La PrairieQuebec
It is a town of 27,159 residents in Quebec. It sits within the Montréal census metropolitan area.
Is La Prairie a good place to live?
Health outcomes beat most towns (A). La Prairie’s overall grade of A puts it better than 86% of Canadian towns, #138 of 499 in Quebec. Walkability is a strength too (A). What holds it back is cost of living (C). Natural hazards weigh more here (C−).
Rents here are the metro area's average, shared by every town and neighbourhood in it. Safety is the regional police service's figure, shared with its other towns. 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.
What makes La Prairie stand out
The 3 things La Prairie does most differently from other towns.
How La Prairie grades
Each subject compares La Prairie with Canadian towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far it is from the middle. Towns in other countries are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades Canadian towns →
Musée d'archéologie de Roussillon and 9 more in and around La Prairie
From museums to parks and historic sites: La Prairie’s places to visit and those just beyond its edge, most famous first.
MuseumCanadian Railway Museum4.6 km outside town, to the southwest · 47K visitors a year
PierChamplain Bridge estacade3.8 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (2)
- Canadian Railway Museum: Fraccle, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Champlain Bridge estacade: Blanchardb- Me • MyEars • MyMouth -timed, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in La Prairie.
La Prairie is graded an A for health
The survey counts just over one in ten adults as smokers, lower than both Quebec’s towns (12%) and Canadian towns (12%). On self-rated health the region tracks the province: 55% very good or excellent, 57% for Quebec. The region’s 2022/2024 life expectancy is 82.5, with women at 84.2 and men at 80.8. For La Prairie itself the measure is access: 4.0 km to the nearest hospital, much like the typical 3.7 km. Figures for health survey and life expectancy are published for the Région de la Montérégie as a whole, not for La Prairie alone.
Very good or excellent health · adults, age-standardised
| Health | La Prairie | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chronic conditions (average share) | 15% | 15% | 17% |
| Very good or excellent health | 55% | 56% | 52% |
| Smokers | 11% | 12% | 12% |
| Life expectancy at birth | 82.5 | 82.5 | 81.5 |
Statistics Canada, Canadian Community Health Survey 2023/2024 and life expectancy 2022/2024; Open Database of Healthcare Facilities
The police who cover La Prairie record less serious crime than Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: a Crime Severity Index of 42
For violence alone, its police area’s index was 60, below both Quebec’s towns (88) and Canadian towns (86). Its police area records 13.5 property incidents per 1,000 residents a year. Where it is policed, 9.7 violent incidents per 1,000 residents are recorded each year. La Prairie shares its Crime Severity Index, Violent Crime Severity Index, violent crime and property crime per 1,000 numbers with the rest of the Roussillon Region service area.
Year by year · Crime Severity Index for each year
| 2023–2025 | La Prairie | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crime per 1,000 | 13.5 | 16.6 | 31.2 |
| Crime Severity Index | 42 | 56 | 67 |
| Violent Crime Severity Index | 60 | 88 | 86 |
| Violent crime | 9.7 | 12.4 | 12 |
Statistics Canada, Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, 2023–2025 average
La Prairie is on Canada’s flood inventory: 3 listed, led by municipalité de Saint-Philippe
Radon tests for the Monteregie 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). La Prairie’s survey area, 8.2% over the radon guideline, is close to the typical town’s 6.6%.
Radon tests above the guideline · share of tested homes, 200 Bq/m³
| Hazards | La Prairie | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earthquake loss per $1,000 of buildings a year | $0.21 | $0.14 | $0.030 |
| Radon tests above the guideline | 8.2% | 8.2% | 6.6% |
NRCan seismic risk model and burned areas, Health Canada radon survey, the Flood Hazard Map Inventory
Homes in La Prairie are worth a median $448,000, by what owners told the census
17% of households spent 30% or more of their income on shelter, between Quebec’s towns (13%) and Canadian towns (18%). The owner-occupied share of households is 72%. For rent as a share of income and monthly rent for a two-bedroom, the only official count covers all of the Montréal metro area, La Prairie included.
What homes were worth · The median owner’s estimate at the 2021 census
| Census 2021 | La Prairie | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households spending 30%+ on shelter | 17% | 13% | 18% |
| Median home value, 2021 | $448,000 | $300,000 | $406,000 |
| Rent as a share of income | 18% | 18% | 20% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; CMHC Rental Market Survey via Statistics Canada · These are 2021 census values, as owners judged them, set against household income in 2020.
Households in La Prairie earn more than those in 76% of Canadian towns
The car took 85% of commuters, below both Quebec’s towns (90%) and Canadian towns (89%). The average trip to work takes 27 min.
How working residents got to work · census 2021
| Census 2021 | La Prairie | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Car or van | 85% | 90% | 89% |
| Average trip | 27 min | 27 min | 26 min |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021 (labour and commuting) · These are May 2021 figures, gathered while COVID-19 kept many people home or out of work.
More rain and snow fall on La Prairie than on 74% of Canadian towns: 1,041 mm a year
A normal July day peaks at 26.6°C, close to Quebec’s towns (26.5°C) and above Canadian towns (25.5°C). October is the wettest month, with 103 mm of rain and snow on average. Most of the snow comes in January, about 52 cm.
Average high by season · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Normals, 1991–2020 | La Prairie | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Snowfall a year | 217 cm | 217 cm | 141 cm |
| July afternoon high | 26.6°C | 26.5°C | 25.5°C |
| Days with frost a year | 149 | 161 | 159 |
| Precipitation a year | 1,041 mm | 1,041 mm | 883 mm |
Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 (L'Acadie)
A normal November in La Prairie runs from −2°C to 6°C
November normally sees 84 mm of precipitation. Looking ahead to December, expect highs near −1°C and lows near −9°C. About 16 cm of snow falls in a normal November. Across the year, normals run from −14°C nights in January to 27°C afternoons in July.
Normal highs, the months ahead · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Season | High | Low | Rain and snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | −3°C | −12°C | 243 mm |
| Spring | 11°C | 1°C | 253 mm |
| Summer | 25°C | 14°C | 268 mm |
| Autumn | 14°C | 4°C | 277 mm |
ECCC normals, 1991–2020 (L'Acadie); the forecast is on the Weather page
Bibliothèque Léo-Lecavalier is La Prairie’s public library
Bibliothèque Léo-Lecavalier has one location for the 27,117 people it serves.
Provincial library statistics, OpenStreetMap, the CRA and Statistics Canada
More people in La Prairie speak English and French than in Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: 60%
17% of residents are 65 or over. Children under 15 make up 18%, higher than 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
Women make up 51.3% of La Prairie
Of the 2021 count, 13,540 were women and 12,865 men (women across Canada: 50.9%).
| La Prairie | Quebec | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 17% | 16% |
| 15 to 64 | 65% | 62% | 64% |
| 65+ | 17% | 20% | 19% |
| No certificate, diploma or degree | 13% | 19% | 16% |
| Postsecondary qualification | 65% | 59% | 56% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; Quebec and Canada: medians of towns of 2,500+
The nearest provincial park, Mont-Saint-Bruno National Park (Québec), is 14 km from La Prairie
The protected share within 10 km is 4.6%, where a typical Canadian town has 2.3%. 0.6 km out lies the largest, Bassin de la Prairie (Grand Herbier) Water Fowl Gathering Area, at 903 ha. CPCAD lists 19 protected areas within 10 km. No national park lies within 100 km.
Protected land · of the land within 10 km
| Outdoors | La Prairie | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public protected areas within 10 km | 11 | 10 | 4 |
| Protected land within 10 km | 4.6% | 4.9% | 2.3% |
Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD), OpenStreetMap routes and beaches
7 of the 28 schools around La Prairie are independent
In or within 3 km of La Prairie: 18 elementary schools, 9 secondary schools and 1 school for every grade. Of the 28, 2 teach in English (10% of schools in Quebec).
| School | Level | Students | System |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège Jean de la Mennais - primaire IndependentIn La PrairieElementary | Elementary | – | Independent |
| Collège Jean de la Mennais - secondaire IndependentIn La PrairieSecondary | Secondary | – | Independent |
| École Saint-Lawrence (Saint-Lawrence - Champlain) EnglishTeaches in EnglishElementary | Elementary | – | English public |
Schools by system · Schools within 3 km
| Schools within 3 km | La Prairie | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| School boards | 3 | 2 | 3 |
Provincial school lists and results, 2025-26 · Schools grade in Quebec: none (the ministry publishes its success rates by school service centre, not school by school).
Fort Laprairie, from 1687, is La Prairie’s oldest designated place
The registers list 3 historic places inside the town, every one with the highest designation. Just over a tenth of its homes were built before 1961, lower than both Quebec’s towns (21%) and Canadian towns (18%).
Historic places by designation · inside the town
| Heritage | La Prairie | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1961 | 11% | 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 La Prairie
Famous people from La Prairie
23 notable people were born in La Prairie.
Photo credits
Maxime Fortunus: TheAHL, CC BY 2.0 · Georges Brossard: Acrocynus, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Martin T. McMahon: Unknown author, Public domain · Robert Newton Hall: J. E. Livernois Ltée, Public domain · François Beaucourt: François Beaucourt, Public domain · Hermine Lanctôt: Larose, Public domain
La Prairie’s neighbours
The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Statistics Canada
| Town | People | km | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Prairie | 27,159 | — | A | C | A− | A |
| Candiac | 24,920 | 4.2 | A+ | B− | A− | A |
| Brossard | 97,597 | 5.1 | B | C− | B | A |
| Saint-Philippe | 8,674 | 6 | A | B− | A− | A |
| Delson | 8,802 | 6.5 | A | C | A− | A |
| Sainte-Catherine | 17,782 | 6.9 | A | C | A− | A |
| Ile-des-Soeurs | 21,568 | 7.7 | B | C | C | A |
People: Statistics Canada, Census 2021. Distances: centre to centre.
Questions about La Prairie
Do people in La Prairie speak French?
French is the common language here. 60% of residents also speak English (the median of Canadian towns: 8%), and 34.5% speak French but not English.
Is La Prairie growing?
Between the 2016 and 2021 censuses it went from 24,110 to 26,406 residents (up 9.5%; Canadian towns’ median: 4.1%), and Statistics Canada now estimates 27,159.
What kind of homes are in La Prairie?
Mostly 52% single-detached houses (the median of Canadian towns: 64%), with 2% of homes in buildings of five or more storeys. Households hold 2.4 people on average, and 31% have just one.
About La Prairie
Town in Quebec
The boundary here is Statistics Canada’s: La Prairie is one census subdivision in Quebec, and TownRatings describes all of it.
Statistics Canada: population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155), Census of Population 2021, 2021 census boundaries.
- Population
- 27,159 (people, 2025 estimate)
- Province or territory
- Quebec
- Census division
- Roussillon
- Metro area
- Montréal
- Census subdivision
- 2467015
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).