PuvirnituqQuebec
The population grew 20% between 2016 and 2021. A town of 2,225 in Quebec.
Is Puvirnituq a good place to live?
Puvirnituq’s strongest subject is jobs & income (B+). Crime runs high (D−). Its other grades sit near the middle: B for walkability and B for hazard risk.
An overall grade comes at 2,500 residents for Canadian towns; Puvirnituq has its subject grades alone.
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. No Cost Grade: fewer than 30% of households own their home here, so neither the home value nor the rent is a market price. 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.
How Puvirnituq grades
Each subject compares Puvirnituq with Canadian towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far it is from the middle. Towns in other countries are graded separately.
An overall grade comes at 2,500 residents for Canadian towns; Puvirnituq has its subject grades alone.
How TownRatings grades Canadian towns →
What makes Puvirnituq stand out
The 3 things Puvirnituq does most differently from other towns.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Puvirnituq.
Violent crime weighs more where Puvirnituq is policed than in Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: a violent severity index of 2,056
Source area for Crime Severity Index, Violent Crime Severity Index, violent crime and property crime per 1,000: the Nunavik Region service area
Where it is policed, thefts, break-ins and damage came to 87.1 per 1,000 a year, above both Quebec’s towns (16.6) and Canadian towns (31.2). For every 1,000 residents of its police area, 447.5 violent incidents are reported each year.
Year by year · Crime Severity Index for each year
| 2023–2025 | Puvirnituq | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crime Severity Index | 806 | 56 | 67 |
| Violent Crime Severity Index | 2,056 | 88 | 86 |
| Violent crime | 447.5 | 12.4 | 12 |
| Property crime per 1,000 | 87.1 | 16.6 | 31.2 |
Statistics Canada, Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, 2023–2025 average
More of Puvirnituq’s residents have an Indigenous identity than in Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: 94%
Visible minorities make up 0.9% of the population, below both Quebec’s towns (3.5%) and Canadian towns (15%). 29% speak both English and French, lower than Quebec’s towns (44%) yet higher than 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
Women make up 52.5% of Puvirnituq
1,010 men and 1,115 women lived here in 2021, against a share of women of 50.9% for Canada.
| Puvirnituq | Quebec | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 35% | 17% | 16% |
| 15 to 64 | 60% | 62% | 64% |
| 65+ | 5.2% | 20% | 19% |
| No certificate, diploma or degree | 71% | 19% | 16% |
| Postsecondary qualification | 14% | 59% | 56% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; Quebec and Canada: medians of towns of 2,500+
Summers stay cool in Puvirnituq: July afternoons reach 15.9°C, below Quebec’s towns and Canadian towns
The coldest nights, in January, bottom out at −27.2°C, below both Quebec’s towns (−14.7°C) and Canadian towns (−13.5°C). A normal August brings 57 mm of precipitation, more than any other month. ECCC’s nearest full record is at Inukjuak, 181 km off.
Average high by season · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Normals, 1991–2020 | Puvirnituq | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| July afternoon high | 15.9°C | 26.5°C | 25.5°C |
| January night low | −27.2°C | −14.7°C | −13.5°C |
| Days with frost a year | 241 | 161 | 159 |
| Precipitation a year | 413 mm | 1,041 mm | 883 mm |
Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Inukjuak)
Fewer commuters in Puvirnituq drive than in Quebec’s towns or across Canadian towns: 34%
Commutes averaged 10 min, below both Quebec’s towns (27 min) and Canadian towns (26 min).
How working residents got to work · census 2021
| Census 2021 | Puvirnituq | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Car or van | 34% | 90% | 89% |
| Average trip | 10 min | 27 min | 26 min |
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.
Wildfire low, radon 13%: how Puvirnituq stands on hazards
Area-wide: radon tests, counted over the Nunavik health region
Earthquakes are expected to cost $0.011 a year for every $1,000 of buildings, lower than Quebec’s towns ($0.14) and near Canadian towns ($0.030). No one has filed a flood map for Puvirnituq on the national inventory.
Radon tests above the guideline · share of tested homes, 200 Bq/m³
| Hazards | Puvirnituq | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radon tests above the guideline | 13% | 8.2% | 6.6% |
| Earthquake loss per $1,000 of buildings a year | $0.011 | $0.14 | $0.030 |
NRCan seismic risk model and burned areas, Health Canada radon survey, the Flood Hazard Map Inventory
Expect 65.2 years of life in the region around Puvirnituq, 16.3 under the typical Canadian town
The health survey and life expectancy numbers here cover the Région du Nunavik
The average trip from home to a hospital is 1.0 km, below Quebec’s towns (5.3 km) and Canadian towns (3.7 km) alike.
Life expectancy at birth · years, at birth
| Health | Puvirnituq | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy at birth | 65.2 | 82.5 | 81.5 |
Statistics Canada, Canadian Community Health Survey 2023/2024 and life expectancy 2022/2024; Open Database of Healthcare Facilities
No protected area lies within 10 km of Puvirnituq
For a provincial park, Monts-de-Puvirnituq National Park Reserve (Québec) lies 66 km off. The nearest national park is more than 100 km away.
Protected land · of the land within 10 km
| Outdoors | Puvirnituq | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protected land within 10 km | 0% | 4.9% | 2.3% |
| Public protected areas within 10 km | 0 | 10 | 4 |
Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD), OpenStreetMap routes and beaches
Around Puvirnituq, 1 elementary school, 1 secondary school and 2 schools for every grade: 4 schools in all
| School | Level | Students | System |
|---|---|---|---|
| École IkaarvikIn PuvirnituqElementary | Elementary | – | Other |
| École Iguarsivik (Atelier)In PuvirnituqAll grades | All grades | – | Other |
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.
Expect November days around −3°C in Puvirnituq, nights around −10°C
Then December: −12°C by day, −19°C at night. Precipitation in November averages 37 mm. Over the year, July is warmest at 16°C by day and February coldest at −30°C by night. For today and the week ahead, the Weather page carries ECCC’s Puvirnituq forecast.
Normal highs, the months ahead · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Season | High | Low | Rain and snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | −18°C | −25°C | 66 mm |
| Spring | −7°C | −15°C | 80 mm |
| Summer | 14°C | 5°C | 130 mm |
| Autumn | 3°C | −3°C | 138 mm |
ECCC normals, 1991–2020 (Inukjuak); the forecast is on the Weather page
The council of Puvirnituq is led by its mayor, Levi Amarualik
Puvirnituq sends one MP to Ottawa from Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, its riding (a federal electoral district, which elects one MP): Mandy Gull-Masty (Liberal Party of Canada).
Wikidata, MAMH, MMAH, Statistics Canada
No public library is mapped in or near Puvirnituq
Its libraries report as part of a wider system, so there are no figures for Puvirnituq in particular.
Provincial library statistics, OpenStreetMap, the CRA and Statistics Canada
Everything we know about Puvirnituq
Famous people from Puvirnituq
5 notable people were born in Puvirnituq.
About Puvirnituq
Town in Quebec
TownRatings follows Statistics Canada’s map: Puvirnituq is one municipality in Quebec, figures and all.
Statistics Canada: population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155), Census of Population 2021, 2021 census boundaries.
- Population
- 2,225 (people, 2025 estimate)
- Province or territory
- Quebec
- Census division
- Nord-du-Québec
- The community’s own name
- ᐳᕕᕐᓂᑐᖅ
- Census subdivision
- 2499120
Questions about Puvirnituq
Has Puvirnituq grown?
It grew from 1,779 people in 2016 to 2,129 in 2021, up 19.7%; the median of Canadian towns grew 4.1%. StatCan’s 2025 estimate is 2,225.
Do people in Puvirnituq speak French?
French comes first: 2.8% speak it alone, while 29% manage both languages (Canadian towns: 8%).
What kind of homes are in Puvirnituq?
Single-detached houses make up 31% of the homes here, where Canadian towns sit at 64%; 0% are in high-rise apartments. 17% of households are one person, and the average is 3.9.
Is Puvirnituq a young town or an old one?
Half its people are older than 22.6 (the middle of Canadian towns: 45.2); children under 15 make up 35%, people 65 and over 5%.
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).