CacounaQuebec
1,888 residents make their home in this town in Quebec. Statistics Canada counts it in the Rivière-du-Loup metro area.
Is Cacouna a good place to live?
Housing is within reach (A). Hazards are a real consideration (D). Walkability is weaker too (C+).
Canadian towns get an overall grade from 2,500 residents, so Cacouna has subject grades only.
Safety is the Sûreté du Québec unit's figure for the whole MRC. No School Grade: this province doesn't publish comparable results school by school. Health is graded on the health region's survey figures and life expectancy, with the distance to hospital giving the town its own spread.
How Cacouna grades
Each subject compares Cacouna with Canadian towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far it is from the middle. Towns in other countries are graded separately.
Canadian towns get an overall grade from 2,500 residents, so Cacouna has subject grades only.
How TownRatings grades Canadian towns →
What makes Cacouna stand out
The 3 things Cacouna does most differently from other towns.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Cacouna.
Cacouna’s grade for hazard risk: a D
The radon tests numbers here cover the Bas-Saint-Laurent health region
The expected yearly loss to earthquakes is $0.21 for each $1,000 of buildings, higher than both Quebec’s towns ($0.14) and Canadian towns ($0.030). Burn scars are few around Cacouna, with 0.2% of the land within 25 km touched by fire since 1986 (0.006% a year). No one has filed a flood map for Cacouna on the national inventory.
Radon tests above the guideline · share of tested homes, 200 Bq/m³
| Hazards | Cacouna | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earthquake loss per $1,000 of buildings a year | $0.21 | $0.14 | $0.030 |
| Radon tests above the guideline | 14% | 8.2% | 6.6% |
NRCan seismic risk model and burned areas, Health Canada radon survey, the Flood Hazard Map Inventory
Rent takes less of local pay in Cacouna than in Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: 14% of household income
Shared with the rest of the Rivière-du-Loup metro area: rent as a share of income and monthly rent for a two-bedroom
Shelter took 30% or more of income for 9% of households, below both Quebec’s towns (13%) and Canadian towns (18%). Households that own their home make up 73%.
What homes were worth · The median owner’s estimate at the 2021 census
| Census 2021 | Cacouna | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households spending 30%+ on shelter | 9% | 13% | 18% |
| Rent as a share of income | 14% | 18% | 20% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; CMHC Rental Market Survey via Statistics Canada · Values come from owners at the 2021 census and incomes from 2020, so they predate the later rise in rates.
Cacouna’s health region reports 60% in very good or excellent health, ahead of the typical Canadian town’s 52%
Across the region, life runs to 81.7 years on average: women 83.1, men 80.3, in 2022/2024. On average 15% of adults live with arthritis, diabetes or high blood pressure, between Quebec’s towns (15%) and Canadian towns (17%). The town’s own part is the trip to care, and Cacouna’s is long: 11 km to a hospital on average, against 3.7 km typical.
Very good or excellent health · adults, age-standardised
| Health | Cacouna | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Very good or excellent health | 60% | 56% | 52% |
| Chronic conditions (average share) | 15% | 15% | 17% |
| Life expectancy at birth | 81.7 | 82.5 | 81.5 |
Statistics Canada, Canadian Community Health Survey 2023/2024 and life expectancy 2022/2024; Open Database of Healthcare Facilities · Health survey and life expectancy: one figure for all of the Région du Bas-Saint-Laurent
Commuters in Cacouna have a short way to work, 21 min on average, less than in both Quebec’s towns and Canadian towns
96% of commuters drove, above Quebec’s towns (90%) and Canadian towns (89%) alike.
How working residents got to work · census 2021
| Census 2021 | Cacouna | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip | 21 min | 27 min | 26 min |
| Car or van | 96% | 90% | 89% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021 (labour and commuting) · Counted in May 2021, under pandemic rules: fewer commutes and more people between jobs than in a normal year.
Summers stay cool in Cacouna: July afternoons reach 22.5°C, below Quebec’s towns and Canadian towns
Snowfall adds up to 281 cm a year, above Quebec’s towns (217 cm) and Canadian towns (141 cm) alike. Most of the snow comes in December, about 66 cm. Rain and snow peak in October, at 124 mm.
Average high by season · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Normals, 1991–2020 | Cacouna | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| July afternoon high | 22.5°C | 26.5°C | 25.5°C |
| Snowfall a year | 281 cm | 217 cm | 141 cm |
| Precipitation a year | 1,124 mm | 1,041 mm | 883 mm |
| Days with frost a year | 176 | 161 | 159 |
Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Rivière-du-Loup/St-Antonin)
Cacouna’s grade for safety: a B+
Property crime in its police area ran at 14.3 per 1,000 residents a year, below both Quebec’s towns (16.6) and Canadian towns (31.2). For every 1,000 residents of its police area, 10.7 violent incidents are reported each year. Figures for Crime Severity Index, Violent Crime Severity Index, violent crime and property crime per 1,000 are published for Rivière-du-Loup MRC as a whole, not for Cacouna alone.
Year by year · Crime Severity Index for each year
| 2023–2025 | Cacouna | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crime per 1,000 | 14.3 | 16.6 | 31.2 |
| Crime Severity Index | 48 | 56 | 67 |
| Violent Crime Severity Index | 72 | 88 | 86 |
Statistics Canada, Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, 2023–2025 average
Within 10 km of Cacouna, 44% of the land is protected
Count 29 protected areas within 10 km of town. 5.5 km from town is Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park, the nearest provincial park. Within 100 km there is no national park.
Protected land · of the land within 10 km
| Outdoors | Cacouna | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protected land within 10 km | 44% | 4.9% | 2.3% |
| Public protected areas within 10 km | 23 | 10 | 4 |
Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD), OpenStreetMap routes and beaches
Cacouna in November: highs near 3°C, lows near −3°C
In November, the normal is 78 mm of rain and snow. A normal December brings highs of −4°C, lows of −10°C. November usually brings some 22 cm of snow. The year peaks in July (23°C) and bottoms out in January (−16°C).
Normal highs, the months ahead · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Season | High | Low | Rain and snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | −6°C | −13°C | 217 mm |
| Spring | 6°C | −2°C | 268 mm |
| Summer | 21°C | 11°C | 326 mm |
| Autumn | 10°C | 2°C | 312 mm |
ECCC normals, 1991–2020 (Rivière-du-Loup/St-Antonin); the forecast is on the Weather page
Suzanne Rhéaume heads the council of Cacouna as mayor
Of the 78 Commons seats from Quebec, the Liberal Party of Canada holds 44.
Wikidata, MAMH, MMAH, Statistics Canada
Cacouna’s public library is Bibliothèque De Saint-Georges-De-Cacouna
It sits 1.1 km from the centre of Cacouna.
Provincial library statistics, OpenStreetMap, the CRA and Statistics Canada
28% of Cacouna’s residents speak English and French (Quebec’s towns: 44%; Canadian towns: 7.5%)
24% of residents have reached 65. Children under 15 make up 18%, above both Quebec’s towns (17%) and Canadian towns (16%).
Ages · Share of residents in each age group, Census 2021
Schooling · Highest qualification, residents 15 and over
Women and men · all residents
50.0% of Cacouna’s residents are women
925 men and 925 women lived here in 2021, against a share of women of 50.9% for Canada.
| Cacouna | Quebec | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 17% | 16% |
| 15 to 64 | 59% | 62% | 64% |
| 65+ | 24% | 20% | 19% |
| No certificate, diploma or degree | 16% | 19% | 16% |
| Postsecondary qualification | 67% | 59% | 56% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; Quebec and Canada: medians of towns of 2,500+
Cacouna’s teenagers travel 9.5 km to the nearest high school
| School | Level | Students | System |
|---|---|---|---|
| École Vents-et-Marées et DesbiensIn CacounaElementary | Elementary | – | French public |
| Schools within 3 km | Cacouna | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nearest secondary school | 9.5 km | 1.2 km | 1.2 km |
Provincial school lists and results, 2025-26 · Ungraded on schools in Quebec, because the ministry publishes its success rates by school service centre, not school by school.
The registers list 3 historic places in Cacouna, 2 at the top
Its oldest building on the record is Presbytère de Saint-Georges (Cacouna), from 1835. Designations here include a municipal citation. Also worth knowing: homes from before 1961 make up 36% of the stock, above Quebec’s towns (21%) and Canadian towns (18%) alike.
Historic places by designation · inside the town
Among them
| Heritage | Cacouna | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1961 | 36% | 21% | 18% |
Canadian Register of Historic Places, Directory of Federal Heritage Designations, Québec’s Répertoire du patrimoine culturel, Wikidata; Census 2021 homes by period
Everything we know about Cacouna
Famous people from Cacouna
5 notable people were born in Cacouna.
About Cacouna
Town in Quebec
Every figure TownRatings gives for Cacouna covers the municipality as Statistics Canada maps it, one census subdivision in Quebec.
Statistics Canada: population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155), Census of Population 2021, 2021 census boundaries.
- Population
- 1,888 (people, 2025 estimate)
- Province or territory
- Quebec
- Census division
- Rivière-du-Loup
- Metro area
- Rivière-du-Loup
- Census subdivision
- 2412057
Cacouna’s neighbours
The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Statistics Canada
| Town | People | km | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cacouna | 1,888 | — | — | A | B+ | A− |
| Saint-Arsène | 1,269 | 6.1 | — | A | B+ | A− |
| Rivière-du-Loup | 20,650 | 8.8 | A | B− | B+ | A |
| Saint-Modeste | 1,182 | 14 | — | A+ | B+ | A− |
| Saint-Antonin | 4,633 | 15 | A+ | A | B+ | A− |
| L'Isle-Verte | 1,427 | 17 | — | B | B+ | B+ |
| Notre-Dame-du-Portage | 1,341 | 18 | — | B+ | B+ | A− |
People: Statistics Canada, Census 2021. Distances: centre to centre.
Questions about Cacouna
Do people in Cacouna speak French?
It is a French-speaking town: 71.6% know French alone, and 28% can talk in English too, against 8% for the median of Canadian towns.
What kind of homes are in Cacouna?
Single-detached houses make up 77% of the homes here, where Canadian towns sit at 64%; 0% are in high-rise apartments. 33% of households are one person, and the average is 2.2.
Is Cacouna growing?
It grew from 1,803 people in 2016 to 1,848 in 2021, up 2.5%; the median of Canadian towns grew 4.1%. StatCan’s 2025 estimate is 1,888.
How old are the people of Cacouna?
At 46, its median age compares with 45.2 across Canadian towns. Children make up 18% of the population and seniors 24%.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021 · population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155) and 2021 census boundaries · Uniform Crime Reporting Survey 2023–25 (35-10-0026, 35-10-0183 to 35-10-0190) · CMHC rents as published by Statistics Canada (34-10-0133) · grades by 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).