Photo: Robert Garry · CC BY-SA 4.0Chibougamau sits above 82% of Canadian towns for Indigenous residents (7.8%)
In Chibougamau, 16% of residents are 65 or over, beside 19% across Canada’s towns. Children under 15 are more common here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns. Statistics Canada puts the town’s population at 7,273 for July 2025. Locally, 51% of households live in a single-detached house.
What stands out about the people of Chibougamau
Common-law couples
33% of residents 15 and over live common-law, more than in 97% of Canadian towns; 29% are married. Couples ↓
Fewer people than before
Chibougamau went from 7,504 people in 2016 to 7,233 in 2021, −4%: slower growth than in 94% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Chibougamau ranks above 80% of Canadian towns on bilingual residents: 29%
Figures are from the 2021 Census unless dated otherwise. Knowledge of the two official languages, first languages, and the language of home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
At home: French 94%, English 3.4%. The benchmark for bilingual residents across Canada’s towns: 7.5%. Few places have so few residents whose mother tongue is English: 3% here, fewer than in 90% of Canadian towns.
A −4% change since 2016: slower than 94% of Canadian towns
Residents at the 2016 and 2021 censuses and the latest estimate, with the 2016–2021 change beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
By July 2025, Statistics Canada’s estimate had barely moved.
Chibougamau is younger than 58% of Canadian towns: a median age of 40.8
Age bands of five years, the town’s bars against the typical town’s ticks.
The largest age band is 55–59: nearly one in ten residents. Residents aged 15 to 24 make up 11%, close to the figure across Canada’s towns.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Chibougamau, 40.8. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
48% women, 52% men
About 107 men for every 100 women.
2.2 people per household, fewer than in 74% of Canadian towns
Household types, then household sizes.
Against Quebec’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
32% of households are one person living alone; across Canada’s towns the figure is 27%. At 9.4%, the share of one-parent families is higher than in 67% of Canadian towns.
33% of residents 15 and over live common-law, more than in 97% of Canadian towns
Residents 15 and over by marital status; the census counts common-law couples separately.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Singles who have never married make up 27% of adults, beside a typical 27%. For common-law partners, the comparison across Canada’s towns is 11%. 29% of residents 15 and over are married.
Chibougamau: 30% of households rent their home, above 59% of Canadian towns
Occupied homes by type, by owners and renters, and by when they were built. 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 74% of Canadian towns. For renter households, the comparison across Canada’s towns is 25%. Older homes outnumber new: 16% predate 1961, 9.4% date from 2001 or later.
Households here have a median income of $85,000 a year
Census incomes are for 2020, the year before the census, when CERB and other pandemic benefits topped up many households. Household income before tax: the median, and households by income group.
Households by income · share of households
At $85,000, the middle household in Chibougamau earned close to the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). The middle household across Quebec’s towns has $74,000 before tax. Emergency and recovery benefits reached 29% of those with an income, beside a typical 28%.
Chibougamau ranks below 60% of Canadian towns on residents who moved in within the year: 10%
Immigrants, newcomers and movers.
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
2.7% of residents are not Canadian citizens, against 5.8% across Canada’s towns. Set beside that, just over one in ten residents lived at another address a year earlier across Canada’s towns. The share of immigrants stands at 1.5%.
Fewer residents with no religion than 82% of Canadian towns: 23%
Visible minority and Indigenous identity, then religion.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
3.9% of residents belong to a visible minority, against 15% across Canada’s towns. Typically, just over a third of residents said they have no religion across Canada’s towns.
17% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, fewer than in 77% of Canadian towns
Highest certificate, diploma or degree of residents aged 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
14% have no certificate, diploma or degree (typical: 9.5%). The wider picture: 27% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher across Canada’s towns.
A job for 67% of residents aged 15 and over
These rates date from May 2021, during the pandemic, and run lower than a normal year’s. The census’s labour rates, in brief. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
The employment rate of 67% is above the typical 58% across Canada’s towns.
In its size band (7,145 to 7,391), the 18th oldest of 41 towns
Median age of the Canadian towns nearest in population; hover a dot.
The youngest of these towns is Niverville, at 32.8; the oldest, Trent Lakes, is at 58. Closest in median age to Chibougamau are Brown's Corners (40.5), Saint-Joseph-du-Lac (40.8), Les Cèdres (41.2) and Haysboro (42.4).
The towns around Chibougamau are all younger
The closest towns, coloured by how old their residents are. Chibougamau has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 38–118 km out.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chibougamau | 7,273 | — | 40.8 | 16% | 1.5% |
| Chapais | 1,392 | 38.0 km | 40.4 | 16% | 1% |
| Mistissini | 4,067 | 65.9 km | 29 | 7.2% | 0% |
| Eeyou Istchee Baie-James | 1,225 | 93.1 km | 34.4 | 12% | 0.4% |
| Waswanipi | 1,866 | 118.2 km | 26 | 6.5% | 0% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Against Quebec’s towns and Canada’s towns. Provincial and national yardsticks: Quebec’s towns and neighbourhoods of at least 2,500 residents, and all Canadian towns of that size. No whole city and no First Nations reserve is in either median.
- What these tables don’t give. Not in the Census Profile: unpaid care, cars, internet access, and how each age group has changed since 2016. We also chart no ethnic origins besides visible minority and Indigenous identity.
- 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.
Questions about Chibougamau’s residents
What is the median income in Chibougamau?
The median household in Chibougamau took in $85,000 in 2020, against $86,000 across Canada’s towns.
What is the population of Chibougamau?
Chibougamau had about 7,273 residents in July 2025, Statistics Canada estimates; the 2021 Census counted 7,233, 4% fewer than 2016.
What is the average age in Chibougamau?
A median age of 40.8, younger than 58% of Canadian towns. Children under 15 make up 19%, and people 65 and over 16%.
Is Chibougamau bilingual?
English and French: 29% speak both (Canada’s towns: 7.5%). English only: 2.6%. French only: 69%. French mother tongue: 93%.
How diverse is Chibougamau?
1.5% of residents are immigrants (Canada’s towns: 17%); 3.9% belong to a visible minority and 7.8% have an Indigenous identity.
What religion are people in Chibougamau?
76% are Christian and 23% have no religion; 1.3% follow another religion.
Is Chibougamau good for families?
Under 15: 19% (Canada’s towns: 16%). Couple families: 55% of households. One-parent families: 9.4%. Schools near Chibougamau are on its Schools page.
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).