British Columbia Profile
British Columbia's population is 5,000,879, up 7.6% since 2016. The largest cities are Vancouver (662,248), Surrey (568,322), and Burnaby (249,125).
Income, age, households, education, commute, occupation, industry, and a full population-by-city list for British Columbia are below.
Consumer Price Index
British Columbia
All-items index for September 2026, up 3.0% from September 2025, calculated from the published index (2002=100). This is the Statistics Canada series for British Columbia.
- All-items
- 163.5
- 12-month change
- +3.0%
- Food
- 194.8+2.3% in 12 months
Source: Statistics Canada table 18-10-0004-01, reference month September 2026 (2002=100). Compare consumer prices across Canada. Data sources.
British Columbia Population
Population Age Distribution
British Columbia Households
Household Size
Size Distribution
Household Composition
British Columbia Incomes
Summary
Income Composition
Individual Income Distribution
British Columbia Employment
Labour Force
Low Income Prevalence
British Columbia Education
Highest certificate, diploma or degree for the population aged 15 and over, Census 2021. The highest-credential groups are mutually exclusive. Bachelor's degree, master's degree, and medicine, dentistry or veterinary medicine sit inside “bachelor's degree or higher” and are not extra slices of the population. Shares are calculated on this site from the published counts. Statistics Canada randomly rounds census counts, so parts can miss the published total by a few people.
Highest credential
Within bachelor's degree or higher
Those credentials are published parts of bachelor's degree or higher. They do not add up to that count. Earned doctorates and other university credentials above the bachelor level stay inside the published total and are not separate columns in this extract.
Share of the population aged 15 and over
British Columbia Commute
Place of work for the employed labour force aged 15 and over, Census 2021. Worked at home is the census count of people who worked at home, shown as a share of that employed labour force. Shares are calculated on this site from the published counts. Statistics Canada randomly rounds census counts, so parts can miss the published total by a few people.
Worked at home
22.6%
549,845 people
Share of 2,433,600 employed people aged 15 and over with a place of work.
Place of work
British Columbia Occupation
Broad category for the labour force aged 15 and over, Census 2021, using the National Occupational Classification (NOC) 2021. Legislative and senior management is broad category 0, not every job with “manager” in the title. Shares use the published labour-force total. These categories do not add up to that total. Counts are randomly rounded, and people with no classified category stay in the published total. This page does not estimate that remainder.
Share of the labour force
British Columbia Industry
Industry sector for the labour force aged 15 and over, Census 2021. Shares use the published labour-force total. These categories do not add up to that total. Counts are randomly rounded, and people with no classified category stay in the published total. This page does not estimate that remainder.
Share of the labour force
British Columbia Languages
Language Knowledge
Mother Tongue
Top Mother Tongue Languages
British Columbia Dwellings
Dwelling Type
British Columbia housing
Tenure and monthly shelter costs for British Columbia from the 2021 Census (reference period 2021), tables 98-10-0252-01 and 98-10-0253-01. Shares are calculated on this site from the published household counts.
Tenure
Shelter costs
Monthly shelter cost
Published household counts by shelter-cost band. Census counts are randomly rounded, so the bands can differ slightly from the household total.
Shelter cost is the census monthly amount. For owners it includes mortgage payments, property taxes and condominium fees, along with electricity, heat, water and other municipal services. For renters it includes rent and those utility payments when the tenant pays them. Current consumer prices are a separate series on the cost-of-living page. Data sources.
Population by city
85 municipalities in British Columbia, largest first. Each name links to its full profile.
| Name | Population | Growth |
|---|---|---|
| Vancouver | 662,248 | +4.9% |
| Surrey | 568,322 | +9.7% |
| Burnaby | 249,125 | +7.0% |
| Richmond | 209,937 | +5.9% |
| Abbotsford | 153,524 | +8.6% |
| Coquitlam | 148,625 | +6.7% |
| Kelowna | 144,576 | +13.5% |
| Langley | 132,603 | +13.1% |
| Saanich | 117,735 | +3.1% |
| Delta | 108,455 | +6.1% |
| Nanaimo | 99,863 | +10.3% |
| Kamloops | 97,902 | +8.4% |
| Chilliwack | 93,203 | +11.2% |
| Victoria | 91,867 | +7.1% |
| Maple Ridge | 90,990 | +10.6% |
| North Vancouver | 88,168 | +2.9% |
| New Westminster | 78,916 | +11.2% |
| Prince George | 76,708 | +3.7% |
| Port Coquitlam | 61,498 | +4.9% |
| North Vancouver | 58,120 | +9.9% |
| Langford | 46,584 | +31.8% |
| Vernon | 44,519 | +11.0% |
| West Vancouver | 44,122 | +3.9% |
| Mission | 41,519 | +7.7% |
| Penticton | 36,885 | +9.3% |
Show all (60 more)
| Name | Population | Growth |
|---|---|---|
| West Kelowna | 36,078 | +10.5% |
| Campbell River | 35,519 | +7.6% |
| Port Moody | 33,535 | 0.0% |
| North Cowichan | 31,990 | +7.7% |
| Langley | 28,963 | +11.9% |
| Courtenay | 28,420 | +10.8% |
| Squamish | 23,819 | +22.2% |
| White Rock | 21,939 | +10.0% |
| Fort St. John | 21,465 | +5.9% |
| Cranbrook | 20,499 | +2.3% |
| Salmon Arm | 19,432 | +9.7% |
| Pitt Meadows | 19,146 | +3.1% |
| Colwood | 18,961 | +12.5% |
| Port Alberni | 18,259 | +3.3% |
| Oak Bay | 17,990 | -0.6% |
| Esquimalt | 17,533 | -0.7% |
| Central Saanich | 17,385 | +3.4% |
| Lake Country | 15,817 | +22.4% |
| Sooke | 15,086 | +16.0% |
| Comox | 14,806 | +5.5% |
| Whistler | 13,982 | +19.0% |
| Powell River | 13,943 | +6.0% |
| Parksville | 13,642 | +9.5% |
| Dawson Creek | 12,323 | +1.2% |
| Sidney | 12,318 | +5.5% |
| Prince Rupert | 12,300 | +0.7% |
| North Saanich | 12,235 | +8.8% |
| Summerland | 12,042 | +3.7% |
| Terrace | 12,017 | +3.2% |
| Saltspring Island | 11,635 | +10.2% |
| View Royal | 11,575 | +11.2% |
| Coldstream | 11,171 | +4.9% |
| Nelson | 11,106 | +5.1% |
| Williams Lake | 10,947 | +1.8% |
| Sechelt | 10,847 | +6.2% |
| Quesnel | 9,889 | +0.1% |
| Qualicum Beach | 9,303 | +4.0% |
| Comox Valley C (Puntledge - Black Creek) | 9,158 | +6.8% |
| Ladysmith | 8,990 | +5.3% |
| Castlegar | 8,338 | +3.7% |
| Revelstoke | 8,275 | +9.4% |
| Kitimat | 8,236 | +1.3% |
| Kimberley | 8,115 | +9.3% |
| Trail | 7,920 | +2.7% |
| Nanaimo A | 7,481 | +6.0% |
| Merritt | 7,051 | -1.2% |
| Hope | 6,686 | +8.2% |
| Fernie | 6,320 | +17.1% |
| Kent | 6,300 | +3.8% |
| Southern Gulf Islands | 6,101 | +28.9% |
| Peachland | 5,789 | +6.7% |
| Creston | 5,583 | +4.1% |
| Osoyoos | 5,556 | +10.0% |
| Smithers | 5,378 | -0.4% |
| Armstrong | 5,323 | +4.1% |
| Cariboo G | 5,312 | +3.0% |
| Spallumcheen | 5,307 | +3.9% |
| Oliver | 5,094 | +3.4% |
| Metchosin | 5,067 | +7.6% |
| Duncan | 5,047 | +2.1% |
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