Photo: A Disappearing Act · CC BY-SA 4.0Middleton is older than 88% of Canadian towns: a median age of 51.2
Set against 35% across Canada’s towns, nearly half of residents said they have no religion in Middleton. The 2021 Census found 925 households in the town; by July 2025 the population was about 1,978. Locally, 14% of residents are under 15. Residents who moved in within the year are more common here than in 73% of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of Middleton
Older than most towns
The middle resident of Middleton is 51.2; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 31% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Many people living alone
One-person households make up 43%, more than in 92% of Canadian towns, and 31% of residents are 65 or over. Households ↓
A town of renters
Renters are 54% of households, more than in 88% of Canadian towns, and 29% of households live in an apartment. Homes ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
+2% since 2016, a pace below 63% of Canadian towns
All figures are the 2021 Census’s unless another date is shown. Two census counts, five years apart, and Statistics Canada’s newest estimate.
Change, 2016 to 2021
By July 2025, the estimate had risen a further 6%. Across Canada’s towns, the typical town changed +4%; across Nova Scotia’s towns, +2%.
31% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 94% of Canadian towns
Residents by five-year age band, each beside the typical town (the tick).
The largest age band is 55–59: 7.7% of residents. As a yardstick, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns. 10% of residents are aged 15 to 24, against 11% across Canada’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
54% women, 46% men
About 86 men for every 100 women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
One-person households: 43%, a higher share than 92% of Canadian towns
Who shares a home: household types and sizes.
Against Nova Scotia’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
Across Canada’s towns, the share of one-parent families is 8.2%; Middleton has 9.2%. Households average 2 people. To put it in context, 27% of households are one person living alone across Canada’s towns.
In Middleton, 39% of residents 15 and over are married, fewer than in 70% of Canadian towns
Married, common-law, single: residents 15 and over.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Just over a quarter of adults have never married and don’t live common-law (typical: 27%). For comparison, 46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns. Common-law partners account for 11%.
54% of households rent their home, more than in 88% of Canadian towns
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 one in ten homes need major repairs, against a typical 5.8%. The census found that 52% of households live in a single-detached house in Middleton. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in 74% of Canadian towns. Elsewhere, 25% of households rent their home across Canada’s towns.
$49,200 a year: where the middle household sits
Census incomes are for 2020, the year before the census, when CERB and other pandemic benefits topped up many households. Household income before tax: the median, and households by income group.
Households by income · share of households
The middle household in Middleton had $49,200 before tax, 43% below the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Within Nova Scotia’s towns, the household in the middle had $69,100. The pandemic’s benefits: 22% of income recipients, against 28% in the typical town.
6.8% 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
Of the immigrants living here, 36% came between 2011 and 2021; across Canada’s towns the share is 27%. Middleton has fewer immigrants than 74% of Canadian towns, at 6.8%. Most immigrants were born in the Americas (33%) or in Europe (33%).
5.1% of residents have an Indigenous identity, more than in 71% of Canadian towns
Residents’ own answers on visible minority, Indigenous identity and religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Here 4.6% of residents belong to a visible minority, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 15%. Across the comparison, 2.8% of residents have an Indigenous identity across Canada’s towns.
English is the mother tongue of 96%, and 5.5% 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
The share of bilingual residents trails 69% of Canadian towns: 5.5%. At home: English 99%, French 0.3%.
In Middleton, 18% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, fewer than in 73% of Canadian towns
The highest diploma or degree of adults of working age (25 to 64).
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
With no certificate, diploma or degree: 15%, beside a typical 9.5%. Elsewhere, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
An employment rate of 41%
The census was taken in May 2021, during the pandemic, so these rates show a labour market still recovering. Work, briefly: employment, unemployment, participation and working from home. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
With 31% of residents 65 or over, the employment rate of 41% sits under the typical 58% across Canada’s towns.
1 of the 2 nearest towns are older than Middleton
Places nearby, shaded by median age, each linked to its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Middleton | 1,978 | — | 51.2 | 31% | 6.8% |
| Annapolis County, Subdivision C | 5,694 | 4.3 km | 50 | 23% | 3.3% |
| Annapolis County, Subdivision B | 5,086 | 16.8 km | 54.4 | 30% | 8.3% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The census’s own words. Indigenous identity, immigrant status and religion are as residents answered them. “Visible minority” follows the Employment Equity Act, meaning people other than Indigenous peoples who are non-white in colour or race. We compare these figures across towns; none is a label for a town.
- Against Nova Scotia’s towns and Canada’s towns. A figure here is set beside two middles, the median across Nova Scotia’s places of 2,500 people or more and the median across all Canadian towns that size; reserves and entire cities are excluded from both.
- What these tables don’t give. Unpaid care, car ownership and internet access aren’t in the Census Profile, nor is the change by age since 2016. Ethnic origins other than visible minority and Indigenous identity are left out of the charts.
Questions about Middleton’s residents
What is the population of Middleton?
Statistics Canada estimates 1,978 residents for July 2025; the 2021 Census counted 1,873 in Middleton, 2% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Middleton?
51.2 is the median age. Under 15: 14%. 65 and over: 31%.
Is Middleton bilingual?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 7.5% are bilingual; here 5.5% are. Another 0% speak only French and 95% only English, and French is the first language of 1.4%.
How diverse is Middleton?
Immigrants make up 6.8% of residents, against 17% across Canada’s towns. 4.6% are members of a visible minority, and 5.1% are First Nations, Métis or Inuit.
What religion are people in Middleton?
Christian: 48%. No religion: 49%. Another religion: 2.5%.
Is Middleton good for families?
Across Canada’s towns, a typical 16% of residents are under 15; here, 14%. 40% of households are couple families and 9.2% one-parent families. Schools near Middleton are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Middleton?
$49,200 before tax, in 2020: the middle household’s income in Middleton (Canada’s towns: $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).