How Many People Live in Canada?

Canada has a population of approximately 41.4 million people spread across the second-largest country by area on Earth (9.98 million km²). That works out to about 4 people per square kilometer, one of the lowest population densities in the world. In practice, about 90% of Canadians live within 200 km of the US border. The rest of the country is vast, cold, and almost empty.

Canada is growing faster than any other G7 country, but almost entirely through immigration. The fertility rate (1.30 in 2023) is at an all-time low, below even Germany. The government targets about 500,000 new permanent residents per year, plus hundreds of thousands of temporary workers and international students. In 2023, Canada added 1.27 million people through migration, a staggering 3.2% population increase in a single year. This has created a housing crisis, particularly in Toronto and Vancouver, where demand has far outstripped supply.

The debate over immigration levels has become one of the most politically charged topics in Canada. Supporters argue that immigration is essential for economic growth and pension sustainability. Critics point to unaffordable housing, strained healthcare, and infrastructure that was not built for this pace of growth. The government has recently scaled back its targets for 2025-2027.

📊 Key Demographics

🏙️ What Are Canadas Largest Cities?

The 200-km border strip

Canada's population map is one of the most lopsided in the world. About 27 million of 39.5 million Canadians live in the Windsor-Quebec City corridor (southern Ontario and southern Quebec). The three largest metro areas (Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver) alone account for over 13 million. Entire provinces in the north and prairies have population densities comparable to Mongolia. Nunavut, Canada's largest territory (2.1 million km²), has 39,000 people, meaning one person per 54 square kilometers.

🏒 90% of Canadians Live Within 160 km of the US Border

Despite being the second-largest country by area, Canada is mostly empty. The vast majority of the population is crammed into a narrow band along the southern border. Northern Canada (about 75% of the landmass) has fewer people than a mid-size American city. Nunavut, Canadas largest territory, is bigger than Western Europe but has a population of 40,000. The emptiness is not just cold, its a fundamental feature of Canadian geography and identity.