Photo: Unknown. Canada. Department of National Defence. · Public domainHouseholds in single-detached houses: 98%, a higher share than 99% of Canadian towns
11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns, against 6.3% in Southwold. One-person households: 17% of the total. On visible minority residents, Southwold sits lower than 83% of Canadian towns: 2.2%. The 2021 Census found 1,710 households locally; by July 2025 the population was about 5,473.
A +10% change since 2016: faster than 80% of Canadian towns
Figures are from the 2021 Census unless dated otherwise. 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%. The July 2025 estimate adds another 13%.
Southwold sits above 72% of Canadian towns for children under 15 (18%)
Share of residents in each five-year band; the tick is the typical town.
The median age in Southwold is 44, higher than in 62% of Canadian towns. On average, 16% of residents are under 15 across Canada’s towns. 55–59 is the most common age band: 8.1% of residents. Here 20% of residents are 65 or over, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 19%.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Southwold, 44. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
2.8 people per household, more than in 82% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
5.3% of households are one-parent families (Canada’s towns: 8.2%).
More married residents 15 and over than 91% of Canadian towns: 59%
Marital status of residents 15 and over, with common-law couples counted apart.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Singles who have never married make up just over a fifth of adults, beside a typical 27%. 9.5% of residents 15 and over live common-law.
Southwold sits below 93% of Canadian towns for renter households (8.5%)
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
Older homes outnumber new: 41% predate 1961, 23% date from 2001 or later. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns. Across Canada’s towns, 25% of households rent their home.
The median household brings in $105,000 a year
Census incomes are for 2020, the year before the census, when CERB and other pandemic benefits topped up many households. Total household income: the median household, and the spread from low to high.
Households by income · share of households
The middle household in Southwold had $105,000 before tax, 22% above the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Within Ontario’s towns, the household in the middle had $91,600. Pandemic benefits reached 24% of residents with an income, against a typical 28%.
6.5% of residents are immigrants
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
Where 17% of residents are immigrants across Canada’s towns, Southwold has 6.5%. The census found that 1.9% of residents are not Canadian citizens locally.
Southwold sits above 57% of Canadian towns for residents with no religion (37%)
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
The share of Indigenous residents stands at 2.1%. Residents with no religion make up 35% across Canada’s towns.
English is the mother tongue of 93%, and 3.9% 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
Across Canada’s towns, the share of bilingual residents is 7.5%; Southwold has 3.9%. At home: English 98%, French 0.2%. Lower than in 86% of Canadian towns: 0.7% of residents have French as their mother tongue.
In Southwold, 20% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, fewer than in 67% of Canadian towns
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
No diploma or degree: 6.3% here, 9.5% in the typical town. Against that, 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
In work on census day: 61% of adults
The census was taken in May 2021, during the pandemic, so these rates show a labour market still recovering. The census’s work rates at a glance. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
61% of residents 15 and over have a job; across Canada’s towns the typical share is 58%.
Ranked by age, 15th oldest of 41 towns this size
Similar-sized towns by median age; each dot is a town.
At one end is Chisasibi (26.6), at the other Inverness County, Subdivision A (56.4). By median age, Southwold sits among Stonewall (44), Wingham (44), Windsor (44.4) and West Meadowlark Park (44.6).
Among its 4 nearest neighbours, 2 are older than Southwold
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwold | 5,473 | — | 44 | 20% | 6.5% |
| Oneida 41 | 1,565 | 12.0 km | — | — | — |
| St. Thomas | 49,388 | 12.6 km | 43.6 | 21% | 10% |
| Central Elgin | 15,230 | 14.1 km | 48.8 | 23% | 9.8% |
| Dutton | 4,686 | 17.0 km | 44 | 20% | 5.6% |
| Lambeth | 2,609 | 19.1 km | 45.6 | 23% | 10% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Against Ontario’s towns and Canada’s towns. Each comparison is its own median: over Ontario’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, and over all Canadian towns of that size (whole cities and First Nations reserves left out). Percentiles are within Canada only.
- 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.
- 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.
Questions about Southwold’s residents
Is Southwold bilingual?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 7.5% are bilingual; here 3.9% are. Another 0% speak only French and 96% only English, and French is the first language of 0.7%.
How diverse is Southwold?
6.5% of residents are immigrants (Canada’s towns: 17%); 2.2% belong to a visible minority and 2.1% have an Indigenous identity.
What religion are people in Southwold?
63% are Christian and 37% have no religion; 0.2% follow another religion.
Is Southwold good for families?
Under 15: 18% (Canada’s towns: 16%). Couple families: 69% of households. One-parent families: 5.3%. Schools near Southwold are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Southwold?
The median household in Southwold took in $105,000 in 2020, against $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Southwold?
Southwold had about 5,473 residents in July 2025, Statistics Canada estimates; the 2021 Census counted 4,851, 10% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Southwold?
A median age of 44, older than 62% of Canadian towns. Children under 15 make up 18%, and people 65 and over 20%.
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).