Photo: Andre Carrotflower · CC BY-SA 4.0In Nipigon, 25% of residents have an Indigenous identity, more than in 98% of Canadian towns
12% of households are one-parent families, against 8.2% across Canada’s towns. Statistics Canada puts Nipigon’s population at 1,624 for July 2025. On the census count, 7.6% of households rent their home. Lower than in 88% of Canadian towns: 1.1% of residents are not Canadian citizens.
What stands out about the people of Nipigon
First Nations, Métis and Inuit residents
An Indigenous identity is reported by 25% of residents, more than in 98% of Canadian towns, and 20% are Registered or Treaty Indians. Identity & religion ↓
Fewer people than before
Between the 2016 and 2021 censuses, Nipigon went from 1,642 to 1,473 residents (−10%), slower growth than in 99% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Older than most towns
Half of Nipigon’s residents are under 51.6 and half over; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 29% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Slower than most: −10% since 2016, behind 99% of Canadian towns
Every figure here comes from the 2021 Census unless it carries another date. Two census counts, five years apart, and Statistics Canada’s newest estimate.
Change, 2016 to 2021
The median across Canada’s towns is +4%, and across Ontario’s towns +6%.
Nipigon is older than 89% of Canadian towns: a median age of 51.6
Residents by five-year age band, each beside the typical town (the tick).
With residents aged 15 to 24 at 10%, Nipigon is behind 61% of Canadian towns on that count. The census found that 29% of residents are 65 or over here.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split.
2.2 people per household, fewer than in 74% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
The share of one-person households is 33%, against 27% across Canada’s towns.
Below 57% of Canadian towns: 9.9% of residents 15 and over live common-law
Married, common-law, single: residents 15 and over.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Never married and not common-law: 24% of adults (typical: 27%). Against that, 11% of residents 15 and over live common-law across Canada’s towns.
Households in single-detached houses make up 95% in Nipigon, more than in 96% of Canadian towns
Dwelling types, tenure and age of the housing. 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 74% of Canadian towns. For households in single-detached houses, the comparison across Canada’s towns is 64%. 56% of homes were built before 1961 and 3.8% in 2001 or later.
$71,500 a year: where the middle household sits
The census asked about income in 2020: a pandemic year, with CERB and other emergency benefits counted in. Total household income: the median household, and the spread from low to high.
Households by income · share of households
Nipigon’s median household took in $71,500 before tax, 17% less than the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). The provincial yardstick is $91,600, the median across Ontario’s towns. 20% of income recipients received COVID-19 emergency or recovery benefits (typical: 28%).
3.6% of residents are immigrants
Where immigrants were born and when they came, and how recently residents moved in.
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
17% of residents are immigrants across Canada’s towns, against 3.6% in Nipigon. Most immigrants were born in Europe (80%) or in Asia (30%).
A smaller share of residents with no religion than 59% of Canadian towns: 32%
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Across Canada’s towns, 15% of residents belong to a visible minority; in Nipigon, 1.8%. The wider picture: 35% of residents said they have no religion across Canada’s towns.
A larger share of residents whose mother tongue is French than 67% of Canadian towns: 2.8%
The official languages residents can speak, and the ones they learned first.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
The share of bilingual residents is 5.5%, against 7.5% across Canada’s towns. By way of comparison, 1.5% of residents have French as their mother tongue across Canada’s towns.
Nipigon ranks below 89% of Canadian towns on degree holders aged 25 to 64: 12%
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
No certificate at all: 14%, against 9.5%. The wider picture: 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
A job for 46% of residents aged 15 and over
Counted in May 2021, during COVID-19, these rates catch the job market before it had recovered. Work, briefly: employment, unemployment, participation and working from home. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
At 46%, fewer residents are in work than the typical 58% across Canada’s towns, and 29% are 65 or over.
Older than Nipigon: 2 of the 5 towns nearby
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are. Distances here run 77–97 km: that is how far the nearest places with figures are from Nipigon.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nipigon | 1,624 | — | 51.6 | 29% | 3.6% |
| Shuniah | 3,458 | 76.8 km | 55.2 | 30% | 6.5% |
| Schreiber | 1,068 | 77.0 km | 54.4 | 24% | 5.6% |
| Terrace Bay | 1,553 | 89.3 km | 48.8 | 24% | 12% |
| Thunder Bay, Unorganized | 6,831 | 91.8 km | 51.6 | 25% | 6.9% |
| Thunder Bay | 117,671 | 97.2 km | 44 | 22% | 8.6% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The census’s own words. In the census, “visible minority” is the Employment Equity Act’s term for people who are non-white in colour or race and not Indigenous. Like immigrant status, Indigenous identity and religion, which residents reported themselves, it is compared with other towns, never turned into a label.
- Against Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns. The middle of Ontario’s towns of 2,500 or more comes first, the middle of all Canadian towns second; cities as a whole and First Nations reserves stay out, and percentiles are within Canada.
- What these tables don’t give. Not in the Census Profile: unpaid care, cars, internet access, and how each age group has changed since 2016. We also chart no ethnic origins besides visible minority and Indigenous identity.
Questions about Nipigon’s residents
Is Nipigon good for families?
15% of residents are under 15 (Canada’s towns: 16%); couple families are 48% of households and one-parent families 12%. Schools near Nipigon are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Nipigon?
Half of Nipigon’s households had more than $71,500 in 2020, before tax; across Canada’s towns the median was $86,000.
What is the population of Nipigon?
About 1,624, by Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025. The 2021 Census found 1,473 people in Nipigon, 10% fewer than 2016.
What is the average age in Nipigon?
The median age is 51.6. 15% are under 15 and 29% 65 or older.
Is Nipigon bilingual?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 7.5% are bilingual; here 5.5% are. Another 0.3% speak only French and 95% only English, and French is the first language of 2.8%.
How diverse is Nipigon?
Immigrants: 3.6% (Canada’s towns: 17%). Visible minority: 1.8%. Indigenous identity: 25%.
What religion are people in Nipigon?
32% said they have no religion and 65% that they are Christian; 2.6% named another faith.
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).