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Official Canadian Data

Halifax, Nova Scotia

Economic region · Population 517,115
15 Sources Updated July 13, 2026
517,115
Population
$81,000
Median Income (CAD)
$84,000 national
5.5%
Unemployment
$65.3B
Provincial GDP (CAD)
280,600
Total Employment
23%
Bachelor's+
25% national
Community Data / Canada / Nova Scotia / Halifax

Demographics & Population

Statistics Canada · 2021 Census of Population

Household Income

Source: Statistics Canada · 2021 Census of Population
Median Household Income
$81,000
Poverty Rate (LIM-AT)
16%
Low Income Measure, after tax · Nova Scotia 2024 · Canada: 12.5%
Median Income Comparison (CAD)
Halifax$81,000
National$84,000

Community Snapshot

Source: Statistics Canada · 2021 Census of Population
517,115
Population
200,619
Total Dwellings
Total Employment
280,600
Unemployment Rate StatCan LFS 2024 annual
5.5%
Industry Sectors
10
Age Distribution
0-14: 13.7% (71,048 residents) 15-54: 57.2% (295,546 residents) 55-64 (near retirement): 11.9% (61,312 residents) 65+: 17.3% (89,209 residents) 38.9 Avg Age
0-14: 71,048
15-54: 295,546
55-64: 61,312
65+: 89,209
Visible Minority Composition
Black 4.7%
South Asian 3.8%
Arab 2.2%
Chinese 2.2%
Filipino 1%
Multiple visible minorities 0.5%
Not a visible minority(complement) 83.3%
"Visible minority" is a Statistics Canada classification defined by the Employment Equity Act and refers to "persons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour." "Not a visible minority" is the complement to the total visible minority population. Top 6 groups shown; smaller groups are included in totals but not charted.
Indigenous Identity
3.8% identify as Indigenous
First Nations 1.9%
Métis 1.6%
Indigenous responses, n.i.e. 0.1%
Multiple Indigenous responses 0.1%
Indigenous identity per Statistics Canada Census 2021 (Table 98-10-0293): First Nations (North American Indian), Métis, and Inuk (Inuit), plus multiple and other Indigenous responses. Counts use census random rounding, so categories may not sum exactly to the total.
Halifax's median household income sits 4% below the Canadian national median across 517,115 residents with a senior-skewed age structure (65+: 17.3%, 0-14: 13.7%).
Source: Statistics Canada 2021 Census of Population via CensusMapper.ca
Key Takeaways
  • Income near the national median: Median household income tracks the Canadian median, indicating a broad-based consumer market.
  • Aging population: Seniors (65+) outnumber youth (0-14); succession and senior-services demand.

Educational Attainment

Source: Statistics Canada · Table 37-10-0130 · Nova Scotia province-wide (ages 25-64)
93%
High School+
Canada: 93%
0.0 pts
23%
Bachelor's+
Canada: 25%
2.0 pts
14%
Graduate+
Canada: 14%
0.0 pts

Economy & Industry

Statistics Canada · Labour Force Survey · Provincial GDP

$65.3B
Provincial Gross Domestic Product (CAD)
Source: Statistics Canada · Provincial Economic Accounts
280,600
Total Employment
$81,000
Median Income
280,600
Total Employment
Source: StatCan Labour Force Survey
$81,000
Median Income (CAD)
Source: Statistics Canada · 2021 Census

Top Industries by Employment

Source: Statistics Canada · Labour Force Survey
IndustryEmploymentShare of Top Sectors
1Health care and social assistance		 41,700 17.2%
2Wholesale and retail trade		 39,200 16.2%
3Professional, scientific and technical services		 27,600 11.4%
4Public administration		 23,800 9.8%
5Finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing		 22,300 9.2%
6Construction		 21,200 8.7%
7Educational services		 20,900 8.6%
8Accommodation and food services		 18,100 7.5%
9Transportation and warehousing		 14,000 5.8%
10Manufacturing		 13,500 5.6%
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Key Takeaways
  • Largest sector: Health care and social assistance employs 41,700 workers (17.2% of the tracked sectors).
  • Diversified base: Top 5 sectors are Health care and social assistance, Wholesale and retail trade, Professional, scientific and technical services, Public administration, and Finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing.
Source: Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey.

Halifax's Top Sectors by Workforce Share

Each rectangle's area is proportional to that sector's share of the top sectors. Hover for exact employment.
Source: Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey · NAICS supersectors

Housing & Rental Market

Statistics Canada Table 34-10-0133 (Rents) - Table 34-10-0127 (Vacancy) - Reference year 2025

Note: figures are single-year vintages. StatCan and CMHC do not publish ACS-style rolling 5-year housing averages, the long-form Census of Population every 5 years (2016, 2021) plays the equivalent precision role.

CMHC Average Rents by Bedroom

Source: Statistics Canada Table 34-10-0133 - 2025
27.1%
Annual Rent (2BR) as % of Median Household Income
30% threshold = "cost-burdened" (CMHC / HUD convention). Computed from $1,828 average 2BR rent × 12 / $81,000 household income.
Bachelor
$1,362/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,539/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,828/mo
3+ Bedroom
$2,254/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$2,025/mo), rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Note: CMHC Rental Market Survey figures cover the metropolitan area (CMA/CA) within this economic region, not the full region. CMHC surveys urban centres only.

Vacancy & Housing Stock

Source: Statistics Canada Table 34-10-0127 · CMHC Rental Market Survey
2.5%
CMHC Vacancy Rate (apartment structures of 6+ units)
Near the 3% balanced-market benchmark.
Total Dwellings
200,619
Avg 2BR Rent
$1,828/mo
Vacancy Rate
2.5%
Key Takeaways
  • At threshold: Annual 2BR rent eats 27.1% of median household income, near the 30% cost-burdened cutoff.
Source: CMHC RMS rent data and StatCan median household income.

Industry Concentration

Location Quotient: industries where Halifax over- or under-indexes vs. the Canadian national average

Economic-region employment basis: NAICS supersector Location Quotients from Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey (Table 14-10-0466), computed vs. the national employment share. The spider chart plots 9 broad supersectors for cross-region comparability; the ranked list shows every concentrated sector, including resource industries not among the chart's fixed axes.

Concentrated Industries
Source: Statistics Canada Table 14-10-0466 · NAICS supersector employment (Labour Force Survey), LQ computed vs. the national employment share.
Finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing
2.56x
22,300
Professional, scientific and technical services
1.94x
27,600
Key Takeaways
  • Top specialization: Finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing concentrates at 2.56x the national norm.
Source: StatCan Labour Force Survey (Table 14-10-0466), NAICS supersector employment.

Workforce & Labour

Labour force composition from Statistics Canada population estimates and employment data

Source: StatCan Table 17-10-0137
356,858
Working Age (15-64)
Employment rate: 79% of working-age population (15-64) 79% Employment Rate

Labour Summary

Source: StatCan LFS + Population Estimates
Total Employment
280,600
Working Age Pop
356,858
Youth (0-14)
71,048
Seniors (65+)
89,209

Dependency & Aging

Source: StatCan population estimates
17%
Seniors (65+) Share
Senior population exceeds youth, aging workforce risk. Succession planning and talent attraction recommended.
Youth / Senior Ratio
80:100

Aging Workforce

Source: StatCan 17-10-0150 · Population estimates by economic region, age
17.2%
55-64 of working-age (15-64)

Workforce by Occupation

Source: Statistics Canada Table 14-10-0416 NOC 2021 broad categories (2025 - province-level)
Management / Professional
56.2%
Sales & Service
22.6%
Trades / Transport
15.3%
Natural Resources
2.6%
Manufacturing
3.4%
Bars scaled 2x for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 523,500 employed workers across Nova Scotia. Economic Region-level occupation data is not published by StatCan; this provincial breakdown is the closest available proxy.

Commute

Source: StatCan 2021 Census Table 98-10-0457
Mean Commute 2.3 min below national avg
21.4 min

Work From Home

Source: StatCan 2021 Census Table 98-10-0455
Worked At Home vs 24.3% national
27.7%
Census 2021 long-form: percent of employed labour force aged 15+ whose place of work is "at home".

Local Institutions

Source: Statistics Canada · Table 37-10-0277 · Postsecondary Enrolments
Named post-secondary institutions
Total students enrolled in the 2023/2024 academic year (StatCan Table 37-10-0277).
Dalhousie University · Halifax 20,223students
Saint Mary's University · Halifax 6,294students
Mount Saint Vincent University · Halifax 3,843students
Enrolment figures from Statistics Canada Table 37-10-0277 (2023/2024 academic year). Coverage limited to institutions in the ExecutivePulse crosswalk; smaller community colleges may not be listed.
Key Takeaways
  • Working-age base: 356,858 residents aged 15-64 (69% of population) form the labour pool.
  • Employment rate: 79% of working-age residents are employed (280,600 workers).
  • Succession risk: Seniors (65+) outnumber youth (0-14); plan for retirements alongside attraction strategy.
Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 + Labour Force Survey.

AI Insights

AI-assisted analysis, drawn from 15 Canadian data sources

Sample AI Insight

Halifax's industrial base is anchored by Health care and social assistance with 41,700 workers, followed by Wholesale and retail trade and Professional, scientific and technical services. The region skews older: seniors outnumber youth, which has implications for succession planning and workforce transition strategy.

Illustrative example

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Data Sources

All data from official Canadian government APIs. Updated from official Canadian government data.

Statistics Canada Census 20212021
StatCan Labour Force Survey2025
StatCan LFS Unemployment Rate (14-10-0393)2024
StatCan GDP Tables2024
CMHC Rental Market2025
CensusMapper.ca2021
StatCan Education (37-10-0130)2025
StatCan Population (17-10-0150)2025
StatCan Postsecondary Enrolments (37-10-0277)2024
StatCan Top Occupations (14-10-0416)2025
StatCan Commute (98-10-0457/0458)2021
StatCan Place of Work (98-10-0455/0456)2021
StatCan Low Income (11-10-0135)2024
StatCan Visible Minority (98-10-0352)2021
StatCan Indigenous Identity (98-10-0293)2021

Frequently Asked Questions

Key economic and demographic figures for Halifax, Nova Scotia, from Statistics Canada.

What is the population of Halifax, Nova Scotia?

517,115 (Statistics Canada, Population Estimates, Table 17-10-0150).

What is the median household income in Halifax, Nova Scotia?

$81,000 (Statistics Canada, Census 2021).

What is the unemployment rate in Halifax, Nova Scotia?

5.5% (Statistics Canada, Labour Force Survey, Table 14-10-0393).