Photo: R Orville Lyttle · CC BY-SA 2.0A median age of 49.6: Prescott is older than 84% of Canadian towns
8.5% of immigrants arrived between 2011 and 2021, against 27% across Canada’s towns. With about 4,342 residents in July 2025, Prescott counted 1,885 households at the 2021 Census. Across Prescott, just over one in ten households are one-parent families. The town has more renter households than 77% of Canadian towns, at 42%.
What stands out about the people of Prescott
Fewer people than before
Prescott went from 4,222 people in 2016 to 4,078 in 2021, −3%: slower growth than in 93% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Many older residents
27% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 87% of Canadian towns; 7.4% are 80 or over, and 37% of households are one person living alone. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
From 2016 to 2021, 93% of Canadian towns grew faster than Prescott: −3%
All figures are the 2021 Census’s unless another date is shown. Residents at the 2016 and 2021 censuses and the latest estimate, with the 2016–2021 change beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
By July 2025, the estimate had risen a further 6%.
More residents aged 65 and over than 87% of Canadian towns: 27%
Every five-year age group as a share of residents; ticks mark the typical town.
More residents are 60–64 than any other five-year age: nearly one in ten residents. Lower than in just over three quarters of Canadian towns: 9.3% of residents are aged 15 to 24. As a reference point, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Prescott, 49.6. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
About 94 men for every 100 women. Women live longer than men, so towns with many older residents have more women.
In Prescott, 37% of households are one person living alone, more than in 83% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
Households average 2.1 people, against 2.4 across Canada’s towns. As a reference point, 27% of households are one person living alone across Canada’s towns.
A larger share of common-law partners than 74% of Canadian towns: 14%
How adults live as couples, or don’t, with common-law unions shown on their own.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Singles who have never married make up a quarter of adults, beside a typical 27%. In Prescott, nearly two in five residents 15 and over are married. Across Canada’s towns, the share of common-law partners is 11%.
Households in single-detached houses make up 58% in Prescott, less than in 58% 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
11% of homes need major repairs, against a typical 5.8%. The benchmark for households in single-detached houses across Canada’s towns: 64%. Locally, 0.3% of households live in a building of five or more storeys.
Half above, half below $61,200 a year in household income
The income year is 2020: a year of pandemic benefits such as CERB, which the figures count. Total household income: the median household, and the spread from low to high.
Households by income · share of households
Prescott’s median household took in $61,200 before tax, 29% less than 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 22% of residents with an income, where the typical town had 28%.
Prescott sits below 59% of Canadian towns for residents who moved in within the year (10%)
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
The largest groups of immigrants were born in Europe (53%) and in the Americas (38%). 5.9% of residents are immigrants, fewer than in 78% of Canadian towns. As a yardstick, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns. In Prescott, 2.1% of residents are not Canadian citizens, beside 5.8% across Canada’s towns.
Residents with no religion make up 40% in Prescott, more than in 66% of Canadian towns
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
By its share of Indigenous residents (4.7%), Prescott is above 68% of Canadian towns. Meanwhile, the town has fewer visible minority residents than 78% of Canadian towns, at 2.8%. Residents with no religion: 35% across Canada’s towns, for comparison.
Bilingual residents make up 11% in Prescott, more than in 64% of Canadian towns
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
In Prescott, 3.1% of residents have French as their mother tongue, beside 1.5% across Canada’s towns. At home: English 98%, French 0.6%. Across Canada’s towns, the share of bilingual residents is 7.5%.
14% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, fewer than in 86% of Canadian towns
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
11% of those aged 25 to 64 have no formal credential, where the typical town has 9.5%.
An employment rate of 43%
Census day was in May 2021, mid-pandemic: some of these rates are lower than in a usual year. Four labour figures from the census. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
At 43%, fewer residents are in work than the typical 58% across Canada’s towns, and 27% are 65 or over.
Of 41 towns its size (4,263 to 4,422 people), the 13th oldest
Towns of about this size, placed by median age.
Between Glenridding Heights (31.9) and Highlands East (58.8) lies the rest of the group. By median age, Prescott sits among Geraldton (47.2), Deep River (47.6), Electoral Area E, Sunshine Coast (50.8) and Lantzville (50.8).
Older than Prescott: 1 of the 3 towns nearby
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prescott | 4,342 | — | 49.6 | 27% | 5.9% |
| Augusta | 7,767 | 6.5 km | 49.2 | 24% | 5.6% |
| Cardinal | 7,952 | 13.9 km | 48.4 | 23% | 5.1% |
| Brockville | 23,720 | 18.7 km | 51.6 | 30% | 11% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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.
- What these tables don’t give. Unpaid care, car ownership and internet access aren’t in the Census Profile, nor is the change by age since 2016. Ethnic origins other than visible minority and Indigenous identity are left out of the charts.
Questions about Prescott’s residents
What is the average age in Prescott?
A median age of 49.6, older than 84% of Canadian towns. Children under 15 make up 15%, and people 65 and over 27%.
Is Prescott bilingual?
English and French: 11% speak both (Canada’s towns: 7.5%). English only: 89%. French only: 0%. French mother tongue: 3.1%.
How diverse is Prescott?
5.9% of residents are immigrants (Canada’s towns: 17%); 2.8% belong to a visible minority and 4.7% have an Indigenous identity.
What religion are people in Prescott?
58% are Christian and 40% have no religion; 1.8% follow another religion.
Is Prescott good for families?
Under 15: 15% (Canada’s towns: 16%). Couple families: 44% of households. One-parent families: 11%. Schools near Prescott are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Prescott?
The median household in Prescott took in $61,200 in 2020, against $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Prescott?
Prescott had about 4,342 residents in July 2025, Statistics Canada estimates; the 2021 Census counted 4,078, 3% fewer than 2016.
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).