StansteadQuebec
Home to 1,171 people, this town lies in Quebec. It lies in Memphrémagog.
Is Stanstead a good place to live?
Stanstead’s strongest is health (A). Prices are high against local incomes (C−). The local economy is weaker than most (C). Most journeys need a car (C+).
Stanstead is graded subject by subject, but Canadian towns need 2,500 residents for an overall grade.
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. Crime here is counted against the people who live here, but many visitors or second-home owners add to it, so the rate per resident runs higher than residents' own risk. 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 Stanstead grades
Each subject compares Stanstead with Canadian towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far it is from the middle. Towns in other countries are graded separately.
Stanstead is graded subject by subject, but Canadian towns need 2,500 residents for an overall grade.
How TownRatings grades Canadian towns →
What makes Stanstead stand out
The 3 things Stanstead does most differently from other towns.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Stanstead.
Stanstead’s grade for health: an A
The health survey and life expectancy numbers here cover the Région de l'Estrie
Closer to home, a hospital is 17 km from the average resident of Stanstead, further than the usual 3.7 km. The three chronic conditions the survey tracks average 14% of adults, below both Quebec’s towns (15%) and Canadian towns (17%). In the health survey, 57% of adults in the region rate their health very good or excellent, close to Quebec’s 57%. A baby born in the region can expect 82.9 years, 84.8 for a girl and 81.0 for a boy (2022/2024).
Very good or excellent health · adults, age-standardised
| Health | Stanstead | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chronic conditions (average share) | 14% | 15% | 17% |
| Very good or excellent health | 57% | 56% | 52% |
| 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
Crime runs lighter where Stanstead is policed than in Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns, at an index of 40
Property crime in its police area ran at 7.9 per 1,000 residents a year, below both Quebec’s towns (16.6) and Canadian towns (31.2). The force’s area logs 8.2 violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year.
Year by year · Crime Severity Index for each year
| 2023–2025 | Stanstead | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crime per 1,000 | 7.9 | 16.6 | 31.2 |
| Crime Severity Index | 40 | 56 | 67 |
| Violent Crime Severity Index | 58 | 88 | 86 |
| Violent crime | 8.2 | 12.4 | 12 |
Statistics Canada, Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, 2023–2025 average · Not measured by town: Crime Severity Index, Violent Crime Severity Index, violent crime and property crime per 1,000 (Memphrémagog MRC)
More households own their home in Stanstead than in Quebec’s towns or across Canadian towns: 88%
7% of households spent 30% or more of their income on shelter, below both Quebec’s towns (13%) and Canadian towns (18%). A year’s rent came to 19% of the median household income, above Quebec’s towns (18%) but below Canadian towns (20%).
What homes were worth · The median owner’s estimate at the 2021 census
| Census 2021 | Stanstead | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households spending 30%+ on shelter | 7% | 13% | 18% |
| Households owning their home | 88% | 70% | 74% |
| Rent as a share of income | 19% | 18% | 20% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; CMHC Rental Market Survey via Statistics Canada · Values come from owners at the 2021 census and incomes from 2020, so they predate the later rise in rates.
Trips to work from Stanstead take longer than from Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: 31 min on average
89% of commuters drove, about level with both Quebec’s towns (90%) and Canadian towns (89%).
How working residents got to work · census 2021
| Census 2021 | Stanstead | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip | 31 min | 27 min | 26 min |
| Car or van | 89% | 90% | 89% |
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.
Stanstead is more bilingual than Quebec’s towns or Canadian towns: 62% speak both languages
Visible minorities make up 1.3% of the population, lower than both Quebec’s towns (3.5%) and Canadian towns (15%). Immigrants make up 5.2% of residents, between Quebec’s towns (2.6%) and Canadian towns (6.4%).
Ages · Share of residents in each age group, Census 2021
Schooling · Highest qualification, residents 15 and over
Women and men · all residents
50.2% of Stanstead’s residents are women
Women numbered 575 and men 570 in 2021, next to a 50.9% share of women for Canada.
| Stanstead | Quebec | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 9.2% | 17% | 16% |
| 15 to 64 | 58% | 62% | 64% |
| 65+ | 33% | 20% | 19% |
| No certificate, diploma or degree | 14% | 19% | 16% |
| Postsecondary qualification | 64% | 59% | 56% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; Quebec and Canada: medians of towns of 2,500+
Summers stay cool in Stanstead: July afternoons reach 24.7°C, below Quebec’s towns and Canadian towns
Snow totals 291 cm over the year, above Quebec’s towns (217 cm) and Canadian towns (141 cm) alike. December is the snowiest month, with 71 cm on average. The frost-free season runs from 19 May to 30 September, 133 days. For the wettest month, look to June: 130 mm on average.
Average high by season · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Normals, 1991–2020 | Stanstead | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Snowfall a year | 291 cm | 217 cm | 141 cm |
| Precipitation a year | 1,217 mm | 1,041 mm | 883 mm |
| July afternoon high | 24.7°C | 26.5°C | 25.5°C |
Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Coaticook)
Wildfire low, radon 7.3%: how Stanstead stands on hazards
Earthquakes are expected to cost $0.039 a year for every $1,000 of buildings, about level with Canadian towns ($0.030) and below Quebec’s towns ($0.14). Flood mapping: none on the national inventory for Stanstead.
Radon tests above the guideline · share of tested homes, 200 Bq/m³
| Hazards | Stanstead | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earthquake loss per $1,000 of buildings a year | $0.039 | $0.14 | $0.030 |
| Radon tests above the guideline | 7.3% | 8.2% | 6.6% |
NRCan seismic risk model and burned areas, Health Canada radon survey, the Flood Hazard Map Inventory · Area behind the radon tests figures: the Estrie health region
Beaches near Stanstead: 6 within 5 km
1.3% of the land and water within 10 km is protected (the typical Canadian town: 2.3%). A provincial park, Mont-Orford National Park (Québec), lies 15 km away. Count 31 protected areas within 10 km of town. National parks are all over 100 km off.
Protected land · of the land within 10 km
| Outdoors | Stanstead | Quebec | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protected land within 10 km | 1.3% | 4.9% | 2.3% |
| Public protected areas within 10 km | 1 | 10 | 4 |
Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD), OpenStreetMap routes and beaches
Stanstead in November: highs near 5°C, lows near −3°C
In November, the normal is 91 mm of rain and snow. A normal December brings highs of −2°C, lows of −9°C. Snowfall in a normal November: 26 cm. At the extremes, July afternoons reach 25°C and January nights −14°C.
Normal highs, the months ahead · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Season | High | Low | Rain and snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | −3°C | −12°C | 264 mm |
| Spring | 10°C | 0°C | 278 mm |
| Summer | 24°C | 13°C | 369 mm |
| Autumn | 12°C | 3°C | 305 mm |
ECCC normals, 1991–2020 (Coaticook); the forecast is on the Weather page
Fewer than 96% of Québec’s local municipalities spend as much per resident as Stanstead
For federal votes, Stanstead belongs to Compton—Stanstead, its riding (a federal electoral district, which elects one MP); Marianne Dandurand (Liberal Party of Canada) holds it.
Wikidata, MAMH, MMAH, Statistics Canada
No public library stands in Stanstead: the closest, Bibliothèque Ayer's Cliff, is 11 km away
No library board reports for Stanstead alone: its libraries belong to a county or regional system, whose figures cover many towns.
Provincial library statistics, OpenStreetMap, the CRA and Statistics Canada
Everything we know about Stanstead
Copp's Ferry Museum and 3 more in and around Stanstead
Museums, historic sites, parks, gardens and days out in and near Stanstead, the best known first.
Abbey or priorySaint Benedict Abbey2.1 km outside town, to the westPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (1)
- Saint Benedict Abbey: Jean-Philippe Boulet, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Famous people from around Stanstead
2 notable people were born in Stanstead; with them, the best known born in the towns around it.
Photo credits
Al Langlois: TGC Topps Gum Cards, Public domain · Jason Lee: A. Atwood, Public domain
About Stanstead
Town in Quebec
The boundary here is Statistics Canada’s: Stanstead is one census subdivision in Quebec, and TownRatings describes all of it.
Statistics Canada: population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155), Census of Population 2021, 2021 census boundaries.
- Population
- 1,171 (people, 2025 estimate)
- Province or territory
- Quebec
- Census division
- Memphrémagog
- Census subdivision
- 2445025
Stanstead’s neighbours
The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Statistics Canada
| Town | People | km | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanstead | 1,171 | — | — | C− | A− | A |
| Ayer's Cliff | 1,284 | 11 | — | B− | A− | A |
| Stanstead | 2,994 | 14 | B+ | C | A− | A− |
| Magog | 30,764 | 16 | A− | C− | A− | A+ |
| Bolton-Est | 1,337 | 16 | — | B | A− | A |
| Austin | 1,959 | 18 | — | B | A− | A |
| Sainte-Catherine-de-Hatley | 2,938 | 18 | A− | C+ | A− | A |
People: Statistics Canada, Census 2021. Distances: centre to centre.
Questions about Stanstead
Do people in Stanstead speak French?
Almost everyone does. 62% are bilingual, where the median of Canadian towns is 8%, and 25.7% speak French and no English.
Has Stanstead grown?
Yes: the census counted 1,036 in 2016 and 1,148 in 2021, a rise of 10.8%, against 4.1% for the median of Canadian towns. The 2025 estimate is 1,171.
Who are the people of Stanstead?
At the 2021 census, 5% were immigrants and 1% belonged to a visible minority (Canadian towns’ median: 15%). 3% identify as First Nations, Métis or Inuit.
What kind of homes are in Stanstead?
98% 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; 30% 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).