VanierQuébec
It is one of the 35 neighbourhoods that make up Québec. Home to 13,494 people, this neighbourhood lies in Québec.
Is Vanier a good place to live?
The picture is mixed. Overall, Vanier earns a B−: better than 46% of Canadian towns, and #362 of 499 in Quebec. Where it falls short is cost of living (D). Its strongest subject is health (A+).
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 Vanier grades
Each subject compares Vanier 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 Vanier stand out
The 3 things Vanier does most differently from other towns.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Vanier.
Health in Vanier beats almost every Canadian town
The health survey and life expectancy numbers here cover the Région de la Capitale-Nationale
The survey finds 62% of adults in very good or excellent health, above Quebec’s towns (56%) and Canadian towns (52%) alike. The region’s 2022/2024 life expectancy is 82.9, with women at 84.7 and men at 81.1. Smoking is rarer than in the province: 9.6% of adults, against 12% for Quebec. Measured from where Vanier’s residents live, the nearest hospital is 0.8 km away, under the typical 3.7 km.
Very good or excellent health · adults, age-standardised
| Health | Vanier | 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
Rent takes more of local pay in Vanier than in Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: 31% of household income
Source area for rent as a share of income and monthly rent for a two-bedroom: the Québec metro area
A fifth of households spent 30% or more of their income on shelter, above both Quebec’s towns (13%) and Canadian towns (18%). The median home value was $280,000, below Quebec’s towns ($300,000) and Canadian towns ($406,000) alike.
What homes were worth · The median owner’s estimate at the 2021 census
| Census 2021 | Vanier | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent as a share of income | 31% | 18% | 20% |
| Households spending 30%+ on shelter | 20% | 13% | 18% |
| Median home value, 2021 | $280,000 | $300,000 | $406,000 |
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.
A flood study covers Vanier: 1 on the national inventory, the newest from Gouvernement du Québec
Shared with the rest of the Capitale-Nationale health region: radon tests
Radon is about average around Vanier: nearly a tenth of tested homes in the survey area topped the guideline, against 6.6% for the typical town. The expected yearly loss to earthquakes is $0.14 for each $1,000 of buildings, about level with Quebec’s towns ($0.14) and above Canadian towns ($0.030).
Radon tests above the guideline · share of tested homes, 200 Bq/m³
| Hazards | Vanier | 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 · Data for earthquake risk covers the city of Québec
Trips to work from Vanier are shorter than from Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: 20 min on average
73% of commuters drove, below both Quebec’s towns (90%) and Canadian towns (89%).
How working residents got to work · census 2021
| Census 2021 | Vanier | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Car or van | 73% | 90% | 89% |
| Average trip | 20 min | 27 min | 26 min |
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.
July highs in Vanier: 25.1°C, against 26.5°C in Quebec’s towns and 25.5°C in Canadian towns
January nights fall to −15.6°C on average, below both Quebec’s towns (−14.7°C) and Canadian towns (−13.5°C). The most precipitation falls in July: 119 mm in a normal year. Snow peaks in December: 77 cm in a normal year.
Average high by season · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Normals, 1991–2020 | Vanier | 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 | 25.1°C | 26.5°C | 25.5°C |
| January night low | −15.6°C | −14.7°C | −13.5°C |
Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Ste-Foy (U. Laval))
An older town: 34% of people in Vanier are 65 or over, more than in Quebec’s towns and across Canadian towns
17% of residents belong to a visible minority, above Quebec’s towns (3.5%) and Canadian towns (15%) alike. Children under 15 make up 9.8% of residents.
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 54.3% of Vanier
Of the 2021 count, 7,315 were women and 6,165 men (women across Canada: 50.9%).
| Vanier | Quebec | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 9.8% | 17% | 16% |
| 15 to 64 | 56% | 62% | 64% |
| 65+ | 34% | 20% | 19% |
| No certificate, diploma or degree | 26% | 19% | 16% |
| Postsecondary qualification | 49% | 59% | 56% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; Quebec and Canada: medians of towns of 2,500+
In Vanier, November normally means 4°C afternoons and −3°C nights
Over the year, July is warmest at 25°C by day and January coldest at −16°C by night. By December, a normal day reaches −3°C and a night falls to −10°C. About 24 cm of snow falls in a normal November. In November, the normal is 91 mm of rain and snow.
Normal highs, the months ahead · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Season | High | Low | Rain and snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | −5°C | −13°C | 249 mm |
| Spring | 9°C | −1°C | 264 mm |
| Summer | 24°C | 13°C | 342 mm |
| Autumn | 12°C | 3°C | 318 mm |
ECCC normals, 1991–2020 (Ste-Foy (U. Laval)); the forecast is on the Weather page
Bibliothèque de Québec logs 8.5 visits per person served, more than nine in ten Quebec’s town libraries
The library figures on this page are Québec’s: Bibliothèque de Québec serves all 594,443 people of the city, Vanier among them.
Provincial library statistics, OpenStreetMap, the CRA and Statistics Canada
The nearest provincial park to Vanier is Jacques-Cartier National Park (Québec), 31 km away
For a swim, Plage Samuel de Champlain is the nearest of 3 beaches within 5 km. 7.2 km out lies the largest, Île d'Orléans (ouest du pont) Water Fowl Gathering Area, at 325 ha. Out to 10 km from the town’s edge, 4.2% of the land is protected; 2.3% is typical for a Canadian town. The 10 km around town hold 15 protected areas.
Protected land · of the land within 10 km
| Outdoors | Vanier | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protected land within 10 km | 4.2% | 4.9% | 2.3% |
| Public protected areas within 10 km | 10 | 10 | 4 |
Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD), OpenStreetMap routes and beaches
Vanier’s grade for safety: a B−
Area-wide: Crime Severity Index, Violent Crime Severity Index, violent crime and property crime per 1,000, counted over the Québec service area
Violent incidents in its police area came to 15.1 per 1,000 residents a year, above Quebec’s towns (12.4) and Canadian towns (12) alike. For every 1,000 residents of its police area, 22.1 property crimes are reported each year.
Year by year · Crime Severity Index for each year
| 2023–2025 | Vanier | 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
Vanier’s schools come under 4 different boards
Within 3 km of Vanier are 35 elementary schools, 16 secondary schools and 7 schools for every grade. 11 of the 58 are independent, against 9% in Quebec. Schooling in English is on offer at 5 of 58; in Quebec, 10% of schools teach in it.
| School | Level | Students | System |
|---|---|---|---|
| École Notre-Dame-du-CanadaIn VanierElementary | Elementary | – | French public |
| École BoudreauIn VanierSecondary | Secondary | – | French public |
| École primaire de l'Everest EnglishTeaches in EnglishElementary | Elementary | – | English public |
Schools by system · Schools within 3 km
| Schools within 3 km | Vanier | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| School boards | 4 | 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 Vanier
Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec and 73 more in and around Vanier
From museums to parks and historic sites: Vanier’s places to visit and those just beyond its edge, most famous first.
MuseumMusée national des beaux-arts du Québec2.3 km outside town, to the east · 324K visitors a year
MuseumMusée de la civilisation2.9 km outside town, to the east · 497K visitors a year
CastleQuébec Citadel2.7 km outside town, to the east
CathedralNotre-Dame Roman Catholic Cathedral2.6 km outside town, to the east
BattlefieldPlains of Abraham2.2 km outside town, to the southeast
CathedralHoly Trinity Anglican Cathedral2.6 km outside town, to the eastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (6)
- Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec: colros, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Musée de la civilisation: Claude Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Québec Citadel: chensiyuan, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Notre-Dame Roman Catholic Cathedral: Pierre-Olivier Fortin, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Plains of Abraham: NickHam, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Holy Trinity Anglican Cathedral: TravelingOtter, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Famous people from around Vanier
One notable person was born in Vanier; with them, the best known born in the towns around it.
Photo credits
Antoine Valois-Fortier: Mohammad Hassansadeh / Tasnimnews, CC BY 4.0 · Irma LeVasseur: Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec P655,S2,SS6,D8, Public domain · Oscar Drouin: Unknown author, Public domain · Victor-Alphonse Huard: J.E. Livernois, Public domain · Gilles Jobidon: Bull-Doser, Public domain
About Vanier
Neighbourhood in Québec
Where Vanier begins and ends inside Québec is TownRatings’s line, traced along census dissemination areas and named after the city’s map or OpenStreetMap.
Statistics Canada: population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155), Census of Population 2021, 2021 census boundaries.
- Population
- 13,494 (people, 2021 estimate)
- Province or territory
- Quebec
- City
- Québec
- Census subdivision
- 2423027
Vanier’s neighbours
The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Statistics Canada
| Town | People | km | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vanier | 13,494 | — | B− | D | B− | A+ |
| Saint-Sauveur | 16,104 | 1.7 | B− | D | B− | A+ |
| Saint-Roch | 8,381 | 2.2 | B− | D | B− | A+ |
| Lairet | 15,251 | 2.2 | B− | D | B− | A+ |
| Vieux-Limoilou | 14,347 | 2.2 | B− | D | B− | A+ |
| Saint-Sacrement | 10,650 | 2.6 | B | D | B− | A+ |
| Montcalm | 13,572 | 2.7 | B+ | D | B− | A+ |
People: Statistics Canada, Census 2021. Distances: centre to centre.
Questions about Vanier
Do people in Vanier speak French?
Yes: this is Quebec. 70.3% of residents speak only French and 28% speak both French and English (Canadian towns’ median: 8%).
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).