Photo: Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit , Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center · Public domainA median age of 51.6: Pictou County, Subdivision B is older than 89% of Canadian towns
Renter households make up 15%, against 25% across Canada’s towns. Across Pictou County, Subdivision B, 2.7% of residents are immigrants. Fewer residents who moved in within the year than in 81% of Canadian towns: 8.1%. The 2021 Census found 2,630 households locally; by July 2025 the population was about 6,482.
What stands out about the people of Pictou County, Subdivision B
Older than most towns
Line Pictou County, Subdivision B’s residents up by age and the one in the middle is 51.6; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 27% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
A change of −1% since 2016 leaves Pictou County, Subdivision B behind 82% of Canadian towns
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
The July 2025 estimate adds another 6%. The median across Canada’s towns is +4%, and across Nova Scotia’s towns +2%.
Residents aged 65 and over make up 27% in Pictou County, Subdivision B, more than in 86% of Canadian towns
Residents by five-year age band, each beside the typical town (the tick).
Children under 15 make up 14%, against 16% across Canada’s towns. Against that, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns. 55–59 is the most common age band: 9% of residents.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Pictou County, Subdivision B, 51.6. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
Households here average 2.3 people, below 64% 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.
On the census count, 28% of households are one person living alone. 8.4% of households are one-parent families, about the same as across Canada’s towns.
Married residents 15 and over: 50%, a higher share than 62% of Canadian towns
Married, common-law, single: residents 15 and over.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Just over a fifth of adults are single and have never married; the typical town has 27%. Common-law partners: just over a tenth of the total. By way of comparison, 46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns.
Pictou County, Subdivision B ranks above 76% of Canadian towns on households in single-detached houses: 82%
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
Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in 74% of Canadian towns. The comparison figure for households in single-detached houses is 64% across Canada’s towns. Newer homes outnumber old: 27% date from 2001 or later, 26% from before 1961.
The middle household earns $69,500 a year
The income year is 2020: a year of pandemic benefits such as CERB, which the figures count. Household income before tax: the median, and households by income group.
Households by income · share of households
Half of Pictou County, Subdivision B’s households had a total income below $69,500, 19% under the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). For Nova Scotia’s towns, the median household income is $69,100. 23% of income recipients received COVID-19 emergency or recovery benefits (typical: 28%).
2.7% 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
5.8% of residents are not Canadian citizens across Canada’s towns, against 0.8% in Pictou County, Subdivision B. Of the immigrants living here, 19% came between 2011 and 2021; across Canada’s towns the share is 27%.
37% of residents said they have no religion, more than in 57% of Canadian towns
Residents’ own answers on visible minority, Indigenous identity and religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Here 2.2% of residents belong to a visible minority, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 15%. By way of comparison, just over a third of residents said they have no religion across Canada’s towns. 2.9% of residents have an Indigenous identity.
English is the mother tongue of 97%, and 3.3% 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
At home: English 100%, French 0.1%. On bilingual residents, Pictou County, Subdivision B sits lower than 92% of Canadian towns: 3.3%. Nothing unusual on residents whose mother tongue is French: 0.7%, close to the figure across Canada’s towns.
A smaller share of degree holders aged 25 to 64 than 86% of Canadian towns: 14%
The highest diploma or degree of adults of working age (25 to 64).
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
No certificate, diploma or degree is held by 12%; in the typical town the share is 9.5%. Elsewhere, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
In work on census day: 50% of adults
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.
The employment rate of 50% is below the typical 58% across Canada’s towns; 27% of residents are 65 or over.
41 towns of 6,394 to 6,572 people: this is the 5th oldest
The Canadian towns closest in population, from youngest to oldest.
The youngest is City View (33.5) and the oldest Tweed (53.6). Closest in median age to Pictou County, Subdivision B are Fitzroy (48.3), Beresford (50.8), Mont-Joli (52.8) and Kings County, Subdivision D (52.8).
Pictou County, Subdivision B and its 6 nearest towns: 2 of them are older
Places nearby, shaded by median age, each linked to its page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pictou County, Subdivision B | 6,482 | — | 51.6 | 27% | 2.7% |
| Westville | 3,731 | 3.8 km | 47.2 | 24% | 2.7% |
| Stellarton | 4,251 | 6.9 km | 47.2 | 23% | 2.5% |
| New Glasgow | 10,378 | 10.1 km | 47.6 | 26% | 5.1% |
| Trenton | 2,499 | 12.7 km | 47.6 | 23% | 1.1% |
| Pictou County, Subdivision C | 8,847 | 14.6 km | 52 | 26% | 1.6% |
| Pictou | 3,307 | 17.2 km | 53.2 | 30% | 4.3% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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.
- 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 Nova Scotia’s towns and Canada’s towns. Each comparison is its own median: over Nova Scotia’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, and over all Canadian towns of that size (whole cities and First Nations reserves left out). Percentiles are within Canada only.
Questions about Pictou County, Subdivision B’s residents
Is Pictou County, Subdivision B good for families?
Under 15: 14% (Canada’s towns: 16%). Couple families: 57% of households. One-parent families: 8.4%. Schools near Pictou County, Subdivision B are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Pictou County, Subdivision B?
The median household in Pictou County, Subdivision B took in $69,500 in 2020, against $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Pictou County, Subdivision B?
Pictou County, Subdivision B had about 6,482 residents in July 2025, Statistics Canada estimates; the 2021 Census counted 6,137, about the same as 2016.
What is the average age in Pictou County, Subdivision B?
A median age of 51.6, older than 89% of Canadian towns. Children under 15 make up 14%, and people 65 and over 27%.
Is Pictou County, Subdivision B bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 3.3% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 97% speak only English and 0% only French; 0.7% grew up with French.
How diverse is Pictou County, Subdivision B?
2.7% of residents are immigrants (Canada’s towns: 17%); 2.2% belong to a visible minority and 2.9% have an Indigenous identity.
What religion are people in Pictou County, Subdivision B?
62% are Christian and 37% have no religion; 0.8% follow another religion.
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).