Photo: Kitchener-Waterloo Record · Public domainOne-parent families: 11%, a higher share than 82% of Canadian towns
Households in buildings of five or more storeys: 5.9%, above 74% of Canadian towns. At the same time, half of Cambridge’s residents are under 39.2, younger than in 69% of Canadian towns. This Ontario town had about 165,354 residents in July 2025, by Statistics Canada’s estimate, and 51,270 households at the 2021 Census. Across Cambridge, nearly a quarter of residents are immigrants.
Growth of +7% since 2016 puts Cambridge ahead of 66% of Canadian towns
Unless a figure says otherwise, it is from the 2021 Census. How the population moved between the last two censuses, and since.
Change, 2016 to 2021
The July 2025 estimate adds another 19%. Across Ontario’s towns the median is +6%, and across Canada’s towns +4%.
Cambridge sits below 66% of Canadian towns for residents aged 65 and over (16%)
Every five-year age group as a share of residents; ticks mark the typical town.
Children under 15: 18%, above just over two thirds of Canadian towns. To put it in context, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns. The largest age band is 30–34: 7.2% of residents.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Cambridge, 39.2. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
Cambridge households average 2.7 people, larger than in 76% of Canadian towns
Private households by type and size.
Against Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
Across Canada’s towns, the share of one-person households is 27%; Cambridge has 23%.
A lower share of common-law partners than 58% of Canadian towns, at 9.7%
How adults live as couples, or don’t, with common-law unions shown on their own.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
28% of adults are single and have never married; the typical town has 27%. For comparison, just over one in ten residents 15 and over live common-law across Canada’s towns.
More renter households than 61% of Canadian towns: 31%
The kinds of homes people live in, who owns and who rents, and how old the homes are. 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
Across Canada’s towns, the share of households in single-detached houses is 64%; Cambridge has 57%. 24% of homes were built in 2001 or later, more than the 23% built before 1961. The usual figure: a quarter of households rent their home across Canada’s towns.
The midpoint household income is $93,000 a year
Incomes here are for 2020, the year before the census, CERB and other pandemic benefits included. Total household income: the median household, and the spread from low to high.
Households by income · share of households
Cambridge’s median household took in $93,000 before tax, 8% more than the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). $91,600 is the median household income across Ontario’s towns. Emergency and recovery benefits reached 30% of those with an income, beside a typical 28%.
In Cambridge, 7.7% of residents are not Canadian citizens, more than in 59% of Canadian towns
Birthplaces and arrival years of immigrants, citizenship and recent moves.
Immigrants, by continent of birth · share of all residents; the bar runs to 35%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
Most recent wave: nearly a quarter of immigrants arrived in 2011–2021 (Canada’s towns: 27%). Residents without Canadian citizenship: 5.8% across Canada’s towns, for comparison. Immigrants here were most often born in Asia (42%), then in Europe (38%). 12% lived at another address a year earlier, more than the typical 11% across Canada’s towns.
Visible minority residents make up 24% in Cambridge, more than in 61% of Canadian towns
Visible minority, Indigenous identity and religion, as residents answered the census.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
35% of residents said they have no religion across Canada’s towns, against 31% in Cambridge. Visible minority residents: 15% across Canada’s towns, for comparison. Among other religions: Muslim (6.8%), Sikh (2.9%) and Hindu (2.9%). At 1.9%, the share of Indigenous residents is lower than in 63% of Canadian towns.
75% have English as their mother tongue; 5.4% also speak French
Who can speak English and French, mother tongue, and the language spoken most at home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
At home, 11% mostly speak another language; 1.8% speak neither English nor French. Bilingual residents are rarer here than in 70% of Canadian towns. Residents whose mother tongue is French are about as common here as across Canada’s towns, at 1.1%.
Below 54% of Canadian towns: 25% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher
From no certificate to a master’s: residents 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
Some 11% have no certificate, diploma or degree, against a typical 9.5%. The wider picture: 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
In work on census day: 58% of adults
These rates date from May 2021, during the pandemic, and run lower than a normal year’s. Four labour figures from the census. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
58% of residents 15 and over have a job, in line with the typical 58% across Canada’s towns.
Youngest by rank: 11th of 41 towns of 105,520 to 243,107 people
Towns of about this size, placed by median age.
They run from Milton, at 36, to Cape Breton, at 50.4. Closest in median age to Cambridge are Oshawa (39.2), Bowmanville (39.2), Whitby (40) and Chilliwack (40.4).
Nearby, 2 of 6 towns have older populations than Cambridge
The nearest places, coloured by median age; each links to its own page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cambridge | 165,354 | — | 39.2 | 16% | 23% |
| Pioneer Tower West | 4,122 | 7.7 km | 43.5 | 18% | 29% |
| Doon South | 15,044 | 9.6 km | 33.9 | 7.7% | 36% |
| Pioneer Park | 8,781 | 10.1 km | 35.4 | 15% | 26% |
| Centreville Chicopee | 10,291 | 10.6 km | 37.4 | 16% | 29% |
| Grand River South | 10,723 | 10.9 km | 35.9 | 9.4% | 35% |
| Idlewood | 5,005 | 11.6 km | 45.5 | 19% | 27% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The census’s own words. These are self-reported answers: Indigenous identity, immigrant status, religion. The census’s “visible minority” comes from the Employment Equity Act (non-white in colour or race, Indigenous peoples aside), and the page sets each beside other towns without labelling any.
- Against Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns. For each measure we take the median of Ontario’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, then the median of all Canadian towns. Neither counts whole cities or reserves, and every percentile is a Canadian one.
- 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 Cambridge’s residents
What is the average age in Cambridge?
A median age of 39.2, younger than 69% of Canadian towns. Children under 15 make up 18%, and people 65 and over 16%.
Is Cambridge bilingual?
5.4% of residents can speak both English and French (typical across Canada’s towns: 7.5%); 0.1% speak French only and 93% English only. French is the mother tongue of 1.1%.
How diverse is Cambridge?
23% of residents are immigrants (Canada’s towns: 17%); 24% belong to a visible minority and 1.9% have an Indigenous identity.
What religion are people in Cambridge?
55% are Christian and 31% have no religion; 14% follow another religion.
Is Cambridge good for families?
Under 15: 18% (Canada’s towns: 16%). Couple families: 54% of households. One-parent families: 11%. Schools near Cambridge are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Cambridge?
The median household in Cambridge took in $93,000 in 2020, against $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Cambridge?
Cambridge had about 165,354 residents in July 2025, Statistics Canada estimates; the 2021 Census counted 138,479, 7% more than 2016.
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).