Hastings HighlandsOntario

4,957 residents make their home in this town in Ontario. Between 2016 and 2021, its population grew by 8%.

3 places within 19 kmMap →

Photo: P199 · Public domain

Population

4,957

people, 2025 estimate

Median age

57.6

years · Ontario’s towns: 46.8

Postsecondary

47%

of residents 15 and over hold a postsecondary certificate, diploma or degree · Canadian towns: 56%

Walk, cycle, transit

walk, cycle or take transit to work · Canadian towns: 8%

TownGrade

D⁻

#2,537 of 2,556

Is Hastings Highlands a good place to live?

A town with more to fix than most. Jobs and pay trail most towns (D). Hastings Highlands’s overall grade is D−, better than 2% of Canadian towns. That places it #852 of 858 in Ontario. Health lags (D). Owners valued their homes at a median $400,000 in 2021, which is 5.8 years of the typical household’s pay. Crime is low (B).

Figures: home values and income: Statistics Canada, Census 2021.

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. Safety less sure: no police service names this town, so its crime figure is the nearest police detachment's, shared with a wider area. Crime here is counted against the people who live here, but many visitors or second-home owners add to it, so the rate per resident runs higher than residents' own risk. Health is graded on the health region's survey figures and life expectancy, with the distance to hospital giving the town its own spread.

WeakestDJobs & income DHealth

What makes Hastings Highlands stand out

The 3 things Hastings Highlands does most differently from other towns.

Picked automatically from the data

Residents 65 and over

Who lives here

33% are 65 or over

Compare 19% for the median of Canadian towns

Statistics Canada, Census 2021

Jobs & income

Behind 93%

of Canadian towns on jobs & income

Its jobs & income grade: D.

Unemployment rate, Census 2021

Work

15% unemployment

Of the labour force, against 10% for the median of Canadian towns

40% of residents 15 and over were in work, May 2021.

How Hastings Highlands grades

Each subject compares Hastings Highlands with Canadian towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far it is from the middle. Towns in other countries are graded separately.

How grading works

Jobs & incomeBased on what households earn, poverty and workDOpen →HealthHealth outcomes are among the weakest comparedDOpen →Cost of livingIn the bottom fifth of the towns comparedC⁻Open →WalkabilityBased on walking, cycling and transit to everyday placesC⁻Open →SchoolsSchools trail most of those comparedCOpen →Hazard riskBelow the middle of the towns comparedC⁺Open →SafetyGraded on crime per residentBOpen →

How TownRatings grades Canadian towns →

Nearby attractions

Black Spruce Art Works and 10 more in and around Hastings Highlands

Museums, historic sites, parks, gardens and days out in and near Hastings Highlands, the best known first.

All attractions →

Art galleryArt galleryBlack Spruce Art Worksin town Art galleryArt galleryWildwood Galleryin town MuseumMuseumBancroft Mineral and Mining Museum3.6 km outside town, to the south MuseumMuseumNorth Hastings Heritage Museum3.6 km outside town, to the south MuseumMuseumBancroft Gem & Mineral Club Mineral Museum3.7 km outside town, to the south MuseumMuseumCanadian Peace Museum3.8 km outside town, to the south

Places: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Wikidata · ODCAF · federal and Québec heritage registers · CPCAD

The data

Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Hastings Highlands.

Work & commuteJobs & income D

Hastings Highlands is a driving town: 94% of commuters go by car, above Ontario’s towns and Canadian towns

The average trip to work took 29 min, about level with Ontario’s towns (29 min) and above Canadian towns (26 min).

5%walk, cycle or take transit

How working residents got to work · census 2021

Car or van94%

Walk4%

Public transit1%

Census 2021	Hastings Highlands	Ontario	Canada
Car or van	94%	88%	89%
Average trip	29 min	29 min	26 min

$69,000

median household income, 2020

16%

worked from home, May 2021

21%

of commuters work inside the municipality

Full pageHastings Highlands’ work & commute pageOpen the full Work & commute page

Getting to work5% walk, cycle or take transit Unemployment15% unemployed · Of the labour force · Canadian towns: 9.9%Where people commute to450 commuters · The biggest flow out: to Bancroft

Statistics Canada, Census 2021 (labour and commuting) · Census day was in May 2021, mid-pandemic, so commuting and work figures carry the lockdowns’ mark.

HealthHealth D

Health in Hastings Highlands trails 87% of Canadian towns

The town’s own part is the trip to care, and Hastings Highlands’ is long: 13 km to a hospital on average, against 3.7 km typical. The region has more smokers than Ontario, 18% of adults to 11%. That said, the survey finds 45% of adults in very good or excellent health, below Ontario’s towns (51%) and Canadian towns (52%) alike. People in the region live to 79.8 on average: 81.8 for women and 77.8 for men in 2022/2024.

45%very good or excellent healthDHealth Grade

Very good or excellent health · adults, age-standardised

Hastings Highlands45%

Ontario’s towns51%

Canadian towns52%

Health	Hastings Highlands	Ontario	Canada
Smokers	18%	10%	12%
Chronic conditions (average share)	20%	17%	17%
Very good or excellent health	45%	51%	52%
Life expectancy at birth	79.8	82.8	81.5

79.8

years of life expectancy, 2022/2024

13 km

from homes to a hospital, on average

18%

of adults smoke, age-standardised

14 km

from homes to a pharmacy, on average

Full pageHastings Highlands’ health pageOpen the full Health page

Health survey45% very good or excellent health · adults, age-standardised Getting care13 km to a hospital · A pharmacy 14 km away on average The wider areaLife expectancy: women 81.8, men 77.8 Conditions and habits20% with chronic conditions · adults, age-standardised

Statistics Canada, Canadian Community Health Survey 2023/2024 and life expectancy 2022/2024; Open Database of Healthcare Facilities · Health survey and life expectancy: one figure for all of the Hastings and Prince Edward Counties Health Unit

HousingCost of living C⁻

Most households in Hastings Highlands own their home: 92%, more than in Ontario’s towns and across Canadian towns

15% of households spent 30% or more of their income on shelter, lower than both Ontario’s towns (22%) and Canadian towns (18%). A year’s rent came to a fifth of the median household income, about level with Canadian towns (20%) and below Ontario’s towns (22%).

$400,000median home value, 2021C⁻Cost of living Grade

What homes were worth · The median owner’s estimate at the 2021 census

Hastings Highlands$400,000

Ontario$695,000

Canadian towns$406,000

Census 2021	Hastings Highlands	Ontario	Canada
Households owning their home	92%	76%	74%
Households spending 30%+ on shelter	15%	22%	18%
Median home value, 2021	$400,000	$695,000	$406,000

$850

monthly rent for a two-bedroom

$750

median monthly shelter cost for owners, 2021

Full pageHastings Highlands’ cost of living pageOpen the full Cost of living page

Owners and renters92% own their home Cost of living5.8 times household income · The median owner’s estimate, $400,000, against the median household income Renting$850 a month · The median rent at the 2021 census

Statistics Canada, Census 2021; CMHC Rental Market Survey via Statistics Canada · Home values are owners’ own estimates at the May 2021 census, and incomes are for 2020.

SchoolsSchools C

The nearest high school to Hastings Highlands is 15 km away

An elementary school stands 6.8 km from the centre, above Ontario’s towns (0.5 km) and Canadian towns (0.5 km) alike. Its elementary schools are small, 100 students on average, against 365 in Ontario.

3schools within 3 kmCSchools Grade

School	Level	Students	System
Bird's Creek Public School Fourth fifth in OntarioLargest elementary schoolElementary · Grades JK–6	Elementary · Grades JK–6	120	English public

See all 3 schools →

Schools by system · Schools within 3 km

English public2

English Catholic1

Schools within 3 km	Hastings Highlands	Ontario	Canada
Nearest secondary school	15 km	1.2 km	1.2 km
School boards	2	4	3
Nearest elementary school	6.8 km	0.5 km	0.5 km

300

students at the schools within 3 km, 2024-25

15 km

to the nearest secondary school

6.8 km

to the nearest elementary school

Full pageHastings Highlands’ schools pageOpen the full Schools page

Every school3 elementary schools Results0 of 1 in the top two fifths · of the schools with results, placed against every school in Ontario Language0 of 3 teach in French · 10% of schools in Ontario The boards2 school boards · Hastings & Prince Edward DSB Questions“What schools are there in Hastings Highlands?”

Provincial school lists and results, 2024-25

Climate

Hastings Highlands has colder winters than Ontario’s towns or Canadian towns: January lows of −17.1°C

A normal July day peaks at 25.7°C, below Ontario’s towns (26.7°C) and close to Canadian towns (25.5°C). January is the snowiest month, with 67 cm on average. For the wettest month, look to November: 103 mm on average.

25.7°CJuly afternoons

Average high by season · ECCC normals, 1991–2020

Winter−2.7°C

Spring10.9°C

Summer24.4°C

Autumn12.6°C

Normals, 1991–2020	Hastings Highlands	Ontario	Canada
Snowfall a year	278 cm	146 cm	141 cm
Days with frost a year	193	139	159
January night low	−17.1°C	−9.1°C	−13.5°C
Precipitation a year	1,106 mm	902 mm	883 mm

278 cm

of snow a year

193

days with frost a year

147

days with precipitation a year

Full pageHastings Highlands’ climate pageOpen the full Climate page

The yearJuly highs 25.7°C, January lows −17.1°C Rain and snow1,106 mm a year · Canadian towns: 883 mm Snow278 cm of snow a year Weather station13 km to the station · Bancroft

Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Bancroft)

Who lives here

More of Hastings Highlands’s residents have an Indigenous identity than in Ontario’s towns or Canadian towns: 11%

1.6% of residents belong to a visible minority, lower than both Ontario’s towns (26%) and Canadian towns (15%). Immigrants make up 8.6% of residents, above both Ontario’s towns (7.6%) and Canadian towns (6.4%).

57.6median age

Hastings HighlandsOntarioCanada

OntarioCanada

Ages · Share of residents in each age group, Census 2021

33%

Schooling · Highest qualification, residents 15 and over

No certificate, diploma or degree20%

Postsecondary qualification47%

Women and men · all residents

48.6% of Hastings Highlands’ residents are women

2,130 women and 2,250 men at the 2021 census; across Canada, women are 50.9%.

Who lives in Hastings Highlands
	Hastings Highlands	Ontario	Canada
Under 15	11%	15%	16%
15 to 64	56%	65%	64%
65+	33%	19%	19%
No certificate, diploma or degree	20%	15%	16%
Postsecondary qualification	47%	56%	56%

Full pageHastings Highlands’ Who lives here pageOpen the full Who lives here page

Immigrants9% are immigrants · 2% belong to a visible minority Ages57.6 median age · 33% are 65 or over Households2,005 households · 2.2 people per household English and French4% speak both · 0% speak French but not English

Statistics Canada, Census 2021; Ontario and Canada: medians of towns of 2,500+

Natural hazardsHazard risk C⁺

Hastings Highlands’ hazards at a glance: a low wildfire record and 12% of area homes over the radon guideline

For earthquakes Hastings Highlands is middling, $0.026 a year per $1,000 against $0.030 for the typical town. Flood mapping: none on the national inventory of the town.

Lowwildfire bandC⁺Hazard risk Grade

Radon tests above the guideline · share of tested homes, 200 Bq/m³

Hastings Highlands12%

Ontario’s towns4%

Canadian towns6.6%

Hazards	Hastings Highlands	Ontario	Canada
Radon tests above the guideline	12%	4%	6.6%
Earthquake loss per $1,000 of buildings a year	$0.026	$0.043	$0.030

Low

wildfire band

24 km

to the nearest land burned since 1986

Full pageHastings Highlands’ flood & hazards pageOpen the full Flood & hazards page

Radon12% of tests above the guideline WildfireLow wildfire band · No land burned within 25 km since 1986 FloodNo flood study on record Earthquakes$0.026 a year per $1,000 · Canadian towns: $0.030 Be readyAlerts, FireSmart and radon tests

NRCan seismic risk model and burned areas, Health Canada radon survey, the Flood Hazard Map Inventory

SafetySafety B

Hastings Highlands is graded a B for safety

No police detachment reports under Hastings Highlands’s name, so these are the nearest detachment’s figures, not the town’s own

Its police area records 15.9 property incidents per 1,000 residents a year. For violence alone, its police area’s index was 60, below Ontario’s towns (76) and Canadian towns (86) alike. Violent crime in the area its police cover: 12.5 per 1,000 people a year. Behind Crime Severity Index, Violent Crime Severity Index, violent crime and property crime per 1,000 sits data gathered across the Bancroft detachment area, with Hastings Highlands one part of it.

55Crime Severity Index

Year by year · Crime Severity Index for each year

202351

202463

202551

2023–2025	Hastings Highlands	Ontario	Canada
Property crime per 1,000	15.9	30.5	31.2
Violent Crime Severity Index	60	76	86

non-violent Crime Severity Index

54%

of incidents cleared, 2023–25

Full pageHastings Highlands’ safety reportOpen the full Safety report

Safety55 Crime Severity Index · The index weighs each crime Hastings Highlands’s police recorded by how serious it is.Questions“Is Hastings Highlands safe?”

Statistics Canada, Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, 2023–2025 average

Weather

Hastings Highlands in November: highs near 5°C, lows near −5°C

November usually brings some 33 cm of snow. A normal December brings highs of −2°C, lows of −12°C. Precipitation in November averages 103 mm. The forecast on the Weather page is ECCC’s for Bancroft.

5°Ca normal November afternoon

Normal highs, the months ahead · ECCC normals, 1991–2020

November5°C

December−2°C

January−5°C

February−2°C

Season	High	Low	Rain and snow
Winter	−3°C	−15°C	264 mm
Spring	11°C	−3°C	254 mm
Summer	24°C	10°C	284 mm
Autumn	13°C	1°C	304 mm

−5°C

a normal November night

103 mm

of rain and snow in a normal November

Full pageHastings Highlands’ weather pageOpen the full Weather page

Next 24 hoursTemperature and chance of rain, hour by hour The week aheadECCC’s days ahead, beside the normals The yearWarmest July, coldest January

ECCC normals, 1991–2020 (Bancroft); the forecast is on the Weather page

Town hall

Hastings Highlands spends more per resident than 94% of Ontario’s lower-tier municipalities do

Hastings Highlands sends one MP to Ottawa from Hastings—Lennox and Addington—Tyendinaga, its riding (a federal electoral district, which elects one MP): Shelby Kramp-Neuman (Conservative Party of Canada).

Turnout	Hastings Highlands	Ontario	Canada
Municipal election, 2022	37%	31%	31%

Full pageHastings Highlands’ town hall & politics pageOpen the full Town hall & politics page

Who runs itMunicipality council seats7

Wikidata, MAMH, MMAH, Statistics Canada

Library & civic lifeCivic life grade B⁻

Hastings Highlands Public Library is Hastings Highlands’s public library

Hastings Highlands Public Library has one location for the 4,385 people it serves.

Full pageHastings Highlands’ library & civic life pageOpen the full Library & civic life page

A year at the library3.1 visits per person served The libraries1 Libraries Places to belong0 charities per 1,000 residents

Provincial library statistics, OpenStreetMap, the CRA and Statistics Canada

Outdoors

A provincial park at Hastings Highlands’ edge: Egan Chutes Provincial Park Addition

Swimmers have 3 beaches within 5 km, Papineau Lake Beach the nearest. The nearest national park is more than 100 km away. Count 8 protected areas within 10 km of town.

2.4%of the land within 10 km protected

Protected land · of the land within 10 km

Hastings Highlands2.4%

Ontario’s towns2.3%

Canadian towns2.3%

Outdoors	Hastings Highlands	Ontario	Canada
Public protected areas within 10 km	8	4	4
Protected land within 10 km	2.4%	2.3%	2.3%

At the edge

to Egan Chutes Provincial Park Addition

beaches within 5 km

public protected areas within 10 km

Full pageHastings Highlands’ outdoors pageOpen the full Outdoors page

Protected landof the land within 10 km Protected areas8 protected areas within 10 km · Algonquin Provincial Park National & provincial parksAt the edge to a provincial park · Egan Chutes Provincial Park Addition

Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD), OpenStreetMap routes and beaches

Keep exploring

Everything we know about Hastings Highlands

15pages on Hastings Highlands

The big questions

SafetyBCrime Severity Index 55 Housing & costC⁻Homes 5.8 × income Property pricesSchoolsC3 schools within 3 km HealthDLife expectancy 79.8 in its region Work & commuteD40% of adults in work Natural hazardsC⁺Wildfire band: low

Out and about

Outdoors2.4% of the land within 10 km protected AttractionsClimateJuly afternoons around 26°C WeatherECCC’s forecast, beside the normals

The story

Who lives hereMedian age 57.6 HistoryTown hallFamous people

Famous people from around Hastings Highlands

One notable person was born in Hastings Highlands; with them, the best known born in the towns around it.

Their page →

Charles M. O'BrienCanadian politician · 1875–1952

Clay IvesCanadian-American luger · born in Bancroft · born 1972

Bryan WatsonIce hockey player · born in Bancroft · 1942–2021

D. G. JonesCanadian poet · born in Bancroft · 1929–2016

Julie WhiteCanadian high jumper and pentathlete · born in Bancroft · born 1960

Cathy SherkProfessional golfer · born in Bancroft · born 1950

Photo credits

Charles M. O'Brien: Unknown author, Public domain

Hastings Highlands’ neighbours

The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Statistics Canada

BancroftCarlow/MayoFaradayHastings Highlands

How the neighbours grade

Town	People	km	Overall	Cost	Safety	Health
Hastings Highlands	4,957	—	D⁻	C⁻	B	D
Bancroft	4,331	13	D⁻	D	D	C⁻
Carlow/Mayo	1,048	16	—	C⁻	B	D
Faraday	1,820	19	—	D	B	C⁻

People: Statistics Canada, Census 2021. Distances: centre to centre.

Questions about Hastings Highlands

Who are the people of Hastings Highlands?

2% of residents belong to a visible minority, against 15% for the median of Canadian towns; 11% have an Indigenous identity and 9% are immigrants.

What kind of homes are in Hastings Highlands?

Single-detached houses make up 97% of the homes here, where Canadian towns sit at 64%; 0% are in high-rise apartments. 28% of households are one person, and the average is 2.2.

How old are the people of Hastings Highlands?

At 57.6, its median age compares with 45.2 across Canadian towns.

Has Hastings Highlands grown?

Yes: the census counted 4,078 in 2016 and 4,385 in 2021, a rise of 7.5%, against 4.1% for the median of Canadian towns. The 2025 estimate is 4,957.

About Hastings Highlands

Town in Ontario

TownRatings follows Statistics Canada’s map: Hastings Highlands is one municipality in Ontario, figures and all.

Statistics Canada: population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155), Census of Population 2021, 2021 census boundaries.

Population: 4,957 (people, 2025 estimate)
Province or territory: Ontario
Census division: Hastings
Census subdivision: 3512076

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).