Photo: P199 · CC BY-SA 3.0Above 98% of Canadian towns: 24% of residents have an Indigenous identity
17% of immigrants arrived between 2011 and 2021, against 27% across Canada’s towns. There are 1% more residents than in 2016. One-parent families account for 10%. Compared with other places, residents without Canadian citizenship are scarce here: 0.8%, fewer than in 92% of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of Cochrane
First Nations, Métis and Inuit residents
An Indigenous identity is reported by 24% of residents, more than in 98% of Canadian towns, and 14% are Registered or Treaty Indians. Identity & religion ↓
A bilingual town
49% of residents can hold a conversation in both English and French, more than in 90% of Canadian towns; 2.2% speak French only and 48% English only. English & French ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Bilingual residents: 49%, a higher share than 90% of Canadian towns
All figures are the 2021 Census’s unless another date is shown. Knowledge of the two official languages, first languages, and the language of home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
At home: English 74%, French 22%. As a reference point, 7.5% of residents speak English and French across Canada’s towns. Higher than in 80% of Canadian towns: 33% of residents have French as their mother tongue.
Slower than most: +1% since 2016, behind 69% of Canadian towns
The census counts of 2016 and 2021, the estimate after them, and the change set beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025 is 10% higher again. Medians for comparison: +4% across Canada’s towns; +6% across Ontario’s towns.
18% of residents are under 15, more than in 70% of Canadian towns
Age bands of five years, the town’s bars against the typical town’s ticks.
More residents are 55–59 than any other five-year age: 8% of residents. The wider picture: 16% of residents are under 15 across Canada’s towns. On residents aged 65 and over, Cochrane sits higher than 61% of Canadian towns: 21%.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Cochrane, 43.6. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
Cochrane: 31% of households are one person living alone, above 66% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
The average household has 2.3 people, against 2.4 across Canada’s towns. Across Canada’s towns, the share of one-person households is 27%.
A larger share of common-law partners than 75% of Canadian towns: 15%
Residents 15 and over by marital status; the census counts common-law couples separately.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
A quarter of adults have never married and don’t live common-law (typical: 27%). Common-law partners make up 11% across Canada’s towns. Locally, 45% of residents 15 and over are married.
Above 57% of Canadian towns: 29% of households rent their home
Occupied homes by type, by owners and renters, and by when they were built. 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
Older homes outnumber new: 31% predate 1961, 12% date from 2001 or later. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns. For comparison, 25% of households rent their home across Canada’s towns. 10% of homes need major repairs, against a typical 5.8%.
The midpoint household income is $75,500 a year
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 Cochrane had $75,500 before tax, 12% below the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). The figure for Ontario’s towns: $91,600. Pandemic benefits reached 24% of residents with an income, against a typical 28%.
A larger share of residents who moved in within the year than 71% of Canadian towns: 14%
Immigrants, newcomers and movers.
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
Set against 17% across Canada’s towns, 1.7% of residents are immigrants in Cochrane. Across the comparison, just over one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns.
Residents with no religion make up 33% in Cochrane, less than in 55% of Canadian towns
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
The share of visible minority residents trails 85% of Canadian towns: 2%. Across Canada’s towns, residents with no religion come to 35%.
A smaller share of degree holders aged 25 to 64 than 87% of Canadian towns: 13%
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
No certificate, diploma or degree is held by 16%; in the typical town the share is 9.5%. For comparison, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
A job for 52% of residents aged 15 and over
The census was taken in May 2021, during the pandemic, so these rates show a labour market still recovering. The census’s labour rates, in brief. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
With 21% of residents 65 or over, the employment rate of 52% sits under the typical 58% across Canada’s towns.
16th highest median age among 41 towns of 5,819 to 6,079
Median age of the Canadian towns nearest in population; hover a dot.
They run from University, at 31.1, to Nutana Urban Centre, at 62. Verchères (42.8), Stettler (43.2), Lawfield (45.3) and Underwood (45.6): the towns nearest Cochrane in median age.
Every neighbour of Cochrane has an older population
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are. The nearest places to Cochrane with figures are 44–49 km away.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cochrane | 5,948 | — | 43.6 | 21% | 1.7% |
| Iroquois Falls | 4,640 | 43.6 km | 48 | 23% | 2.4% |
| Cochrane, Unorganized, North Part | 2,770 | 46.9 km | 48.8 | 19% | 3.4% |
| Smooth Rock Falls | 1,259 | 49.3 km | 58 | 35% | 1.7% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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.
- 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 Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns. Provincial and national yardsticks: Ontario’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.
Questions about Cochrane’s residents
What is the average age in Cochrane?
The median age is 43.6, older than 59% of Canadian towns. 18% are under 15 and 21% 65 or older.
Is Cochrane bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 49% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 48% speak only English and 2.2% only French; 33% grew up with French.
How diverse is Cochrane?
Immigrants: 1.7% (Canada’s towns: 17%). Visible minority: 2%. Indigenous identity: 24%.
What religion are people in Cochrane?
33% said they have no religion and 65% that they are Christian; 1.5% named another faith.
Is Cochrane good for families?
18% of residents are under 15 (Canada’s towns: 16%); couple families are 52% of households and one-parent families 10%. Schools near Cochrane are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Cochrane?
Half of Cochrane’s households had more than $75,500 in 2020, before tax; across Canada’s towns the median was $86,000.
What is the population of Cochrane?
About 5,948, by Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025. The 2021 Census found 5,390 people in Cochrane, 1% 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).