Photo: P199 · CC BY-SA 3.0A median age of 59.2: North Kawartha is older than 99% of Canadian towns
Recent arrivals are 7.1% of immigrants (2011 to 2021), beside 27% across Canada’s towns. About 3,355 people lived in North Kawartha in July 2025, Statistics Canada estimates. In North Kawartha, 6.4% of residents are aged 15 to 24. On households in single-detached houses, North Kawartha sits higher than 97% of Canadian towns: 95%.
What stands out about the people of North Kawartha
Older than most towns
The middle resident of North Kawartha is 59.2; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 35% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Growing faster than most
North Kawartha went from 2,479 people in 2016 to 2,877 in 2021, +16%: faster growth than in 93% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Since 2016, North Kawartha has grown +16%, faster than 93% of Canadian towns
The figures are the 2021 Census’s, except where another date is given. Two census counts, five years apart, and Statistics Canada’s newest estimate.
Change, 2016 to 2021
Across Canada’s towns, the typical town changed +4%; across Ontario’s towns, +6%. Statistics Canada’s estimate for July 2025 is 17% higher again.
35% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 98% of Canadian towns
Share of residents in each five-year band; the tick is the typical town.
Where 16% of residents are under 15 across Canada’s towns, North Kawartha has 10%. Measured more widely, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ North Kawartha, 59.2. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
48% women, 52% men
About 107 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.
4.8% of households are one-parent families (Canada’s towns: 8.2%). One-person households account for 32%.
Above 79% of Canadian towns: 55% of residents 15 and over are married
Marital status of residents 15 and over, with common-law couples counted apart.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Single and never married: 18% of adults, against a typical 27%. Across North Kawartha, 11% of residents 15 and over live common-law.
Only 7.5% of households rent their home in North Kawartha
Houses and apartments, owners and renters, older and newer homes. 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. Older homes outnumber new: 23% predate 1961, 22% date from 2001 or later. As a reference point, a quarter of households rent their home across Canada’s towns.
Household income, middle of the range: $73,000 a year
Census incomes are for 2020, the year before the census, when CERB and other pandemic benefits topped up many households. Income per household, before tax, with the groups it falls into.
Households by income · share of households
Household incomes run lower in North Kawartha: half had less than $73,000, 15% under the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Across Ontario’s towns, half of households had more than $91,600 before tax. COVID-19 benefits were paid to 23% of residents with an income, where the typical town had 28%.
9% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, fewer than in 72% of Canadian towns
Immigrants by continent of birth and when they arrived, citizenship, and who moved in recently.
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
Immigrants make up 9.8%, against 17% across Canada’s towns. On the census count, 2.1% of residents are not Canadian citizens. Typically, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns.
More residents with no religion than 81% of Canadian towns: 47%
Identity and faith, in the census’s categories.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Across Canada’s towns, 15% of residents belong to a visible minority; in North Kawartha, 1.9%. Indigenous residents are rarer here than in 63% of Canadian towns. The benchmark for residents with no religion across Canada’s towns: 35%.
English is the mother tongue of 94%, and 5.6% speak French as well
English, French and the other languages people grew up with or speak at home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
At home: English 98%, French 0.2%. Fewer residents whose mother tongue is French than in 86% of Canadian towns: 0.7%. Set against 7.5% across Canada’s towns, 5.6% of residents speak English and French in North Kawartha.
In North Kawartha, 20% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, fewer than in 67% of Canadian towns
Education of residents 25 to 64, by highest credential.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
No certificate at all: 9.8%, against 9.5%. Elsewhere, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
Employment: 39% of residents 15 and over had a job
The census counted work in May 2021, mid-pandemic, so read these rates as a pandemic snapshot. The census’s work rates at a glance. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
The employment rate of 39% is below the typical 58% across Canada’s towns; 35% of residents are 65 or over.
The 1st oldest of 41 towns of 3,297 to 3,412 people
Similar-sized towns by median age; each dot is a town.
At one end is Arviat (21.8), at the other North Kawartha (59.2). The towns whose median age is nearest to North Kawartha’s: Cumberland County, Subdivision A (57.2) and Sheet Harbour (57.3).
The towns around North Kawartha are all younger
Neighbouring places and their median ages; each name opens its page. No closer places have figures: these lie 26–29 km from North Kawartha.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Kawartha | 3,355 | — | 59.2 | 35% | 9.8% |
| Trent Lakes | 7,357 | 26.1 km | 58 | 32% | 11% |
| Curve Lake First Nation 35 | 1,428 | 26.8 km | 48.4 | 22% | 0% |
| Douro-Dummer | 8,379 | 28.7 km | 48.4 | 23% | 6.1% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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. 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. The Census Profile has no unpaid care, cars or internet access, and no change by age since 2016; ethnic origins beyond visible minority and Indigenous identity aren’t charted here.
Questions about North Kawartha’s residents
How diverse is North Kawartha?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 17% are immigrants; here, 9.8%. A visible minority makes up 1.9% and Indigenous residents 1.9%.
What religion are people in North Kawartha?
Most often Christian (51%) or no religion (47%); other religions make up 2.1%.
Is North Kawartha good for families?
Children under 15 are 10% of residents, against 16% across Canada’s towns. Couple families make up 57% of households and one-parent families 4.8%. Schools near North Kawartha are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in North Kawartha?
Median total household income in North Kawartha was $73,000 in 2020, against a median of $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of North Kawartha?
The latest figure is an estimate: 3,355 residents in July 2025. At the 2021 Census, North Kawartha counted 2,877, 16% more than 2016.
What is the average age in North Kawartha?
Half the residents are older than 59.2 and half younger, older than 99% of Canadian towns; 10% are children under 15 and 35% are 65 or over.
Is North Kawartha bilingual?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 7.5% are bilingual; here 5.6% are. Another 0% speak only French and 94% only English, and French is the first language of 0.7%.
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).