortune.
Fortune sits below 65% of Canadian towns for renter households (19%)
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
Just over a fifth of homes were built before 1961 and 5.7% in 2001 or later. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns. Renter households: 25% across Canada’s towns, for comparison.
Households here have a median income of $56,400 a year
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
Fortune’s median household took in $56,400 before tax, 34% less than the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Across Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns the median is $63,600. COVID-19 benefits went to 26% of residents with an income (typical: 28%).
Fortune ranks below 79% of Canadian towns on residents who moved in within the year: 8.3%
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
Residents without Canadian citizenship are rarer here than in 99% of Canadian towns. The comparison figure for residents who moved in within the year is 11% across Canada’s towns.
Indigenous residents make up 5.4% in Fortune, more than in 72% of Canadian towns
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. By way of comparison, 2.8% of residents have an Indigenous identity across Canada’s towns.
English is the mother tongue of 99%, and 1.2% 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
Residents whose mother tongue is French: 0.4%, below 95% of Canadian towns. 7.5% of residents speak English and French across Canada’s towns, against 1.2% in Fortune.
Only 8.8% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher in Fortune
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
At the other end, 22% hold no certificate, diploma or degree, against a typical 9.5%. Set beside that, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
An employment rate of 36%
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.
Across Canada’s towns the typical rate is 58%, above this 36%; 32% of residents are 65 or over.
1 of the 4 nearest towns are older than Fortune
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are. Distances here run 6–49 km: that is how far the nearest places with figures are from Fortune.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fortune | 1,249 | — | 54.8 | 32% | 0% |
| Grand Bank | 2,082 | 6.2 km | 58.4 | 38% | 0.5% |
| St. Lawrence | 1,138 | 37.0 km | 54.8 | 31% | 0% |
| Harbour Breton | 1,481 | 44.9 km | 52 | 25% | 0% |
| Burin | 2,249 | 49.5 km | 51.2 | 25% | 1.3% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The census’s own words. In the census, “visible minority” is the Employment Equity Act’s term for people who are non-white in colour or race and not Indigenous. Like immigrant status, Indigenous identity and religion, which residents reported themselves, it is compared with other towns, never turned into a label.
- Against Newfoundland and Labrador’s towns and Canada’s towns. Provincial and national yardsticks: Newfoundland and Labrador’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. Missing from the census as published: unpaid care, cars and internet access, and the shift in each age band since 2016. Ethnic origins past visible minority and Indigenous identity aren’t charted here.
Questions about Fortune’s residents
What is the population of Fortune?
About 1,249, by Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025. The 2021 Census found 1,285 people in Fortune, 8% fewer than 2016.
What is the average age in Fortune?
The median age is 54.8. 11% are under 15 and 32% 65 or older.
Is Fortune bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 1.2% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 99% speak only English and 0% only French; 0.4% grew up with French.
How diverse is Fortune?
Immigrants: 0% (Canada’s towns: 17%). Visible minority: 0%. Indigenous identity: 5.4%.
What religion are people in Fortune?
11% said they have no religion and 90% that they are Christian; 0% named another faith.
Is Fortune good for families?
11% of residents are under 15 (Canada’s towns: 16%); couple families are 57% of households and one-parent families 7.3%. Schools near Fortune are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Fortune?
Half of Fortune’s households had more than $56,400 in 2020, before tax; across Canada’s towns the median was $86,000.
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).