Photo: Sjvachon · CC BY-SA 4.0Residents with no religion make up 18% in Sainte-Marie, less than in 91% of Canadian towns
With residents aged 65 and over at 23%, Sainte-Marie is ahead of 70% of Canadian towns on that count. There are 3% fewer residents than in 2016. The census found that 2.5% of residents are immigrants here. 31% of households are one person living alone, a higher share than in 64% of Canadian towns.
What stands out about the people of Sainte-Marie
Fewer people than before
Sainte-Marie went from 13,565 people in 2016 to 13,134 in 2021, −3%: slower growth than in 92% of Canadian towns. Population change ↓
Common-law couples
27% of residents 15 and over live common-law, more than in 91% of Canadian towns; 34% are married. Couples ↓
Written from the data on this page: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census.
Bilingual residents: 31%, a higher share than 81% of Canadian towns
Figures are from the 2021 Census unless dated otherwise. English, French and the other languages people grew up with or speak at home.
Can hold a conversation in · share of all residents
Mother tongue · share of all residents
At home: French 97%, English 0.3%. Compared with other places, residents whose mother tongue is English are scarce here: 0.7%, fewer than in 98% of Canadian towns. The share of bilingual residents across Canada’s towns is 7.5%.
−3% since 2016, a pace below 92% of Canadian towns
Residents at the 2016 and 2021 censuses and the latest estimate, with the 2016–2021 change beside other towns.
Change, 2016 to 2021
By July 2025, the estimate had risen a further 6%. Across Canada’s towns, half of towns changed by more than +4%; across Quebec’s towns, by more than +4%.
Half of Sainte-Marie is over 44, older than 62% of Canadian towns
Share of residents in each five-year band; the tick is the typical town.
The figure for children under 15 is 18% in Sainte-Marie and 16% across Canada’s towns. 60–64 is the most common age band: 7.7% of residents.
Median age of Canadian towns of 2,500+
■ Sainte-Marie, 44. The typical town is 42.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
50% women, 50% men
About an even split.
Sainte-Marie households average 2.3 people, smaller than in 64% of Canadian towns
Private households by type and size.
Against Quebec’s towns and Canada’s towns
People per household
Canada’s towns.
One-parent families: nearly a tenth of the total.
A higher share of common-law partners than 91% of Canadian towns, at 27%
Marital status of residents 15 and over, with common-law couples counted apart.
Marital status · residents 15 and over
Married residents 15 and over make up 34%, against 46% across Canada’s towns. For common-law partners, the comparison across Canada’s towns is 11%.
30% of households rent their home, more than in 58% of Canadian towns
Houses and apartments, owners and renters, older and newer homes. Prices, rents and shelter costs are on Cost of living.
Type of home
Owners and renters · share of households
When homes were built · share of homes
Newer homes outnumber old: 32% date from 2001 or later, 11% from before 1961. Households in buildings of five or more storeys are rarer here than in nearly three quarters of Canadian towns. Renter households: 25% across Canada’s towns, for comparison. 64% of households live in a single-detached house across Canada’s towns, against 58% in Sainte-Marie.
Half above, half below $78,000 a year in household income
Incomes are 2020’s, the census’s reference year, and include pandemic benefits such as CERB. Total household income: the median household, and the spread from low to high.
Households by income · share of households
At $78,000, the middle household in Sainte-Marie earned 9% less than the median across Canada’s towns ($86,000). The middle household across Quebec’s towns has $74,000 before tax. Pandemic benefits reached 28% of residents with an income, against a typical 28%.
9.9% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, below 61% of Canadian towns
Immigrants by continent of birth and when they arrived, citizenship, and who moved in recently.
Immigrants, by continent of birth · share of all residents; the bar runs to 20%
When immigrants arrived · share of immigrants
Citizenship and moving · share of residents
In Sainte-Marie, 2.6% of residents are not Canadian citizens, beside 5.8% across Canada’s towns. Residents who moved in within the year make up 11% across Canada’s towns.
82% said they are Christian and 18% that they have no religion
Visible minority, Indigenous identity and religion, as residents answered the census.
Visible minority and Indigenous identity · all residents
Religion · all residents
Indigenous residents make up 1.7%, against 2.8% across Canada’s towns. The share of visible minority residents stands at 3.8%.
22% of residents 25 to 64 hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, below 62% of Canadian towns
From no certificate to a master’s: residents 25 to 64.
Highest qualification · residents 25 to 64
8.5% of those aged 25 to 64 have no formal credential, where the typical town has 9.5%.
An employment rate of 65%
These rates date from May 2021, during the pandemic, and run lower than a normal year’s. The census’s work rates at a glance. Jobs, industries and the commute are on Work & commute.
More people work here than in the typical town: 65%, against 58% across Canada’s towns.
Ranked by age, 9th oldest of 41 towns this size
Similar-sized towns by median age; each dot is a town.
Median ages here range from 29.7 in Sandy Hill to 53.6 in Montcalm. Nearest to Sainte-Marie in age: Wychwood (43.7), Strathcona (43.7), Beaverton (44.4) and L'Aéroport (44.9).
1 in 6 nearby towns have a higher median age than Sainte-Marie
The nearest places, coloured by median age; each links to its own page.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Immigrants |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sainte-Marie | 13,873 | — | 44 | 23% | 2.5% |
| Saint-Elzéar | 2,842 | 6.0 km | 36.4 | 14% | 0.6% |
| Scott | 2,938 | 7.4 km | 36.4 | 14% | 1.4% |
| Saint-Bernard | 2,680 | 10.6 km | 35.6 | 16% | 0.4% |
| Sainte-Marguerite | 1,297 | 10.8 km | 40 | 19% | 0% |
| Vallée-Jonction | 2,042 | 11.1 km | 46 | 24% | 0.6% |
| Sainte-Hénédine | 1,550 | 13.9 km | 40.4 | 22% | 0% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- What these tables don’t give. Missing from the census as published: unpaid care, cars and internet access, and the shift in each age band since 2016. Ethnic origins past visible minority and Indigenous identity aren’t charted here.
- The census’s own words. These are self-reported answers: Indigenous identity, immigrant status, religion. The census’s “visible minority” comes from the Employment Equity Act (non-white in colour or race, Indigenous peoples aside), and the page sets each beside other towns without labelling any.
- Against Quebec’s towns and Canada’s towns. Two medians frame each figure: one for Quebec’s towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500 or more, one for all Canadian towns of that size, with whole cities and First Nations reserves left out. Percentiles rank the town within Canada.
Questions about Sainte-Marie’s residents
Is Sainte-Marie good for families?
Across Canada’s towns, a typical 16% of residents are under 15; here, 18%. 57% of households are couple families and 8.5% one-parent families. Schools near Sainte-Marie are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Sainte-Marie?
$78,000 before tax, in 2020: the middle household’s income in Sainte-Marie (Canada’s towns: $86,000).
What is the population of Sainte-Marie?
Statistics Canada estimates 13,873 residents for July 2025; the 2021 Census counted 13,134 in Sainte-Marie, 3% fewer than 2016.
What is the average age in Sainte-Marie?
44 is the median age, older than 62% of Canadian towns. Under 15: 18%. 65 and over: 23%.
Is Sainte-Marie bilingual?
English and French: 31% speak both (Canada’s towns: 7.5%). English only: 0.2%. French only: 69%. French mother tongue: 96%.
How diverse is Sainte-Marie?
Immigrants make up 2.5% of residents, against 17% across Canada’s towns. 3.8% are members of a visible minority, and 1.7% are First Nations, Métis or Inuit.
What religion are people in Sainte-Marie?
Christian: 82%. No religion: 18%. Another religion: 0.6%.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population · Statistics Canada, population estimates for 1 July 2025 (table 17-10-0155). 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).