Des ChâtelsQuébec
In Québec, this neighbourhood has 14,836 residents. It is one of 35 neighbourhoods of Québec.
Is Des Châtels a good place to live?
Some subjects shine; others lag. Overall, Des Châtels earns an A, which places it #78 of 499 in Quebec. That leaves it better than 93% of Canadian towns. People here tend to be in good health (A+). Hazard risk is higher than most (C−). Its remaining grades are unremarkable: B for cost of living and B− for safety.
Rents here are the metro area's average, shared by every town and neighbourhood in it. Safety less sure: this is the whole city's figure, because the city doesn't publish open neighbourhood crime rates. 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 Des Châtels grades
Each subject compares Des Châtels 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 Des Châtels stand out
The 3 things Des Châtels does most differently from other towns.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Des Châtels.
Des Châtels scores better for health than almost every Canadian town
Source area for health survey and life expectancy: the Région de la Capitale-Nationale
Measured from where people live, the nearest hospital is 1.3 km away, lower than both Quebec’s towns (5.3 km) and Canadian towns (3.7 km). In the health survey, 62% of adults in the region rate their health very good or excellent, more than Quebec’s 57%. Across the region, life runs to 82.9 years on average: women 84.7, men 81.1, in 2022/2024. Smoking is rarer than in the province: 9.6% of adults, against 12% for Quebec.
Very good or excellent health · adults, age-standardised
| Health | Des Châtels | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Very good or excellent health | 62% | 56% | 52% |
| Chronic conditions (average share) | 14% | 15% | 17% |
| Smokers | 9.6% | 12% | 12% |
| Life expectancy at birth | 82.9 | 82.5 | 81.5 |
Statistics Canada, Canadian Community Health Survey 2023/2024 and life expectancy 2022/2024; Open Database of Healthcare Facilities
Trips to work from Des Châtels are shorter than from Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: 22 min on average
88% of commuters drove to work at the census.
How working residents got to work · census 2021
| Census 2021 | Des Châtels | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip | 22 min | 27 min | 26 min |
| Car or van | 88% | 90% | 89% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021 (labour and commuting) · Census day was in May 2021, mid-pandemic, so commuting and work figures carry the lockdowns’ mark.
Des Châtels is on Canada’s flood inventory: 2 listed, led by Ville de Québec
Averaged over the years, quake damage costs $0.14 per $1,000 of buildings, near Quebec’s towns ($0.14) and higher than Canadian towns ($0.030). Radon is about average around Des Châtels: nearly a tenth of tested homes in the survey area topped the guideline, against 6.6% for the typical town. Nobody publishes earthquake risk for Des Châtels alone, so this card uses the figure for the city of Québec.
Radon tests above the guideline · share of tested homes, 200 Bq/m³
| Hazards | Des Châtels | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earthquake loss per $1,000 of buildings a year | $0.14 | $0.14 | $0.030 |
| Radon tests above the guideline | 8.8% | 8.2% | 6.6% |
NRCan seismic risk model and burned areas, Health Canada radon survey, the Flood Hazard Map Inventory · Radon tests: one figure for all of the Capitale-Nationale health region
More rain and snow fall on Des Châtels than on 87% of Canadian towns: 1,173 mm a year
Rain and snow peak in July, at 119 mm. A normal winter brings 299 cm of snow, above both Quebec’s towns (217 cm) and Canadian towns (141 cm). Midsummer afternoons in Des Châtels peak at about 25.0°C. The frost-free season runs from 10 May to 5 October, 148 days.
Average high by season · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Normals, 1991–2020 | Des Châtels | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Snowfall a year | 299 cm | 217 cm | 141 cm |
| Precipitation a year | 1,173 mm | 1,041 mm | 883 mm |
| July afternoon high | 25.0°C | 26.5°C | 25.5°C |
| January night low | −16.7°C | −14.7°C | −13.5°C |
Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Québec Jean Lesage (Airport))
Shelter costs push only 7% of Des Châtels’s households past 30% of income, fewer than the 18% of the typical Canadian town
Shared with the rest of the Québec metro area: rent as a share of income and monthly rent for a two-bedroom
Rent took 17% of household income, close to Quebec’s towns (18%) and below Canadian towns (20%). The owner-occupied share of households is 71%.
What homes were worth · The median owner’s estimate at the 2021 census
| Census 2021 | Des Châtels | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households spending 30%+ on shelter | 7% | 13% | 18% |
| Rent as a share of income | 17% | 18% | 20% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; CMHC Rental Market Survey via Statistics Canada · Home values are owners’ own estimates at the May 2021 census, and incomes are for 2020.
39% of Des Châtels’s residents speak English and French (Quebec’s towns: 44%; Canadian towns: 7.5%)
18% of residents are children under 15. Visible minorities make up 4.6% of the population, between Quebec’s towns (3.5%) and Canadian towns (15%). Over-65s are 20% of the population.
Ages · Share of residents in each age group, Census 2021
Schooling · Highest qualification, residents 15 and over
Women and men · all residents
51.1% of Des Châtels’ residents are women
Women numbered 7,580 and men 7,260 in 2021, next to a 50.9% share of women for Canada.
| Des Châtels | Quebec | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 17% | 16% |
| 15 to 64 | 62% | 62% | 64% |
| 65+ | 20% | 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+
In Des Châtels, November normally means 4°C afternoons and −4°C nights
November normally sees 91 mm of precipitation. Expect around 24 cm of snow in November. A normal December brings highs of −3°C, lows of −11°C. The forecast on the Weather page is ECCC’s for Vanier.
Normal highs, the months ahead · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Season | High | Low | Rain and snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | −5°C | −15°C | 249 mm |
| Spring | 9°C | −2°C | 264 mm |
| Summer | 24°C | 13°C | 342 mm |
| Autumn | 11°C | 2°C | 318 mm |
ECCC normals, 1991–2020 (Québec Jean Lesage (Airport)); the forecast is on the Weather page
At 8.5 visits per person served, Bibliothèque de Québec is busier than 90% of Quebec’s town libraries
Des Châtels is served by Bibliothèque de Québec, the library of all of Québec, so the figures here are the city’s, for 594,443 people.
Provincial library statistics, OpenStreetMap, the CRA and Statistics Canada
The nearest provincial park to Des Châtels is Jacques-Cartier National Park (Québec), 27 km away
The Montée du Paradis Hike is the one mapped walking route close by. Saint-Nicolas (Anse Méthot) Water Fowl Gathering Area (250 ha) is the biggest, 10.0 km from town. Within 10 km of the town, 1.3% of the land is protected, against 2.3% around a typical Canadian town. OpenStreetMap shows 2 unnamed beaches within 5 km.
Protected land · of the land within 10 km
| Outdoors | Des Châtels | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protected land within 10 km | 1.3% | 4.9% | 2.3% |
| Public protected areas within 10 km | 6 | 10 | 4 |
Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD), OpenStreetMap routes and beaches
Des Châtels gets a B− for safety
The Crime Severity Index, Violent Crime Severity Index, violent crime and property crime per 1,000 numbers here cover the Québec service area
For every 1,000 residents of its police area, 15.1 violent incidents are reported each year. Its police area records 22.1 property incidents per 1,000 residents a year. The index for the force that serves it came to 63, higher than Quebec’s towns (56) yet lower than Canadian towns (67).
Year by year · Crime Severity Index for each year
| 2023–2025 | Des Châtels | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crime per 1,000 | 22.1 | 16.6 | 31.2 |
| Violent crime | 15.1 | 12.4 | 12 |
Statistics Canada, Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, 2023–2025 average
The 42 schools of Des Châtels: 33 elementary schools, 7 secondary schools and 2 schools for every grade
None of them teaches in English, though 10% of schools in Quebec do.
| School | Level | Students | System |
|---|---|---|---|
| École d'éducation internationale Notre-Dame-des-NeigesIn Des ChâtelsElementary | Elementary | – | French public |
| École secondaire de NeufchâtelIn Des ChâtelsSecondary | Secondary | – | French public |
Schools by system · Schools within 3 km
| Schools within 3 km | Des Châtels | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| School boards | 2 | 2 | 3 |
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.
Everything we know about Des Châtels
Huron-Wendat Museum and 6 more in and around Des Châtels
The best-known places to visit in and around Des Châtels come first; the full list is on the Attractions page.
MuseumHuron-Wendat Museum1.5 km outside town, to the northMuseumMuseumVillage Huron Site Traditionnel1.9 km outside town, to the northAttractionAttractionOnhwa' Lumina3 km outside town, to the northMuseumMuseumChoco-Musée Erico3 km outside town, to the southAttractionAttractionGO Hélico2.4 km outside town, to the southMuseumMuseumMaison Tsawenhohi1.4 km outside town, to the northPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (1)
- Huron-Wendat Museum: Pierre-Olivier Fortin from Québec, Canada, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Famous people from around Des Châtels
No notable person born in Des Châtels is on our list; these were born in the towns around it.
Photo credits
Patrice Bergeron: Lisa Gansky from New York, NY, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Evelyne Viens: Hayden Schiff from Cincinnati, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Mitsou Gélinas: proacguy1, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Geneviève Castrée: Photograph by Julio Enriquez ., CC BY 2.0 · Antoine Plamondon: Unknown author, Public domain
About Des Châtels
Neighbourhood in Québec
The edges of Des Châtels follow census dissemination areas, which TownRatings groups into Québec’s neighbourhoods; the name comes from the city’s map or OpenStreetMap.
Statistics Canada: population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155), Census of Population 2021, 2021 census boundaries.
- Population
- 14,836 (people, 2021 estimate)
- Province or territory
- Quebec
- City
- Québec
- Census subdivision
- 2423027
Des Châtels’ neighbours
The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Statistics Canada
| Town | People | km | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Des Châtels | 14,836 | — | A | B | B− | A+ |
| Loretteville | 15,653 | 1.7 | B+ | C− | B− | A+ |
| Wendake | 2,234 | 3.1 | — | — | C+ | A+ |
| L'Ancienne-Lorette | 17,876 | 4.1 | A | C+ | B− | A+ |
| Neufchatel Est—Lebourgneuf | 37,164 | 4.2 | A | C+ | B− | A+ |
| Val-Bélair | 30,003 | 4.6 | A | B+ | B− | A+ |
| Saint-Émile | 16,893 | 4.7 | A+ | A− | B− | A+ |
People: Statistics Canada, Census 2021. Distances: centre to centre.
Questions about Des Châtels
Do people in Des Châtels speak French?
Almost everyone does. 39% are bilingual, where the median of Canadian towns is 8%, and 60.3% speak French and no English.
Is Des Châtels a young town or an old one?
The median resident is 42.8 years old, against 45.2 for the median of Canadian towns. 18% are under 15 and 20% are 65 or over.
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).