Gjoa HavenNunavut
It sits within the Territories (outside CAs, Nvt.) / Territoires (à l'extérieur des AR, Nt) census metropolitan area. Home to 1,464 people, this town lies in Nunavut.
Is Gjoa Haven a good place to live?
Gjoa Haven does especially well on walkability (A+). Jobs & income is a strength too (A−). Where it falls short is health (D−). Crime runs high (D). A median home here was worth $200,000 at the census, or 1.9 times what the middle household earns in a year.
Figures: home values and income: Statistics Canada, Census 2021. An overall grade comes at 2,500 residents for Canadian towns; Gjoa Haven has its subject grades alone.
This town's rent is the 2021 census rent scaled to 2025 by its province's ratio of surveyed to census rents: no rental survey covers it, so its Cost Grade is less sure. No Cost Grade: fewer than 30% of households own their home here, so neither the home value nor the rent is a market price. Safety is the police detachment's figure, shared with the towns and countryside around it. No School Grade: this province doesn't publish comparable results school by school. Health is graded on the health region's survey figures and life expectancy, with the distance to hospital giving the town its own spread.
How Gjoa Haven grades
Each subject compares Gjoa Haven with Canadian towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far it is from the middle. Towns in other countries are graded separately.
An overall grade comes at 2,500 residents for Canadian towns; Gjoa Haven has its subject grades alone.
How TownRatings grades Canadian towns →
What makes Gjoa Haven stand out
The 3 things Gjoa Haven does most differently from other towns.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Gjoa Haven.
Renting in Gjoa Haven costs 3% of household income, less than in Canadian towns
14% of households own their home, lower than Canadian towns (74%).
What homes were worth · The median owner’s estimate at the 2021 census
| Census 2021 | Gjoa Haven | Nunavut | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent as a share of income | 3% | – | 20% |
| Households owning their home | 14% | – | 74% |
| Households spending 30%+ on shelter | 3% | – | 18% |
| Median home value, 2021 | $200,000 | – | $406,000 |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; CMHC Rental Market Survey via Statistics Canada · These are 2021 census values, as owners judged them, set against household income in 2020.
For health, Gjoa Haven sits behind almost every Canadian town
Measured across the Nunavut health region: health survey and life expectancy
A hospital lies 372 km from the typical home, above Canadian towns (3.7 km). For 2022/2024, the region’s figure is 70.9 years at birth, 72.4 for women and 69.4 for men. Across the region, 39% of adults say their health is very good or excellent, much as in Nunavut (39%).
Very good or excellent health · adults, age-standardised
| Health | Gjoa Haven | Nunavut | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Very good or excellent health | 39% | – | 52% |
| Smokers | 63% | – | 12% |
| Life expectancy at birth | 70.9 | – | 81.5 |
| Chronic conditions (average share) | 20% | – | 17% |
Statistics Canada, Canadian Community Health Survey 2023/2024 and life expectancy 2022/2024; Open Database of Healthcare Facilities
Few places are as safe from hazards as Gjoa Haven: it beats 97% of Canadian towns
Seismic risk in Gjoa Haven sits near the middle: $0.019 of expected damage per $1,000 of buildings a year, the typical town $0.030. No one has filed a flood map for Gjoa Haven on the national inventory.
Radon tests above the guideline · share of tested homes, 200 Bq/m³
| Hazards | Gjoa Haven | Nunavut | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radon tests above the guideline | 0% | – | 6.6% |
| Earthquake loss per $1,000 of buildings a year | $0.019 | – | $0.030 |
NRCan seismic risk model and burned areas, Health Canada radon survey, the Flood Hazard Map Inventory
Crime runs heavier where Gjoa Haven is policed than in Canadian towns, at an index of 190
The force’s area logs 61.2 violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year. For violence alone, its police area’s index was 269, above Canadian towns (86). Add to that, across its police area, there are 148.9 property incidents per 1,000 residents a year. For Crime Severity Index, Violent Crime Severity Index, violent crime and property crime per 1,000, the only official count covers all of the Gjoa Haven detachment area, Gjoa Haven included.
Year by year · Crime Severity Index for each year
| 2023–2025 | Gjoa Haven | Nunavut | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crime | 61.2 | – | 12 |
| Property crime per 1,000 | 148.9 | – | 31.2 |
| Crime Severity Index | 190 | – | 67 |
| Violent Crime Severity Index | 269 | – | 86 |
Statistics Canada, Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, 2023–2025 average
More of Gjoa Haven’s residents have an Indigenous identity than in Canadian towns: 96%
0.7% of residents came to Canada as immigrants, lower than Canadian towns (6.4%).
Ages · Share of residents in each age group, Census 2021
Schooling · Highest qualification, residents 15 and over
Women and men · all residents
Women make up 47.4% of Gjoa Haven
By the 2021 count the town had 640 women and 710 men, while Canada has 50.9% women.
| Gjoa Haven | Nunavut | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 37% | – | 16% |
| 15 to 64 | 58% | – | 64% |
| 65+ | 5.2% | – | 19% |
| No certificate, diploma or degree | 67% | – | 16% |
| Postsecondary qualification | 20% | – | 56% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; Nunavut and Canada: medians of towns of 2,500+
The nearest high school to Gjoa Haven is 1,043 km away
| School | Level | Students | System |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qiqirtaq High SchoolIn Gjoa HavenElementary | Elementary | – | English public |
| Schools within 3 km | Gjoa Haven | Nunavut | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nearest secondary school | 1,043 km | – | 1.2 km |
| Nearest elementary school | 1,043 km | – | 0.5 km |
Statistics Canada’s Open Database of Educational Facilities · Towns in Nunavut aren’t in the schools rankings: the province publishes no results school by school.
Summers stay cool in Gjoa Haven: July afternoons reach 12.3°C, below Canadian towns
Counting rain and snow alike, 190 mm falls in a year, below Canadian towns (883 mm). On a January night, the temperature in Gjoa Haven falls to about −36.0°C. Most of the snow comes in October, about 33 cm. Rain and snow peak in August, at 31 mm.
Average high by season · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Normals, 1991–2020 | Gjoa Haven | Nunavut | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| July afternoon high | 12.3°C | – | 25.5°C |
| January night low | −36.0°C | – | −13.5°C |
| Days with frost a year | 287 | – | 159 |
| Precipitation a year | 190 mm | – | 883 mm |
Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Gjoa Haven)
Commuters in Gjoa Haven have a short way to work, 9 min on average, less than in Canadian towns
How working residents got to work · census 2021
| Census 2021 | Gjoa Haven | Nunavut | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip | 9 min | – | 26 min |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021 (labour and commuting) · These are May 2021 figures, gathered while COVID-19 kept many people home or out of work.
A normal November in Gjoa Haven runs from −24°C to −17°C
Hour-by-hour figures come from ECCC’s Gjoa Haven forecast, on the Weather page. In November, the normal is 11 mm of rain and snow. About 14 cm of snow falls in a normal November.
Normal highs, the months ahead · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Season | High | Low | Rain and snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | −28°C | −35°C | 23 mm |
| Spring | −16°C | −23°C | 39 mm |
| Summer | 9°C | 2°C | 68 mm |
| Autumn | −7°C | −12°C | 61 mm |
ECCC normals, 1991–2020 (Gjoa Haven); the forecast is on the Weather page
Only 34% of electors voted in Nunavut in 2021, fewer than in 99% of Canada’s ridings
Without an open map of the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut’s ridings, this page can’t say which one Gjoa Haven is in.
Wikidata, MAMH, MMAH, Statistics Canada
No public library is mapped in or near Gjoa Haven
Library statistics aren’t published openly in Nunavut, so there are no visit or loan figures for Gjoa Haven.
Provincial library statistics, OpenStreetMap, the CRA and Statistics Canada
Gjoa Haven has no protected land within 10 km
2 beaches are mapped within 5 km, none with a name. The nearest national park is more than 100 km away.
Protected land · of the land within 10 km
| Outdoors | Gjoa Haven | Nunavut | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protected land within 10 km | 0% | – | 2.3% |
| Public protected areas within 10 km | 0 | – | 4 |
Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD), OpenStreetMap routes and beaches
97% of Gjoa Haven’s homes date from 1961 or later
| Heritage | Gjoa Haven | Nunavut | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1961 | 3.4% | – | 18% |
Canadian Register of Historic Places, Directory of Federal Heritage Designations, Québec’s Répertoire du patrimoine culturel, Wikidata; Census 2021 homes by period
Everything we know about Gjoa Haven
About Gjoa Haven
Town in Nunavut
TownRatings follows Statistics Canada’s map: Gjoa Haven is one municipality in Nunavut, figures and all.
Statistics Canada: population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155), Census of Population 2021, 2021 census boundaries.
- Population
- 1,464 (people, 2025 estimate)
- Province or territory
- Nunavut
- Census division
- Kitikmeot
- Metro area
- Territories (outside CAs, Nvt.) / Territoires (à l'extérieur des AR, Nt)
- Census subdivision
- 6208081
Questions about Gjoa Haven
Is Gjoa Haven a young town or an old one?
The typical resident is 23 (Canadian towns: 45.2), with seniors at 5% of the population and under-15s at 37%.
What kind of homes are in Gjoa Haven?
Mostly 48% single-detached houses (the median of Canadian towns: 64%), with 0% of homes in buildings of five or more storeys.
Has Gjoa Haven grown?
It added people: 1,324 in 2016, 1,349 in 2021, 1.9% more, where the middle of Canadian towns grew 4.1%. Statistics Canada’s 2025 estimate is 1,464.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021 · population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155) and 2021 census boundaries · Uniform Crime Reporting Survey 2023–25 (35-10-0026, 35-10-0183 to 35-10-0190) · CMHC rents as published by Statistics Canada (34-10-0133) · grades by 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).