Photo: William Matheson from Bedford, Nova Scotia, Canada · CC BY-SA 2.0West River has 0.1 jobs for every resident in work, so most commute out
At the 2021 census, 82% of West River’s 15-to-64s were in work, against 73% in the middle of Canadian towns. The median household in West River had $94,000 before tax in 2020; the middle of Canadian towns is $85,900. Of everyone in West River working or looking for work in May 2021, 7.3% were unemployed, next to 9.9% for the middle of Canadian towns.
What West River’s work numbers say
More people in work than most towns
Among residents aged 15 to 64, 82% were in work at the 2021 census, against 73% in the middle of Canadian towns; take everyone 15 and over and it falls to 63%. In work ↓
Less unemployment than most towns
On census day in 2021, 7.3% of those working or looking had no job; the middle of Canadian towns was 9.9%. Unemployment ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada’s 2021 Census, its commuting tables, Employment Insurance and the Labour Force Survey.
Jobs & income in West River: graded A−
Better than 83% of Canadian towns on three measures together, #5 of 12 on Prince Edward Island.
Its strongest measure is the share of 15-to-64s in work; its weakest, trip times.
Graded against Canadian towns of 2,500 people or more; less unemployment and a shorter commute count in its favour.
How the grade works
Census 2021 measures, weighed equally against every Canadian town and neighbourhood of 2,500 people or more: the share of residents aged 15 to 64 in work, median household income (2020), the unemployment rate and the average commute. Each becomes a percentile; their average sets the letter.
Work and the working-age population of West River
Of the 7 other places of 2,500 people or more in the Queens census division, 5 have a smaller share of 15-to-64s in work.
67% of residents aged 15 and over were in the labour force, in work or seeking it. Counting retirees, 63% of everyone aged 15 and over was working. These are census figures from May 2021, during COVID’s third wave; jobs have recovered since, which the Labour Force Survey shows.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: people in work of any age over residents aged 15 to 64, and the census unemployment rate (15 and over); the 25-to-54 rate is Statistics Canada’s own (98-10-0485). The Labour Force Survey and business counts are context, not grade inputs.
The daily tide in West River runs outward
It sends out some 38 workers for every one it takes in. 6.6% of residents who commute work inside the municipality, against 70% in the middle of Canadian towns.
People with no fixed workplace are in neither count.
93% of West River’s residents in work leave it to work; Charlottetown takes the most
- Charlottetown800
- Cornwall100
- Summerside30
- Stratford20
- Brackley15
- Miscouche15
- St. John's10
- Belfast10
- Crapaud, Part 110
- Clyde River10
Coming the other way, Charlottetown sends the most (10).
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census (98-10-0459): commuting flows between municipalities (census subdivisions), rounded to 5; linked names have their own pages.
Household income in West River
Before tax, 2020: higher than in 80% of Canadian towns.
One of the 7 other places of 2,500+ in the Queens census division has a higher median. Set beside Prince Edward Island’s towns, where the median is $82,000, West River sits 15% above. These are 2020 incomes, before tax, and they include pandemic benefits such as CERB, which lifted many lower incomes that year.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: median total income of households in 2020, before tax (a neighbourhood’s estimated from its dissemination areas’ income groups).
Walking, cycling or transit: 2.4% of West River’s commuters
Only 18% worked at home on census day, against 21% in the middle of Canadian towns. Few ride transit: 1%, where the middle of Canadian towns has 3.5%. The car is the way to work for 95% of commuters.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: main mode of commuting; average durations by mode from table 98-10-0458 (whole municipalities only).
The trip to work from West River runs about as long as the middle of Canadian towns: 26.3 minutes
Trips under 15 minutes: 18%, fewer than the 40% in the middle of Prince Edward Island’s towns. 3.8% spend an hour or longer getting to work; the middle of Prince Edward Island’s towns has 2.7%. Timed exactly, the average is 24.5 minutes (Statistics Canada). In the middle of Prince Edward Island’s towns, the average commute is 23.3 minutes.
Statistics Canada, 2021 Census: commuting duration in five bands; our average uses each band’s middle (75 minutes for an hour or more), so it runs about two minutes above Statistics Canada’s own.
EI claims in the Queens census division run 12% above their 2019 level
At its peak, in March 2021, 7,760 people were on EI, 2.1 times the 2019 average. Roughly 5.4 in every 100 people aged 15 to 64 in the division draw EI. In the twelve months to August 2026 the number rose by 3%.
Statistics Canada, Employment Insurance beneficiaries by census division (14-10-0323): all income benefits, not seasonally adjusted. EI counts are context, not part of any grade.
People receiving Employment Insurance each month, as a share of the 2019 average (100). West River shares its EI beneficiaries numbers with the rest of the Queens census division.
Walking in West River earns C−
Better than 19% of Canadian towns on two measures together, #7 of 12 on Prince Edward Island.
OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL); active commuting from the 2021 Census.
Ranked on jobs and income, West River is 132nd among 747 Canadian towns of 2,900 to 5,600
| # | Place | People | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Crescentwood Manitoba | 3,060 | 87% | 5% | $123K | A+ |
| 2 | Cornwallis Manitoba | 4,705 | 85% | 2.1% | $99K | A+ |
| 3 | New Maryland New Brunswick | 4,455 | 81% | 6.5% | $118K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 41 | North Shore Prince Edward Island | 2,994 | 82% | 7.9% | $98K | A |
| … | ||||||
| 55 | Kensington, Part 1 Prince Edward Island | 3,357 | 80% | 12% | $86K | A |
| … | ||||||
| 130 | Cameron Heights Alberta | 3,710 | 78% | 8.6% | $169K | A− |
| 131 | Mistissini Quebec | 4,067 | 63% | 6.2% | $109K | A− |
| 132 | West River Prince Edward Island | 4,155 | 82% | 7.3% | $94K | A− |
| 133 | Ogilvie Ridge Alberta | 5,218 | 79% | 11% | $121K | A− |
| 134 | Saint-Dominique Quebec | 3,062 | 84% | 4.5% | $84K | A− |
| … | ||||||
| 372 | New Glasgow Prince Edward Island | 5,502 | 76% | 12% | $81K | B− |
| … | ||||||
| 747 | Division No. 1, Subdivision E Newfoundland and Labrador | 2,978 | 57% | 22% | $60K | D− |
Ordered by Jobs & income Grade: the top three, the places either side of West River, and others among Prince Edward Island’s towns.
Work in the places around West River
| Place | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Household income | Average trip | Jobs | Walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West River | 82% | 7.3% | $94K | 26.3 min | A− | C− |
| Cornwall 9.9 km | 80% | 7.8% | $86K | 19.7 min | A | C |
| Kingston 11.8 km | 90% | 5.8% | $107K | 24.4 min | A+ | D− |
| Charlottetown 15 km | 75% | 9.7% | $66K | 15.6 min | B | A |
| Stratford 15.2 km | 79% | 8% | $91K | 19.5 min | A+ | C |
| Miltonvale Park 17.2 km | 72% | 11% | $81K | 20.4 min | B | D− |
| Crapaud, Part 1 18.2 km | 79% | 9.3% | $82K | 28.1 min | B− | D |
The people of each place: the share in work, unemployment, household income and the average commute, with both grades once they come.
What this data can and can’t tell you
What each figure measures for West River, where it comes from, and what it leaves out.
- Unemployment. Of everyone 15 or older who was working or job-hunting in the census week, the part still looking. Someone not seeking work isn’t in it at all.
- Household income. Taken from the 2021 Census, which asked about 2020: wages, pensions, investment income and government transfers together, before income tax, for the median household.
- Trip times. One way, on a usual day, from the census’s travel-time bands. Band midpoints overstate it a little next to the figure Statistics Canada times.
- Where people commute. Built from the census table that pairs each worker’s home municipality with their workplace municipality. A job here means someone who usually works in the municipality, local or not.
- Employment Insurance. Beneficiaries of Employment Insurance, month by month, for the census division rather than the town. Many jobless people don’t qualify, so it isn’t an unemployment rate.
- In work. How many residents held a job in May 2021, set against how many were 15 to 64. It reads a little high where many people work past 65, since below the municipality the census gives no breakdown of workers by age.
- Which towns we compare. Towns and city neighbourhoods of 2,500 people or more, never a whole city and never a First Nations reserve. Middles are medians.
Questions about work in West River
What is the unemployment rate in West River?
The 2021 census found 7.3% of those working or looking without a job; the middle of Canadian towns is 9.9%.
What is the average household income in West River?
The census puts West River at $94,000 for 2020, before tax and at the median, against $85,900 in the middle of Canadian towns.
How do people in West River get to work?
95% of commuters drive, 1% take public transit and 1.4% walk; 18% of everyone in work worked at home on census day.
How long is the commute from West River?
The average commute is 26.3 minutes; 18% of trips take under 15 minutes and 3.8% an hour or more.
Where do people in West River work?
Only 6.6% work in West River itself; the rest go first to Charlottetown (800) and Cornwall (100).
How many jobs are there in West River?
The 2021 census found about 100 people with their usual workplace in West River, or 0.1 for each resident who travels to a fixed job. Statistics Canada counted 98 businesses with employees in June 2026.
Sources: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census of Population (Census Profile) · Statistics Canada, tables 98-10-0458 and 98-10-0459 (commuting) · Statistics Canada, table 14-10-0323 (EI beneficiaries) · Statistics Canada, Canadian Business Counts (33-10-1176) · grades: TownRatings. 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).