PaspébiacQuebec
A town in Quebec, home to 3,132 people. It is part of Bonaventure, a census division.
Is Paspébiac a good place to live?
Easy on the wallet, harder on other counts. With a B+ overall, Paspébiac is better than 73% of Canadian towns. Its place in the ranking is #232 of 499 in Quebec. Housing is within reach (A−). Safety is a strength too (B+). What counts against it is jobs & income (C). It also trails on hazard risk (C−).
This town's rent is the 2021 census rent scaled to 2025 by its province's ratio of surveyed to census rents: no rental survey covers it, so its Cost Grade is less sure. 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 Paspébiac grades
Each subject compares Paspébiac 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 →
What makes Paspébiac stand out
The 3 things Paspébiac does most differently from other towns.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Paspébiac.
Paspébiac has cooler summers than Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: July highs of 22.7°C
Snow peaks in February: 84 cm in a normal year. Snowfall adds up to 343 cm a year, above Quebec’s towns (217 cm) and Canadian towns (141 cm) alike. October is the wettest month, with 117 mm of rain and snow on average.
Average high by season · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Normals, 1991–2020 | Paspébiac | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Snowfall a year | 343 cm | 217 cm | 141 cm |
| July afternoon high | 22.7°C | 26.5°C | 25.5°C |
| Precipitation a year | 1,095 mm | 1,041 mm | 883 mm |
| Days with frost a year | 175 | 161 | 159 |
Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 (New Carlisle)
Radon is Paspébiac’s main hazard: 25% of tested homes in its area top Health Canada’s guideline
Source area for radon tests: the Gaspesie - Iles-de-la-Madeleine health region
For earthquakes Paspébiac is middling, $0.034 a year per $1,000 against $0.030 for the typical town. No one has filed a flood map for Paspébiac on the national inventory.
Radon tests above the guideline · share of tested homes, 200 Bq/m³
| Hazards | Paspébiac | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radon tests above the guideline | 25% | 8.2% | 6.6% |
| Earthquake loss per $1,000 of buildings a year | $0.034 | $0.14 | $0.030 |
NRCan seismic risk model and burned areas, Health Canada radon survey, the Flood Hazard Map Inventory
Renting in Paspébiac costs 14% of household income, less than in Quebec’s towns and across Canadian towns
7% of households spent 30% or more of their income on shelter, below Quebec’s towns (13%) and Canadian towns (18%) alike. Home ownership covers 72% of households.
What homes were worth · The median owner’s estimate at the 2021 census
| Census 2021 | Paspébiac | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households spending 30%+ on shelter | 7% | 13% | 18% |
| Rent as a share of income | 14% | 18% | 20% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; CMHC Rental Market Survey via Statistics Canada · The 2021 census asked owners what their home was worth; those values, and 2020 incomes, are what this compares.
Commuters in Paspébiac have a short way to work, 20 min on average, less than in Quebec’s towns and across Canadian towns
The car took 90% of commuters, in line with Quebec’s towns (90%) and Canadian towns (89%).
How working residents got to work · census 2021
| Census 2021 | Paspébiac | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip | 20 min | 27 min | 26 min |
| Car or van | 90% | 90% | 89% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021 (labour and commuting) · The 2021 census was taken in May 2021, during COVID-19 restrictions: more people than usual worked from home or were off work.
Paspébiac’s grade for safety: a B+
Across the area its police cover, the Crime Severity Index averaged 48 over 2023–25, lower than both Quebec’s towns (56) and Canadian towns (67). Thefts, break-ins and damage add up to 11.6 per 1,000 residents a year where it is policed. Behind Crime Severity Index, Violent Crime Severity Index, violent crime and property crime per 1,000 sits data gathered across Avignon/Bonaventure MRC, with Paspébiac one part of it.
Year by year · Crime Severity Index for each year
| 2023–2025 | Paspébiac | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crime per 1,000 | 11.6 | 16.6 | 31.2 |
| Crime Severity Index | 48 | 56 | 67 |
| Violent Crime Severity Index | 75 | 88 | 86 |
Statistics Canada, Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, 2023–2025 average
More of Paspébiac’s residents have an Indigenous identity than in Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: 9.3%
19% speak both English and French, between Quebec’s towns (44%) and Canadian towns (7.5%).
Ages · Share of residents in each age group, Census 2021
Schooling · Highest qualification, residents 15 and over
Women and men · all residents
52.0% of Paspébiac’s residents are women
The 2021 census counted 1,575 women and 1,455 men here, where women make up 50.9% of Canada.
| Paspébiac | Quebec | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 11% | 17% | 16% |
| 15 to 64 | 56% | 62% | 64% |
| 65+ | 33% | 20% | 19% |
| No certificate, diploma or degree | 28% | 19% | 16% |
| Postsecondary qualification | 49% | 59% | 56% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; Quebec and Canada: medians of towns of 2,500+
The 2 schools of Paspébiac: 1 elementary school and 1 secondary school
| School | Level | Students | System |
|---|---|---|---|
| École La SourceIn PaspébiacElementary | Elementary | – | French public |
| École polyvalente de PaspébiacIn PaspébiacSecondary | Secondary | – | French public |
Provincial school lists and results, 2025-26 · Why no schools grade in Quebec? The ministry publishes its success rates by school service centre, not school by school.
What November brings in Paspébiac: −2°C at night, 4°C by day
For today and the week ahead, the Weather page carries ECCC’s New Carlisle forecast. By December, a normal day reaches −2°C and a night falls to −9°C. Rain and snow over a typical November come to 101 mm. About 19 cm of snow falls in a normal November.
Normal highs, the months ahead · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Season | High | Low | Rain and snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | −4°C | −12°C | 261 mm |
| Spring | 7°C | −3°C | 254 mm |
| Summer | 21°C | 11°C | 273 mm |
| Autumn | 11°C | 3°C | 307 mm |
ECCC normals, 1991–2020 (New Carlisle); the forecast is on the Weather page
Jérémy Laplante leads Paspébiac as mayor
Federally, Paspébiac sits in Gaspésie—Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine—Listuguj, its riding (a federal electoral district, which elects one MP), held by Alexis Deschênes of the Bloc Québécois.
Wikidata, MAMH, MMAH, Statistics Canada
Bibliothèque De Paspebiac is Paspébiac’s public library
It stands 2.3 km from the centre of Paspébiac.
Provincial library statistics, OpenStreetMap, the CRA and Statistics Canada
7 beaches lie within 5 km of Paspébiac
75 km from town is Miguasha National Park (Québec), the nearest provincial park. Biggest among them: Karst-de-Saint-Elzéar Biodiversity Reserve, 4,427 ha, 4.3 km off. The protected share within 10 km is 6.5%, where a typical Canadian town has 2.3%. The nearest national park is Forillon National Park, 95 km away.
Protected land · of the land within 10 km
| Outdoors | Paspébiac | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protected land within 10 km | 6.5% | 4.9% | 2.3% |
| Public protected areas within 10 km | 3 | 10 | 4 |
Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD), OpenStreetMap routes and beaches
More smokers around Paspébiac: 18% of adults, where the typical Canadian town has 12%
Lives in the region last 79.9 years on average (2022/2024): 81.6 for women, 78.2 for men. On self-rated health the region tracks the province: 56% very good or excellent, 57% for Quebec. Measured from where Paspébiac’s residents live, the nearest hospital is 2.4 km away, under the typical 3.7 km. Figures for health survey and life expectancy are published for the Région de la Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine as a whole, not for Paspébiac alone.
Very good or excellent health · adults, age-standardised
| Health | Paspébiac | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smokers | 18% | 12% | 12% |
| Life expectancy at birth | 79.9 | 82.5 | 81.5 |
| Chronic conditions (average share) | 18% | 15% | 17% |
| Very good or excellent health | 56% | 56% | 52% |
Statistics Canada, Canadian Community Health Survey 2023/2024 and life expectancy 2022/2024; Open Database of Healthcare Facilities
Back to 1783 in Paspébiac, with Banc de Pêche de Paspébiac
Homes from before 1961 make up nearly a third of the stock, above Quebec’s towns (21%) and Canadian towns (18%) alike. The registers put 3 historic places inside its boundary, one of them of the highest rank. Among the places are 2 municipal citations.
Historic places by designation · inside the town
Among them
| Heritage | Paspébiac | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1961 | 32% | 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 Paspébiac
Site historique national de Paspébiac and 2 more in and around Paspébiac
Sights in Paspébiac and close by, ordered by how widely each is known.
Famous people from around Paspébiac
One notable person was born in Paspébiac; with them, the best known born in the towns around it.
Photo credits
Bona Arsenault: Arthur Roy, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Françoise Bujold: Bombyx (Michaël La Chance), Public domain
About Paspébiac
Town in Quebec
Statistics Canada treats Paspébiac as a single census subdivision in Quebec, and TownRatings keeps to that line.
Statistics Canada: population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155), Census of Population 2021, 2021 census boundaries.
- Population
- 3,132 (people, 2025 estimate)
- Province or territory
- Quebec
- Census division
- Bonaventure
- Census subdivision
- 2405032
Paspébiac’s neighbours
The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Statistics Canada
| Town | People | km | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paspébiac | 3,132 | — | B+ | A− | B+ | B− |
| New Carlisle | 1,331 | 6.8 | — | A− | B+ | C+ |
| Bonaventure | 2,719 | 16 | B | B+ | B+ | C |
People: Statistics Canada, Census 2021. Distances: centre to centre.
Questions about Paspébiac
Who are the people of Paspébiac?
Visible minorities are 0% of the population, where the middle of Canadian towns is 15%. Immigrants make up 0%, and Indigenous people 9%.
How old are the people of Paspébiac?
The typical resident is 56.4 (Canadian towns: 45.2), with seniors at 33% of the population and under-15s at 11%.
Do people in Paspébiac speak French?
French comes first: 78.5% speak it alone, while 19% manage both languages (Canadian towns: 8%).
What kind of homes are in Paspébiac?
84% of homes are single-detached houses, against 64% for the median of Canadian towns, and 0% are in apartment buildings of five storeys or more. A household averages 2.1 people; 32% are one person living alone.
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).