Photo: Jfvoll · CC BY-SA 4.0Household incomes in Drayton are higher than in 92% of Canadian towns
Home was the workplace for 31% of its workers in May 2021; the middle of Canadian towns is 21%. The census counted 1,900 people working in Drayton and 3,255 residents commuting to a fixed workplace. Drayton counted 86% of its 15-to-64s in jobs at the 2021 census, next to 73% for the middle of Canadian towns.
The work numbers behind Drayton
More people in work than most towns
The 2021 census found 86% of 15-to-64s with a job (73% in the middle of Canadian towns). Count every adult, retirees too, and the figure is 71%. In work ↓
Less unemployment than most towns
3.8% of the labour force was out of work at the 2021 census (9.9% in the middle of Canadian towns); the Labour Force Survey had the area at 6.5% in October 2026. Unemployment ↓
Higher incomes than most towns
Half the households here had more than $108,800 in 2020, against $85,900 in the middle of Canadian towns. Household income ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada’s 2021 Census, its commuting tables, Employment Insurance and the Labour Force Survey.
On jobs and income, Drayton grades A
Better than 94% of Canadian towns on three measures together, #19 of 866 in Ontario.
Its strongest measure is the share of 15-to-64s in work; its weakest, trip times.
Graded against Canadian towns of 2,500 people or more; less unemployment and a shorter commute count in its favour.
How the grade works
Census 2021 measures, weighed equally against every Canadian town and neighbourhood of 2,500 people or more: the share of residents aged 15 to 64 in work, median household income (2020), the unemployment rate and the average commute. Each becomes a percentile; their average sets the letter.
In and out of work in Drayton
All 7 other places of 2,500 people or more in the Wellington census division have a smaller share of 15-to-64s in work.
Counting retirees, 71% of everyone aged 15 and over was working. In October 2026, 64% of the wider area’s adults had a job, on the Labour Force Survey’s count. Counting those looking for work too, 74% of people aged 15 and over were in the labour force. Statistics Canada counted on 11 May 2021, with much of the country under pandemic rules: more people were out of work or at home than usual.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: people in work of any age over residents aged 15 to 64, and the census unemployment rate (15 and over); the 25-to-54 rate is Statistics Canada’s own (98-10-0485). The Labour Force Survey and business counts are context, not grade inputs.
Before tax, the median household in Drayton had $108,800
Drayton’s median is 19% above the middle of Ontario’s towns ($91,600). 3 of the 7 other places of 2,500+ in the Wellington census division have a higher median. Incomes here are 2020’s and include the pandemic payments, CERB among them, that propped up the lower end.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: median total income of households in 2020, before tax (a neighbourhood’s estimated from its dissemination areas’ income groups).
Drayton empties a little on a working day
For every person who comes in to work, about 2 residents travel out. Of those who commute, 28% stay within the municipality; the middle of Canadian towns is 70%.
People with no fixed workplace are in neither count.
72% of Drayton’s residents in work leave it to work; Elmira takes the most
- Palmerston155
- Elmira145
- Listowel145
- Mount Forest135
- Fergus95
- Wellesley80
- Perth East45
- Kitchener40
- Waterloo30
- Guelph25
- Elmira385
- Fergus345
- Listowel260
- Guelph245
- Wellesley230
- Mount Forest180
- Palmerston160
- Kitchener140
- Waterloo125
- Rockwood50
Of those coming in, Palmerston supplies the most: 155.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census (98-10-0459): commuting flows between municipalities (census subdivisions), rounded to 5; linked names have their own pages.
7.7% of commuters from Drayton go without a car
Transit barely figures here, against 3.5% in the middle of Canadian towns. On foot: 6.8% of commuters, well above the 3.2% in the middle of Ontario’s towns. Nearly everyone drives: 91% of commuters go by car, truck or van.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: main mode of commuting; average durations by mode from table 98-10-0458 (whole municipalities only).
A commute like the middle of Canadian towns: 26.4 minutes from Drayton
Long trips are rarer than in the middle of Ontario’s towns: 6.6% take an hour or more, against 7.9%. Statistics Canada’s own average, timed exactly rather than by band, is 23.7 minutes. The middle of Ontario’s towns averages 28.6 minutes.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: commuting duration in five bands; our average uses each band’s middle (75 minutes for an hour or more), so it runs about two minutes above Statistics Canada’s own.
In the Wellington census division, 34% more people receive EI than in 2019
Per 100 residents aged 15 to 64, about 3.7 receive EI. Compared with a year earlier, the count in August 2026 rose by 3%. The highest month was April 2021: 11,080 people, 3 times the 2019 level.
Statistics Canada, Employment Insurance beneficiaries by census division (14-10-0323): all income benefits, not seasonally adjusted. Data for EI beneficiaries covers the Wellington census division. EI counts are context, not part of any grade.
People receiving Employment Insurance each month, as a share of the 2019 average (100).
On getting around on foot, Drayton grades B
Better than 62% of Canadian towns on two measures together, #604 of 866 in Ontario.
OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL); active commuting from the 2021 Census.
Out of 645 Canadian towns of 8,100 to 15,500, Drayton comes 33rd on jobs and income
| # | Place | People | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Silverwood Heights Saskatchewan | 8,153 | 81% | 5.8% | $118K | A+ |
| 2 | North Saanich British Columbia | 12,986 | 85% | 5.9% | $121K | A+ |
| 3 | Sillery Quebec | 13,950 | 81% | 6.2% | $120K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 5 | Glebe-Dows Lake Ontario | 13,436 | 80% | 9.4% | $113K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 10 | Wellesley Ontario | 12,413 | 84% | 3.9% | $119K | A+ |
| 11 | Perth East Ontario | 13,423 | 86% | 3.9% | $96K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 31 | Corman Park No. 344 Saskatchewan | 10,463 | 81% | 5.3% | $121K | A |
| 32 | Sainte-Marie Quebec | 13,873 | 86% | 4.9% | $78K | A |
| 33 | Mapleton Ontario | 11,518 | 86% | 3.8% | $109K | A |
| 34 | Coldstream British Columbia | 11,380 | 77% | 7.8% | $112K | A |
| 35 | Des Châtels Quebec | 14,836 | 82% | 6.1% | $89K | A |
| … | ||||||
| 645 | René-Goupil Quebec | 11,663 | 58% | 15% | $54K | D− |
Ordered by Jobs & income Grade: the top three, the places either side of Drayton, and others among Ontario’s towns.
How Drayton compares with the places nearby
The nearest places to Drayton with figures are 20–25 km away.
| Place | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Average trip | Jobs | Walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drayton | 86% | 3.8% | $109K | 26.4 min | A | B |
| Mount Forest 19.6 km | 79% | 6.1% | $78K | 27.9 min | B− | A |
| Fergus 22.7 km | 81% | 7.2% | $101K | 27.1 min | A− | B+ |
| Listowel 23.7 km | 83% | 5.7% | $84K | 22.6 min | A | B+ |
| Palmerston 24 km | 81% | 5.5% | $83K | 27.8 min | B | A− |
| Elmira 25.4 km | 82% | 6.2% | $115K | 21.8 min | A+ | B+ |
The people of each place: the share in work, unemployment, household income and the average commute, with both grades once they come.
What this data can and can’t tell you
What each figure measures for Drayton, where it comes from, and what it leaves out.
- The Labour Force Survey. The most recent unemployment rate on the page comes from this monthly survey, which covers the wider metro area or economic region, not the town.
- In work. Working residents per resident of working age (15 to 64), from the 2021 Census.
- Unemployment. The census-week jobless rate for residents 15 and over. Its base is the labour force, those employed plus those actively looking.
- Household income. Before-tax total income of the middle household for 2020, from the census. Neighbourhood medians are worked out from bracket counts, since Statistics Canada publishes none of their own.
- Trip times. How long getting to work normally takes, averaged from the census’s time bands at their middles; expect it to read slightly high against the timed figure.
- Where people commute. Counts of workers with a fixed workplace, by where they live and where they work, both taken as whole municipalities; the jobs figure takes everyone who works here, wherever home is.
- Employment Insurance. Monthly EI recipients across the census division: a pulse of the local job market rather than a measure of who is out of work.
- Which towns we compare. The comparison pool is places of 2,500 people or more, towns or neighbourhoods inside cities, without whole cities or reserves, and we compare with its median.
- The municipality’s figures. Statistics Canada counts Drayton as part of Mapleton, so every census figure on this page is the whole municipality’s.
Questions about work in Drayton
Where do people in Drayton work?
Only 28% work in Drayton itself; the rest go first to Elmira (385) and Fergus (345).
How many jobs are there in Drayton?
Some 1,900 people worked in Drayton at the 2021 census: 0.6 jobs per working resident with a fixed workplace. In June 2026, 442 businesses with employees were on Statistics Canada’s count.
What is the unemployment rate in Drayton?
The 2021 census found 3.8% unemployed, against 9.9% in the middle of Canadian towns; the Labour Force Survey’s latest, for the Kitchener-Waterloo-Barrie economic region, is 6.5% (October 2026).
What is the average household income in Drayton?
Before tax, half the households in Drayton had more than $108,800 in 2020; the middle of Canadian towns is $85,900.
How do people in Drayton get to work?
Driving takes 91% of commuters to work, 6.8% walk and 0.9% cycle, and on census day 31% of those in work were at home.
How long is the commute from Drayton?
About 26.4 minutes on average, with 33% under a quarter-hour and 6.6% at an hour or longer.
Sources: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census of Population (Census Profile) · Statistics Canada, tables 98-10-0458 and 98-10-0459 (commuting) · Statistics Canada, table 14-10-0323 (EI beneficiaries) · Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey (14-10-0459, 14-10-0462) · Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Counts (33-10-1176) · grades: 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).