Photo: P199 · CC BY-SA 3.0A median age of 58.4: Georgian Bay is older than 98% of Canadian towns
Across Canada’s towns, the share of children under 15 is 16%; Georgian Bay has 8.9%. This Ontario town has fewer renter households than 88% of Canadian towns, at 11%. The latest estimate, for July 2025, is 3,798 residents; the 2021 Census found 1,660 households. The share of Indigenous residents stands at 10%.
What stands out about the people of Georgian Bay
Older than most towns
Georgian Bay’s median age is 58.4; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 33% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Growing faster than most
Georgian Bay went from 2,514 people in 2016 to 3,441 in 2021, +37%: faster growth than in 99% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
A +37% change since 2016: faster than 99% of Canadian towns
The figures are the 2021 Census’s, except where another date is given. Residents at the 2016 and 2021 censuses and the latest estimate, with the 2016–2021 change beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
The July 2025 estimate adds another 10%. Medians for comparison: +4% across Canada’s towns; +6% across Ontario’s towns.
33% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 96% of Canadian towns
Every five-year age group as a share of residents; ticks mark the typical town.
The biggest five-year age group is 60–64, with 13% of residents, 1.9 times the share across Canada’s towns. Residents aged 15 to 24 are rarer here than in 97% of Canadian towns. The usual figure: 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Georgian Bay, 58.4. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
47% women, 53% men
About 114 men for every 100 women.
Smaller households than 83% of Canadian towns: 2.1 people on average
Households by family type and by the number of people in them.
Against Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
One-parent families: 6% here and 8.2% across Canada’s towns. Census figures put one-person households at 33% in Georgian Bay.
A higher share of married residents 15 and over than 77% of Canadian towns, at 55%
How adults live as couples, or don’t, with common-law unions shown on their own.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
18% of adults have never married and don’t live common-law (typical: 27%). In Georgian Bay, 10% of residents 15 and over live common-law.
Households in single-detached houses: 92%, a higher share than 92% of Canadian towns
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
Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns. Older homes outnumber new: 27% predate 1961, 26% date from 2001 or later. Across the comparison, 64% of households live in a single-detached house across Canada’s towns. 12% of homes need major repairs, against a typical 5.8%.
Household income, middle of the range: $82,000 a year
Incomes are 2020’s, the census’s reference year, and include pandemic benefits such as CERB. Household income before tax: the median, and households by income group.
Households by income · share of households
The median across Canada’s towns is $86,000, and Georgian Bay’s, at $82,000, is close to it. For Ontario’s towns, the median household income is $91,600. COVID-19 benefits were paid to 22% of residents with an income, where the typical town had 28%.
A higher share of residents who moved in within the year than 71% of Canadian towns, at 14%
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
Here 11% of residents are immigrants, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 17%. On the census count, 1.5% of residents are not Canadian citizens.
Fewer residents with no religion than 55% of Canadian towns: 34%
Identity and faith, in the census’s categories.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Across Canada’s towns, the share of visible minority residents is 15%; Georgian Bay has 2%. For residents with no religion, the comparison across Canada’s towns is 35%.
91% have English as their mother tongue; 4.7% 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
Compared with 7.5% across Canada’s towns, 4.7% of residents speak English and French here. Census figures put residents whose mother tongue is French at 1.2% in Georgian Bay.
23% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, fewer than in 58% of Canadian towns
Education of residents 25 to 64, by highest credential.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
Holding no credential: 13% (typical 9.5%). Set beside that, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
An employment rate of 44%
May 2021 was still a pandemic month: the census’s work figures reflect that. Four labour figures from the census. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
Across Canada’s towns the typical rate is 58%, above this 44%; 33% of residents are 65 or over.
Oldest by rank: 1st of 41 towns of 3,724 to 3,863 people
Towns of about this size, placed by median age.
They run from Clareview Town Centre, at 32.1, to Georgian Bay, at 58.4. In age, Georgian Bay keeps company with Sainte-Marguerite-du-Lac-Masson (55.2) and Saint-Tite (57.6).
Every nearby town is younger than Georgian Bay
Neighbouring places and their median ages; each name opens its page. Georgian Bay has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 22–28 km out.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgian Bay | 3,798 | — | 58.4 | 33% | 11% |
| Muskoka Lakes | 8,463 | 21.8 km | 57.2 | 32% | 7.4% |
| Penetanguishene | 11,141 | 26.4 km | 52 | 30% | 6.8% |
| Tay | 11,968 | 28.1 km | 49.2 | 24% | 6.7% |
| Midland | 19,305 | 28.2 km | 50 | 28% | 9.5% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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.
- The census’s own words. The census takes “visible minority” from the Employment Equity Act: anyone other than Indigenous peoples who is non-white in colour or race. Indigenous identity, immigrant status and religion are what residents reported, compared here with other towns and never used as a label.
- 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.
Questions about Georgian Bay’s residents
What is the median income in Georgian Bay?
$82,000 before tax, in 2020: the middle household’s income in Georgian Bay (Canada’s towns: $86,000).
What is the population of Georgian Bay?
Statistics Canada estimates 3,798 residents for July 2025; the 2021 Census counted 3,441 in Georgian Bay, 37% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Georgian Bay?
58.4 is the median age, older than 98% of Canadian towns. Under 15: 8.9%. 65 and over: 33%.
Is Georgian Bay bilingual?
English and French: 4.7% speak both (Canada’s towns: 7.5%). English only: 95%. French only: 0%. French mother tongue: 1.2%.
How diverse is Georgian Bay?
Immigrants make up 11% of residents, against 17% across Canada’s towns. 2% are members of a visible minority, and 10% are First Nations, Métis or Inuit.
What religion are people in Georgian Bay?
Christian: 65%. No religion: 34%. Another religion: 1.6%.
Is Georgian Bay good for families?
Across Canada’s towns, a typical 16% of residents are under 15; here, 8.9%. 55% of households are couple families and 6% one-parent families. Schools near Georgian Bay are on its Schools page.
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).