Rural population in Canada
Canada: Rural population was 18.0% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Rural population in Canada, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
Canada recorded 18.0% for rural population in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 55 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.7% on the previous year and down 4.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, rural population in Canada peaked at 24.5% in 1976 and was at its lowest, 18.0%, in 2024.
Canada ranks 160th of 214 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 55 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 24.3% | 23.9% | 24.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 23.8% | 23.4% | 24.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 22.4% | 20.9% | 23.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 19.9% | 19.2% | 20.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 18.8% | 18.5% | 19.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 18.2% | 18.0% | 18.4% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More population data for Canada
- Population growth rate by level of development 0.327 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5 2.33 million (2100)
- Population density 6.1 (2100)
- Population growth rate 0.327 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate 0.3863 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.7644 Percent per annum (2030)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 05 - Demographic estimates 45,891 Persons (2050)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 05 - Demographic estimates 0.7644 % change on previous year (2030)
- Fertility and wanted fertility 1.25 (2024)
- Refugee population by country or territory of asylum 269,496 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is rural population in Canada?
- Rural population in Canada was 18.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest rural population recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 24.5% in 1976.
- What is the lowest rural population recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.0% in 2024.
- How does Canada rank for rural population?
- Canada ranks 160th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
- Is rural population rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Rural population (% of total population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 55 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release