Quebec City, Canada Population

Population in Urban Area, now

836,463
  • World: 723rd
  • North America: 93rd
  • Canada: 7th

Population in City Area, 2022-08-11

531,902
  • World: 707th
  • North America: 29th
  • Canada: 8th

Quebec City Urban Area Population Graph

Quebec City Population Review

Quebec City is the capital of the province of Quebec, located in Canada. It is home to 827,000 people in the urban area and 528,000 people in the city area. It is the eleventh largest city in Canada and the seventh largest metro area in Canada. It sits bordered by two rivers: the St. Charles River and the St. Lawrence River, which is why the Algonquian people originally named the area Kébec, an Algonquian word that means “where the river narrows”, since this is where the St. Laurence and the St. Charles narrow to a final meeting point.

Quebec City is spread over 485 square kilometers with a population density of about 228 people per square kilometers, which puts it much higher than the province’s population density of about 5 people per square kilometer.

Municipal mergers and an expanding city

In 2002, Quebec City annexed 12 former towns. These include: Sainte-Foy, Beauport, Charlesbourg, Sillery, Loretteville, Val-Bélair, Cap-Rouge, Saint-Émile, Vanier, L'Ancienne-Lorette, Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures and Lac-Saint-Charles. This was one of several municipal mergers that took place across the province of Quebec around that time. Four years later, L'Ancienne-Lorette and Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures were reconstituted as separate municipalities after a demerger referendum, however the other ten towns remain part of Quebec City. In 2009, Quebec City also restructured its boroughs down from 8 to 6.

Since 1950, the city has more than tripled in population—going from 268,000 inhabitants to its current number of 826,000 people. The city is predicted to continue growing steadily, with an estimated increase of another 100,000 people by 2035.

Demographics of the city

The cities demographics are almost equally split between male and female, with 48.2% of the population being male and 51.8% being female. Almost 21% of the population of the city are of retirement age (65 years and older) and 4.7% of the population are children under five. The median age of the city is around 43 years of age, which is a bit older than the country’s average of 41 years.

The number of visible minorities in the city is relatively low compared to other large cities, with only 6.3% of the population identifying as a visible minority. This is in comparison to the national average of 22.3%. The largest visible minority are Black Canadians, who make up 2.4% of the population.

A more equal income distribution

Compared to many other cities in North America, there is less income inequality in Quebec City across neighborhoods than in many other cities across the continent. There are some minor disparities between neighborhoods, such as the wealthier residents living in the former towns of Sillery, Cap-Rouge, and Sainte-Foy and the working-class residents living in the lower towns before Old Quebec, like Saint-Sauveur and Saint-Roch. However, Saint-Roch and Saint-Sauveur have also been seeing a lot of gentrification over the past 20 years, with many young professionals moving into the area and the construction of new condos and offices.

From a village, to a city

Quebec City was originally the capital of the French empire in North America. While this may seem like it was always a large and bustling city, it was actually nothing more than a generous village for many years. In 1608, it only had 28 residents. By the time of the Conquest in 1759, the village had become a town with 8,000 residents. Rapid growth continued in the 1800s, with the city adding over 50,000 residents by 1861. The economic expansion that the timber trade and administrative and political activities were providing the city meant that it was attracting many new people to the city.

The city’s growth is still above that of the rest of the province, with Quebec City growing by 6.5% a year, compared to the rest of the province at 4.9%

Review Updated: October 2, 2020

Quebec City Urban Area Population History

1950 268,000
1951 275,000
1952 283,000
1953 290,000
1954 298,000
1955 306,000
1956 314,000
1957 323,000
1958 331,000
1959 340,000
1960 349,000
1961 358,000
1962 369,000
1963 380,000
1964 391,000
1965 403,000
1966 414,000
1967 427,000
1968 440,000
1969 454,000
1970 467,000
1971 481,000
1972 493,000
1973 505,000
1974 518,000
1975 530,000
1976 543,000
1977 549,000
1978 555,000
1979 562,000
1980 568,000
1981 574,000
1982 580,000
1983 586,000
1984 592,000
1985 598,000
1986 604,000
1987 612,000
1988 620,000
1989 629,000
1990 638,000
1991 646,000
1992 651,000
1993 656,000
1994 662,000
1995 667,000
1996 672,000
1997 675,000
1998 678,000
1999 681,000
2000 684,000
2001 687,000
2002 694,000
2003 700,000
2004 707,000
2005 713,000
2006 720,000
2007 729,000
2008 739,000
2009 748,000
2010 757,000
2011 767,000
2012 773,000
2013 780,000
2014 787,000
2015 794,000
2016 801,000
2017 808,000
2018 816,000
2019 821,000
2020 826,000
2021 832,000
2022 838,000
2023 844,000
2024 851,000

Quebec City Urban Area Population Projections

2025 858,000
2026 866,000
2027 873,000
2028 881,000
2029 889,000
2030 897,000
2031 905,000
2032 912,000
2033 920,000
2034 928,000
2035 936,000

Map of Quebec City, Canada

All Biggest Cities in Canada