Photo: Skytrain3514 at English Wikipedia · Public domainHalf of Thornbury is over 58.8, older than 99% of Canadian towns
Most recent wave: 5.3% of immigrants arrived in 2011–2021 (Canada’s towns: 27%). Children under 15: 9.9% of the total. More households in single-detached houses than in 73% of Canadian towns: 80%. The 2021 Census found 4,350 households in Thornbury; by July 2025 the population was about 11,162. The census figures here are for the whole of The Blue Mountains, the municipality that includes Thornbury.
What stands out about the people of Thornbury
Older than most towns
Thornbury’s median age is 58.8; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 34% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Growing faster than most
Thornbury went from 7,025 people in 2016 to 9,390 in 2021, +34%: faster growth than in 99% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Since 2016, Thornbury has grown +34%, faster than 99% of Canadian towns
The figures are the 2021 Census’s, except where another date is given. The census counts of 2016 and 2021, the estimate after them, and the change set beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
Across Canada’s towns, the typical town changed +4%; across Ontario’s towns, +6%. By July 2025, the estimate had risen a further 19%.
34% of residents are 65 or over, more than in 97% of Canadian towns
Share of residents in each five-year band; the tick is the typical town.
The largest age band is 60–64: 13% of residents, 1.9 times the share across Canada’s towns. As a reference point, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns. Locally, 7.3% of residents are aged 15 to 24.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Thornbury, 58.8. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About an even split.
2.1 people per household, fewer 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.
5.1% of households are one-parent families, against 8.2% across Canada’s towns. One-person households: 29% of the total.
58% of residents 15 and over are married, more than in 89% of Canadian towns
Marital status of residents 15 and over, with common-law couples counted apart.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
9.3% of residents 15 and over live common-law; across Canada’s towns the figure is 11%. Never married and not common-law: 18% of adults (typical: 27%).
Thornbury ranks below 81% of Canadian towns on renter households: 13%
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 about as common here as across Canada’s towns, at 0.7%. 38% of homes were built in 2001 or later, more than the 18% built before 1961. The comparison figure for renter households is 25% across Canada’s towns.
Half of households earn more than $101,000 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
The middle household in Thornbury had $101,000 before tax, 17% above the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Ontario’s towns have a median of $91,600. In 2020, 23% of income recipients drew a COVID-19 emergency or recovery benefit; the typical town had 28%.
Thornbury sits above 76% of Canadian towns for residents who moved in within the year (14%)
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
With residents without Canadian citizenship at 1.9%, Thornbury is behind 77% of Canadian towns on that count. Across Canada’s towns, residents who moved in within the year come to 11%. Immigrants here were most often born in Europe (70%), then in the Americas (16%).
Residents with no religion: 41%, a higher share than 69% of Canadian towns
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Where 15% of residents belong to a visible minority across Canada’s towns, Thornbury has 3.4%. In Thornbury, 1.1% of residents have an Indigenous identity. Across the comparison, just over a third of residents said they have no religion across Canada’s towns.
English is the mother tongue of 90%, and 8.2% 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 0.3%. There is little gap on residents whose mother tongue is French: 1.3%, about the same as across Canada’s towns.
A larger share of degree holders aged 25 to 64 than 74% of Canadian towns: 41%
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
Employment: 48% 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.
48% of residents 15 and over have a job, against a typical 58% across Canada’s towns; 34% are 65 or more.
Ranked by age, 1st oldest of 41 towns this size
Similar-sized towns by median age; each dot is a town.
The span goes from 30.4 (Bridgwater Trails) up to 58.8 (Thornbury). The towns whose median age is nearest to Thornbury’s: Montmagny (53.2) and Liverpool (55.6).
Every neighbour of Thornbury has a younger population
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are. The nearest places to Thornbury with figures are 17–27 km away.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thornbury | 11,162 | — | 58.8 | 34% | 13% |
| Collingwood | 28,366 | 17.4 km | 50.8 | 30% | 13% |
| Meaford | 12,652 | 19.9 km | 54.4 | 31% | 10% |
| Grey Highlands | 12,148 | 27.4 km | 46.8 | 24% | 7.3% |
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. For each measure we take the median of Ontario’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, then the median of all Canadian towns. Neither counts whole cities or reserves, and every percentile is a Canadian one.
- 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 Thornbury’s residents
What is the population of Thornbury?
The latest figure is an estimate: 11,162 residents in July 2025. At the 2021 Census, Thornbury counted 9,390, 34% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Thornbury?
Half the residents are older than 58.8 and half younger, older than 99% of Canadian towns; 9.9% are children under 15 and 34% are 65 or over.
Is Thornbury bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 8.2% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 92% speak only English and 0% only French; 1.3% grew up with French.
How diverse is Thornbury?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 17% are immigrants; here, 13%. A visible minority makes up 3.4% and Indigenous residents 1.1%.
What religion are people in Thornbury?
Most often Christian (57%) or no religion (41%); other religions make up 1.8%.
Is Thornbury good for families?
Children under 15 are 9.9% of residents, against 16% across Canada’s towns. Couple families make up 61% of households and one-parent families 5.1%. Schools near Thornbury are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Thornbury?
Median total household income in Thornbury was $101,000 in 2020, against a median of $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
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).