Photo: Marty Aligata · CC BY-SA 4.0Belfast is older than 88% of Canadian towns: a median age of 51.2
The share of households in single-detached houses tops 94% of Canadian towns: 93%. Statistics Canada puts Belfast’s population at 2,110 for July 2025. Residents aged 15 to 24 account for 7.1%. Few places have so few residents with no religion: 30% here, fewer than in nearly two thirds of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of Belfast
Older than most towns
The middle resident of Belfast is 51.2; the typical median across Canadian towns is 42. 29% are 65 or over, against 19% across Canada’s towns. Ages ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Slower growth than 56% of Canadian towns: Belfast changed by +3% since 2016
Unless a figure says otherwise, it is from the 2021 Census. The census counts of 2016 and 2021, the estimate after them, and the change set beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
Medians for comparison: +4% across Canada’s towns; +11% across Prince Edward Island’s towns. By July 2025, the estimate had risen a further 25%.
Belfast sits above 89% of Canadian towns for residents aged 65 and over (29%)
Every five-year age group as a share of residents; ticks mark the typical town.
60–64 is the most common age band: nearly one in ten residents, 1.3 times the share across Canada’s towns. Across Belfast, 15% of residents are under 15. To put it in context, 19% of residents are 65 or over across Canada’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
51% women, 49% men
About 95 men for every 100 women.
Smaller households than 64% of Canadian towns: 2.3 people on average
Households by family type and by the number of people in them.
Against Prince Edward Island’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
With one-person households at 30%, Belfast is ahead of 60% of Canadian towns on that count. Here, 5.9% of households are one-parent families.
Belfast: 53% of residents 15 and over are married, above 72% of Canadian towns
How adults live as couples, or don’t, with common-law unions shown on their own.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Single and never married: just over a fifth of adults, against a typical 27%. Fewer common-law partners than in 64% of Canadian towns: 9.1%. The usual figure: 46% of residents 15 and over are married across Canada’s towns.
Renter households make up 8.9% in Belfast, less than in 92% 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
Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns. Older homes outnumber new: 42% predate 1961, 14% date from 2001 or later. Across the comparison, 25% of households rent their home across Canada’s towns. 10% of homes need major repairs, against a typical 5.8%.
A median household income of $70,500 a year
Census incomes cover 2020, when emergency benefits like CERB lifted many households’ totals. What households took in before tax, at the middle and across income groups.
Households by income · share of households
At $70,500, the middle household in Belfast earned 18% less than the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). Across Prince Edward Island’s towns, half of households had more than $82,500 before tax. Pandemic payments such as CERB reached 21% of income recipients here, against 28% in the typical town.
Below 74% of Canadian towns: 8.8% 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 20%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
Here 7.1% of residents are immigrants, where the figure across Canada’s towns is 17%. Add to that, residents without Canadian citizenship are rarer here than in just over three fifths of Canadian towns. On average, 11% of residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns. The largest groups of immigrants were born in Europe (52%) and in the Americas (35%).
68% said they are Christian and 30% that they have no religion
Identity and faith, in the census’s categories.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Across Canada’s towns, the share of visible minority residents is 15%; Belfast has 3.7%. Census figures put Indigenous residents at 2.5% in the town.
English is the mother tongue of 95%, and 6.9% speak French as well
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
Locally, 1.3% of residents have French as their mother tongue.
A smaller share of degree holders aged 25 to 64 than 53% of Canadian towns: 25%
Education of residents 25 to 64, by highest credential.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
No certificate, diploma or degree is held by 6.6%; in the typical town the share is 9.5%. The usual figure: 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
Employment: 54% of residents 15 and over had a job
The census was taken in May 2021, during the pandemic, so these rates show a labour market still recovering. Four labour figures from the census. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
The employment rate of 54% is below the typical 58% across Canada’s towns; 29% of residents are 65 or over.
The towns around Belfast are all younger
Neighbouring places and their median ages; each name opens its page. Distances here run 17–24 km: that is how far the nearest places with figures are from Belfast.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belfast | 2,110 | — | 51.2 | 29% | 7.1% |
| Vernon River | 2,779 | 16.9 km | 37.2 | 15% | 3.5% |
| Murray River, Part 1 | 1,638 | 22.4 km | 49.2 | 22% | 3.3% |
| Crossroads | 2,366 | 22.5 km | 41.2 | 14% | 3.5% |
| Stratford | 13,152 | 23.6 km | 40.4 | 18% | 13% |
| Three Rivers | 9,322 | 24.3 km | 44.8 | 23% | 4.9% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The census’s own words. These are self-reported answers: Indigenous identity, immigrant status, religion. The census’s “visible minority” comes from the Employment Equity Act (non-white in colour or race, Indigenous peoples aside), and the page sets each beside other towns without labelling any.
- Against Prince Edward Island’s towns and Canada’s towns. For each measure we take the median of Prince Edward Island’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 Belfast’s residents
Is Belfast bilingual?
Both official languages are spoken by 6.9% of residents, against a typical 7.5% across Canada’s towns. 93% speak only English and 0% only French; 1.3% grew up with French.
How diverse is Belfast?
Across Canada’s towns a typical 17% are immigrants; here, 7.1%. A visible minority makes up 3.7% and Indigenous residents 2.5%.
What religion are people in Belfast?
Most often Christian (68%) or no religion (30%); other religions make up 2.5%.
Is Belfast good for families?
Children under 15 are 15% of residents, against 16% across Canada’s towns. Couple families make up 57% of households and one-parent families 5.9%. Schools near Belfast are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Belfast?
Median total household income in Belfast was $70,500 in 2020, against a median of $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Belfast?
The latest figure is an estimate: 2,110 residents in July 2025. At the 2021 Census, Belfast counted 1,687, 3% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Belfast?
Half the residents are older than 51.2 and half younger; 15% are children under 15 and 29% are 65 or over.
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).