Related tables: Rural Canada, Population estimates and projections.
| Population | Urban | Rural | Urban | Rural | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| number | % of total population | ||||
| Canada | |||||
| 1851 | 2,436,297 | 318,079 | 2,118,218 | 13 | 87 |
| 1861 | 3,229,633 | 527,220 | 2,702,413 | 16 | 84 |
| 1871 | 3,737,257 | 722,343 | 3,014,914 | 19 | 81 |
| 1881 | 4,381,256 | 1,109,507 | 3,271,749 | 25 | 75 |
| 1891 | 4,932,206 | 1,537,098 | 3,395,108 | 31 | 69 |
| 1901 | 5,418,663 | 2,023,364 | 3,395,299 | 37 | 63 |
| 1911 | 7,221,662 | 3,276,812 | 3,944,850 | 45 | 55 |
| 1921 | 8,800,249 | 4,353,428 | 4,446,821 | 49 | 51 |
| 1931 | 10,376,379 | 5,572,058 | 4,804,321 | 54 | 46 |
| 1941 | 11,506,655 | 6,252,416 | 5,254,239 | 54 | 46 |
| 1951 | 14,009,429 | 8,628,253 | 5,381,176 | 62 | 38 |
| 1956 | 16,080,791 | 10,714,855 | 5,365,936 | 67 | 33 |
| 1961 | 18,238,247 | 12,700,390 | 5,537,857 | 70 | 30 |
| 1966 | 20,014,880 | 14,726,759 | 5,288,121 | 74 | 26 |
| 1971 | 21,568,305 | 16,410,785 | 5,157,520 | 76 | 24 |
| 1976 | 22,992,595 | 17,366,970 | 5,625,625 | 76 | 24 |
| 1981 | 24,343,177 | 18,435,923 | 5,907,254 | 76 | 24 |
| 1986 | 25,309,330 | 19,352,080 | 5,957,250 | 76 | 24 |
| 1991 | 27,296,856 | 20,906,872 | 6,389,984 | 77 | 23 |
| 1996 | 28,846,758 | 22,461,207 | 6,385,551 | 78 | 22 |
| 2001 | 30,007,094 | 23,908,211 | 6,098,883 | 80 | 20 |
| 2006 | 31,612,897 | 25,350,743 | 6,262,154 | 80 | 20 |
| Note: The rural population for 1981 to 2006 refers to persons living outside centres with a population of 1,000 AND outside areas with 400 persons per square kilometre. Previous to 1981, the definitions differed slightly but consistently referred to populations outside centres of 1,000 population. Source: Statistics Canada, Census of Population, 1851 to 2006. Last modified: 2009-09-22. | |||||
For more statistical information, consult 2006 Census.
To find more information related to this table, consult Definitions, data sources, and methods.