West River, #1 on this list · Photo: William Matheson from Bedford, Nova Scotia, Canada (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Prince Edward Island · 2026

Most historic towns in Prince Edward Island

At the other end is Kensington, Part 1, with 0. Across Canada, the same list puts West River #87 of 2,589. Canada’s top 100 on this list includes 2 places on Prince Edward Island. West River tops the list on Prince Edward Island, at 7. Second place goes to North Shore, at 7, and third to New Glasgow, at 5. Cornwall, in the middle of the list, comes in at 0.

Places on Canada’s heritage registers per 10,000 people How grades work

West River

Prince Edward Island · 4,155 people

7 Per 10,000 people

Overall A⁻·#500 of 2,556

Strongest: hazard risk A, jobs & income A⁻·lowest: walkability C⁻

North Shore

Prince Edward Island · 2,994 people

7 Per 10,000 people

Overall A⁻·#440 of 2,556

Strongest: jobs & income A, hazard risk A·lowest: walkability C⁻

New Glasgow

Prince Edward Island · 5,502 people

5 Per 10,000 people

Overall B⁻·#1,498 of 2,556

Strongest: hazard risk A, safety A⁻·lowest: walkability C⁻

All 12, ranked on Prince Edward Island

Best first on Prince Edward Island; beside each place, its rank on the same list for all of Canada.

Every Prince Edward Island list

#TownPer 10,000 peopleCanada rankWhat drives it

1West River4,155 people7#87 of 2,589Strongest: hazard risk A, jobs & income A⁻·lowest: walkability C⁻

2North Shore2,994 people7#99 of 2,589Strongest: jobs & income A, hazard risk A·lowest: walkability C⁻

3New Glasgow5,502 people5#128 of 2,589Strongest: hazard risk A, safety A⁻·lowest: walkability C⁻

4Charlottetown48,118 people3#267 of 2,589Strongest: walkability A, hazard risk A·lowest: cost of living D

5Three Rivers9,322 people2#344 of 2,589Strongest: hazard risk A, health B·lowest: jobs & income D

6Summerside19,006 people2#429 of 2,589Strongest: hazard risk A⁻, walkability B⁺·lowest: safety C⁻

7Cornwall7,920 people0#1,197 of 2,589Strongest: jobs & income A, hazard risk A·lowest: walkability C

8Stratford13,152 people0#1,199 of 2,589Strongest: jobs & income A⁺, hazard risk A·lowest: walkability C

9East River, Part 12,657 people0#1,349 of 2,589Strongest: hazard risk A, jobs & income A⁻·lowest: walkability D

10Vernon River2,779 people0#1,436 of 2,589Strongest: hazard risk A, safety A⁻·lowest: walkability C⁻

11O'Leary2,878 people0#2,566 of 2,589Strongest: cost of living A, hazard risk A⁻·lowest: walkability D

12Kensington, Part 13,357 people0#2,567 of 2,589Strongest: jobs & income A, hazard risk A⁻·lowest: walkability D

Rankings

More lists for Prince Edward Island

All lists Best places to live Best small towns Most affordable Safest Healthiest Jobs & income Most walkable Lowest hazard risk Civic life Highest incomes Fastest-growing Most historic Most bilingual Youngest Oldest Fewest frosts Driest Wettest

Province by province

Most historic elsewhere

Canada Alberta British Columbia Manitoba New Brunswick Newfoundland and Labrador Nova Scotia Ontario Prince Edward Island Quebec Saskatchewan

Photos: West River, William Matheson from Bedford, Nova Scotia, Canada (CC BY-SA 2.0) · North Shore, Dennis G. Jarvis (CC BY-SA 2.0) · New Glasgow, Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit , Lyndon B. Johnson S… (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons.

Sources: TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranking Canadian towns against each other only, run #73 of 10 November 2026. 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).