DawsonYukon
A town of 1,841 in Yukon. It sits within the Territories (outside CAs, Y.T.) / Territoires (à l'extérieur des AR, Yn) census metropolitan area.
Is Dawson a good place to live?
Households here earn well (A+). Getting around on foot or by bus is easy (A). Crime runs high (D). A median home here was worth $348,000 at the census, or 4.5 times what the middle household earns in a year. Hazard risk is weaker too (D−).
Figures: home values and income: Statistics Canada, Census 2021. Dawson has subject grades but no overall grade: Canadian towns get one from 2,500 residents.
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 police detachment's figure, shared with the towns and countryside around it. 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. Wildfire lowers this town's Hazard risk Grade: a high share of the land around it has burned in the last 40 years.
How Dawson grades
Each subject compares Dawson with Canadian towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far it is from the middle. Towns in other countries are graded separately.
Dawson has subject grades but no overall grade: Canadian towns get one from 2,500 residents.
How TownRatings grades Canadian towns →
What makes Dawson stand out
The 3 things Dawson does most differently from other towns.
The data
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Dawson.
Commuters in Dawson have a short way to work, 12 min on average, less than in Canadian towns
How working residents got to work · census 2021
| Census 2021 | Dawson | Yukon | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip | 12 min | – | 26 min |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021 (labour and commuting) · These are May 2021 figures, gathered while COVID-19 kept many people home or out of work.
On hazards, Dawson comes out behind 96% of Canadian towns
Of the homes tested for radon, 20% were over 200 Bq/m³, above Canadian towns (6.6%). Wildfire is a real hazard for Dawson: just over a tenth of the land within 25 km has burned since 1986, 0.30% a year, in the high band. Shaking is a bigger worry than in most places, at $0.060 a year per $1,000 of building value ($0.030 typical). Dawson doesn’t get its own radon tests figures; the ones here come from the Yukon Territory health region.
Radon tests above the guideline · share of tested homes, 200 Bq/m³
| Hazards | Dawson | Yukon | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radon tests above the guideline | 20% | – | 6.6% |
| Earthquake loss per $1,000 of buildings a year | $0.060 | – | $0.030 |
NRCan seismic risk model and burned areas, Health Canada radon survey, the Flood Hazard Map Inventory
The police who cover Dawson record more serious crime than Canadian towns: a Crime Severity Index of 213
Source area for Crime Severity Index, Violent Crime Severity Index, violent crime and property crime per 1,000: the Dawson detachment area
Its police area recorded 54.4 violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year, above Canadian towns (12). The force’s area logs 107 thefts, break-ins and acts of damage per 1,000 residents a year.
Year by year · Crime Severity Index for each year
| 2023–2025 | Dawson | Yukon | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crime Severity Index | 213 | – | 67 |
| Violent crime | 54.4 | – | 12 |
| Property crime per 1,000 | 107 | – | 31.2 |
| Violent Crime Severity Index | 244 | – | 86 |
Statistics Canada, Uniform Crime Reporting Survey, 2023–2025 average
Dawson has colder winters than Canadian towns: January lows of −29.8°C
A normal December brings 34 cm of snow, the most of any month. There are 240 days of frost in a typical year, higher than Canadian towns (159). Gardeners get 77 frost-free days, from 30 May to 16 August. Midsummer afternoons in Dawson peak at about 23.1°C.
Average high by season · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Normals, 1991–2020 | Dawson | Yukon | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| January night low | −29.8°C | – | −13.5°C |
| Days with frost a year | 240 | – | 159 |
| Precipitation a year | 319 mm | – | 883 mm |
| July afternoon high | 23.1°C | – | 25.5°C |
Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Dawson)
Rent takes less of local pay in Dawson than in Canadian towns: 17% of household income
Shelter took 30% or more of income for 21% of households, higher than Canadian towns (18%).
What homes were worth · The median owner’s estimate at the 2021 census
| Census 2021 | Dawson | Yukon | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent as a share of income | 17% | – | 20% |
| Households spending 30%+ on shelter | 21% | – | 18% |
| Median home value, 2021 | $348,000 | – | $406,000 |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; CMHC Rental Market Survey via Statistics Canada · These are 2021 census values, as owners judged them, set against household income in 2020.
More of Dawson’s residents have an Indigenous identity than in Canadian towns: 31%
12% of residents came to Canada as immigrants, higher than Canadian towns (6.4%). The 65-and-over age group makes up 15% 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 49.5% of Dawson
Of the 2021 count, 780 were women and 795 men (women across Canada: 50.9%).
| Dawson | Yukon | Canada | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 15% | – | 16% |
| 15 to 64 | 70% | – | 64% |
| 65+ | 15% | – | 19% |
| No certificate, diploma or degree | 17% | – | 16% |
| Postsecondary qualification | 58% | – | 56% |
Statistics Canada, Census 2021; Yukon and Canada: medians of towns of 2,500+
Dawson and its edges hold 2 schools: 2 schools for every grade
| School | Level | Students | System |
|---|---|---|---|
| J.V. Clark SchoolIn DawsonAll grades | All grades | – | English public |
Statistics Canada’s Open Database of Educational Facilities · Schools grade in Yukon: none (the province publishes no results school by school).
Expect November days around −14°C in Dawson, nights around −22°C
Snowfall in a normal November: 33 cm. December follows at −19°C by day and −27°C by night. ECCC’s forecast for Dawson is on the Weather page, hour by hour.
Normal highs, the months ahead · ECCC normals, 1991–2020
| Season | High | Low | Rain and snow |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | −19°C | −28°C | 50 mm |
| Spring | 7°C | −9°C | 50 mm |
| Summer | 22°C | 7°C | 140 mm |
| Autumn | 0°C | −10°C | 79 mm |
ECCC normals, 1991–2020 (Dawson); the forecast is on the Weather page
Brendan Hanley (Liberal Party of Canada) holds Yukon, the riding that includes Dawson
The Yukon Legislative Assembly’s ridings aren’t loaded on this site yet, so Dawson isn’t placed in one.
Wikidata, MAMH, MMAH, Statistics Canada
Dawson City Library and Dawson City Community Library are Dawson’s two public libraries
Without open library statistics in Yukon, the page names Dawson’s libraries but shows no visits or loans.
Provincial library statistics, OpenStreetMap, the CRA and Statistics Canada
Smoking runs high around Dawson: 18% of adults, the typical Canadian town 12%
Measured across the Yukon health region: health survey and life expectancy
Life expectancy at birth in the region is 79.2 years, lower than Canadian towns (81.5). The survey puts the region’s share in very good or excellent health at 55%; Yukon as a whole is at 55%. Closer to home, a hospital is just 1.0 km from the average resident of Dawson, nearer than the usual 3.7 km.
Very good or excellent health · adults, age-standardised
| Health | Dawson | Yukon | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smokers | 18% | – | 12% |
| Life expectancy at birth | 79.2 | – | 81.5 |
| Chronic conditions (average share) | 15% | – | 17% |
| Very good or excellent health | 55% | – | 52% |
Statistics Canada, Canadian Community Health Survey 2023/2024 and life expectancy 2014/2016; Open Database of Healthcare Facilities
Protected land is absent from the 10 km around Dawson
National parks are all over 100 km off. The nearest provincial park, Tombstone, is 25 km away.
Protected land · of the land within 10 km
| Outdoors | Dawson | Yukon | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protected land within 10 km | 0% | – | 2.3% |
| Public protected areas within 10 km | 0 | – | 4 |
Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD), OpenStreetMap routes and beaches
Dawson: 30 historic places, 12 with the highest designation
The record has 18 Recognized Federal Heritage Buildings. Of the dated places, Dawson Historical Complex is the oldest, from 1896.
Historic places by designation · inside the town
Among them
| Heritage | Dawson | Yukon | Canada |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1961 | 20% | – | 18% |
Canadian Register of Historic Places, Directory of Federal Heritage Designations, Québec’s Répertoire du patrimoine culturel, Wikidata; Census 2021 homes by period
Everything we know about Dawson
Jack London Cabin and 8 more in and around Dawson
What there is to see in Dawson and within a short drive, starting with the places most people have heard of.
Famous people from Dawson
5 notable people were born in Dawson.
About Dawson
Town in Yukon
Every figure TownRatings gives for Dawson covers the municipality as Statistics Canada maps it, one census subdivision in Yukon.
Statistics Canada: population estimates 2025 (17-10-0155), Census of Population 2021, 2021 census boundaries.
- Population
- 1,841 (people, 2025 estimate)
- Province or territory
- Yukon
- Census division
- Yukon
- Metro area
- Territories (outside CAs, Y.T.) / Territoires (à l'extérieur des AR, Yn)
- Census subdivision
- 6001029
Questions about Dawson
Has Dawson grown?
Between the 2016 and 2021 censuses it went from 1,375 to 1,577 residents (up 14.7%; Canadian towns’ median: 4.1%), and Statistics Canada now estimates 1,841.
Who are the people of Dawson?
At the 2021 census, 12% were immigrants and 8% belonged to a visible minority (Canadian towns’ median: 15%). 31% identify as First Nations, Métis or Inuit.
What kind of homes are in Dawson?
Single-detached houses make up 72% of the homes here, where Canadian towns sit at 64%; 0% are in high-rise apartments. 47% of households are one person, and the average is 2.
Is Dawson a young town or an old one?
The median resident is 39.6 years old, against 45.2 for the median of Canadian towns. 15% are under 15 and 15% 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).