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List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population. The table below lists the 100 largest census subdivisions (municipalities or municipal equivalents) in Canada by population, using data from the 2021 Canadian census for census subdivisions. [1]
Canada has 3 cities with more than a million people, 51 cities with between 100,000 and 1 million people, and 235 cities with between 10,000 and 100,000 people. The largest city in Canada is Toronto , with a population of 2,600,000 people.
Lists of the largest cities in Canada by population are lists by population of large cities in Canada that depend on the definition of "city". They include: List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, municipalities ranging from cities to rural districts.
- Toronto: 2,794,356
- Montreal: 1,762,949
- Calgary: 1,306,784
- Ottawa: 1,017,449
- Edmonton: 1,010,899
- Winnipeg: 749,607
- Mississauga: 717,961
- Vancouver: 662,248
- Brampton: 656,480
- Hamilton: 569,353
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This megacity was created in 1998, by merging Metropolitan Toronto’s six cities into one. Ontario’s capital city usurped Montreal as Canada’s most populous city in the 2001 census, and hasn’t looked back.
Traditionally, Montrealwas Canada’s largest city. While its loss of businesses was gradual throughout the 20th century, many left in the 1970s, due in part to the rise of the sovereignty movement and language laws.
Calgary is one of Canada’s fastest growing cities, expanding more than 20 per cent between 2009 and 2019. The region stretching from Edmonton south to Calgary is expected to be home to 80 per cent of Alberta’spopulation by 2046.
When it was chosen as Canada’s national capital in 1857, Ottawa was a small, isolated town. Most of its growth is a result of the Federal Public Service. In 2020, there were 127,092 federal employees in the National Capital Region.
To expand their population, cities traditionally annex neighbouring farmland. Since 1892, Edmontonannexed land more than 30 times, as recently as 2019. The city has also turned to “infill” by increasing building density in existing neighbourhoods.
As a city’s population grows it often experiences increased demand on its transit system. Winnipegis approaching this challenge by testing on-request transit, which uses a smartphone app and GPS to adjust the route of certain buses in real-time. This allows timely service in off-peak periods, one of the big challenges of serving a city.
Significant examples of increased building density are happening in Mississauga, just west of Toronto. On Lake Ontario, two industrial sites totalling 101 hectares are being redeveloped as new neighbourhoods. North of these sites, one central project is considered the largest mixed-use development in Canadian history.
In recent decades, foreign investors began actively purchasing residential properties in Vancouver. As prices rose, residents were challenged to find a home in their own city. In 2018, the provincial government introduced a 20 per cent property transfer tax for foreign entities, and the city itself introduced an empty home tax.
Brampton’s population has boomed in recent decades, from 103,459 residents in 1976 to 234,445 residents in 1991. While some of the growth has come from an expansion of urban boundaries in the 1990s, basement apartments (also known as “secondary units”) have played a large role. While there are over 7,000 registered secondary units in Brampton, esti...
By 2051, Hamilton is expected to add about a quarter million new residents. In 2021, city staff recommended adding 1,340 hectares of farmland to the city’s “urban growth area.” Planners received an estimated 19,000 public responses to the proposal. Ontariocities have until July 2022 to expand urban boundaries, or have them imposed by the province.
Find out the 10 most populous cities in Canada according to the 2021 census, and learn about their history, growth and challenges. Toronto, Montreal and Calgary top the list, while Vancouver and Hamilton are among the fastest growing.
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Statistics Canada listed 944 population centres in its 2011 census data; 513 of them, 54 per cent of all population centres in Canada, were located in Ontario or Quebec, the two most populous provinces.
Find out the population, province and growth rate of the 100 largest cities in Canada in 2024. See the top 10 cities, the smallest city and the full list of 100 cities sorted by population.
May 11, 2022 · Learn about the 10 largest Canadian cities by population, from Toronto to Winnipeg, and their main attractions, cultures, and climates. See photos, facts, and figures of each city and compare them with the rest of the country.
