Photo: Northern Lights Graffiti from Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada · CC BY 2.0More residents aged 65 and over than 87% of Canadian towns: 27%
A household here has 2.1 people on average; across Canada’s towns, 2.4. Half of Owen Sound’s residents are over 48, older than in 80% of Canadian towns. The town is home to some 24,075 people (July 2025 estimate), in 9,895 households at the 2021 Census. Renter households: just over two fifths of the total.
What stands out about the people of Owen Sound
Many older residents
27% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 87% of Canadian towns; 9% are 80 or over, and 38% of households are one person living alone. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
A +1% change since 2016: slower than 69% 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
Medians for comparison: +4% across Canada’s towns; +6% across Ontario’s towns. The July 2025 estimate adds another 11%.
Children under 15: 14%, a lower share than 69% of Canadian towns
Every five-year age group as a share of residents; ticks mark the typical town.
Against a figure of 11% across Canada’s towns, the share of residents aged 15 to 24 in Owen Sound comes in at 9.9%. 60–64 is the most common age band: 7.8% of residents.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Owen Sound, 48. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
53% women, 47% men
About 88 men for every 100 women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
A larger share of one-person households than 85% of Canadian towns: 38%
Private households by type and size.
Against Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
Here just over one in ten households are one-parent families, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 8.2%. Across Canada’s towns, 27% of households are one person living alone.
Fewer married residents 15 and over than 69% of Canadian towns: 39%
How adults live as couples, or don’t, with common-law unions shown on their own.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Just over one in ten residents 15 and over live common-law; across Canada’s towns the figure is 11%.
Households in buildings of five or more storeys: 7.4%, a higher share than 77% 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
44% of homes were built before 1961 and 9.2% in 2001 or later. Lower than in two thirds of Canadian towns: 51% of households live in a single-detached house.
Household income at the median: $63,200 a year
The income year is 2020: a year of pandemic benefits such as CERB, which the figures count. Household income before tax: the median, and households by income group.
Households by income · share of households
Half of Owen Sound’s households had a total income below $63,200, 27% under the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Across Ontario’s towns the median is $91,600. COVID-19 benefits were paid to 26% of residents with an income, where the typical town had 28%.
Above 65% of Canadian towns: 13% of residents lived at another address a year earlier
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
Most recent wave: just over a fifth of immigrants arrived in 2011–2021 (Canada’s towns: 27%). The wider picture: just over one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns. The share of residents without Canadian citizenship stands at 2.8%. Compared with other places, immigrants are scarce here: 7.8%, fewer than in 70% of Canadian towns.
Above 82% of Canadian towns: 47% of residents said they have no religion
Visible minority, Indigenous identity and religion, as residents answered the census.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
By its share of Indigenous residents (4.2%), Owen Sound is above 64% of Canadian towns. Compared with other places, visible minority residents are scarce here: 5.8%, fewer than in 66% of Canadian towns. Across Canada’s towns, the share of residents with no religion is 35%.
93% have English as their mother tongue; 6.6% 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
Residents whose mother tongue is French are about as common here as across Canada’s towns: 0.9%. At home: English 97%, French 0.1%.
19% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, below 70% of Canadian towns
From no certificate to a master’s: residents 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
15% have no certificate, diploma or degree (typical: 9.5%). By way of comparison, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
An employment rate of 49%
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.
With 27% of residents 65 or over, the employment rate of 49% sits under the typical 58% across Canada’s towns.
Oldest by rank: 7th of 41 towns of 22,943 to 25,240 people
Towns of about this size, placed by median age.
The span goes from 32.4 (Fort St. John) up to 58 (White Rock). The towns whose median age is nearest to Owen Sound’s: Milliken (46.8), Oro-Medonte (47.6), Port Perry (49.2) and Saint-Lambert (49.2).
Older than Owen Sound: 3 of the 5 towns nearby
The nearest places, coloured by median age; each links to its own page. The nearest places to Owen Sound with figures are 7–27 km away.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owen Sound | 24,075 | — | 48 | 27% | 7.8% |
| Georgian Bluffs | 12,061 | 6.9 km | 51.2 | 26% | 6.5% |
| Chatsworth | 7,770 | 21.3 km | 46 | 22% | 7.1% |
| Meaford | 12,652 | 21.5 km | 54.4 | 31% | 10% |
| Wiarton | 9,799 | 22.7 km | 56.8 | 33% | 7.3% |
| Chesley | 7,639 | 27.0 km | 42 | 22% | 3.8% |
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. 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.
Questions about Owen Sound’s residents
What is the median income in Owen Sound?
Median total household income in Owen Sound was $63,200 in 2020, against a median of $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Owen Sound?
The latest figure is an estimate: 24,075 residents in July 2025. At the 2021 Census, Owen Sound counted 21,612, 1% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Owen Sound?
Half the residents are older than 48 and half younger, older than 80% of Canadian towns; 14% are children under 15 and 27% are 65 or over.
Is Owen Sound bilingual?
English and French: 6.6% speak both (Canada’s towns: 7.5%). English only: 93%. French only: 0%. French mother tongue: 0.9%.
How diverse is Owen Sound?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 17% are immigrants; here, 7.8%. A visible minority makes up 5.8% and Indigenous residents 4.2%.
What religion are people in Owen Sound?
Most often Christian (50%) or no religion (47%); other religions make up 3.6%.
Is Owen Sound good for families?
Children under 15 are 14% of residents, against 16% across Canada’s towns. Couple families make up 43% of households and one-parent families 11%. Schools near Owen Sound 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).