List of population centres in Alberta

Population centre, in Canadian census data, is a populated place, or a cluster of interrelated populated places, which meet the demographic characteristics of an urban area. A population centre has a population of at least 1,000 and a population density of no fewer than 400 people per square kilometre.[1]

Population centres are not the same thing as urban municipalities. For example, the city of St. Albert is legally separate from Edmonton, but they are part of the same population centre.

The term was first introduced in the Canada 2011 Census; prior to that, Statistics Canada used the term urban area.[1]

As of the 2006 Census of Canada, the Province of Alberta had 107 urban areas[2] with a cumulative population of 2,699,851 and an average population of 25,232. In the 2011 census, Statistics Canada listed 109 population centres in the province.[3] This number increased to 122 in the Canada 2016 Census.

List of population centres

The below table is a list of those population centres in Alberta from the 2016 census as designated, named, and delineated by Statistics Canada.[4]

Rank	Population centre[4]	Size group[4]	Population (2016)[4]	Population (2011)[4]	% Change[4]
1	Calgary	Large urban	1,237,656	1,094,379	+13.1%
2	Edmonton	Large urban	1,062,643	935,361	+13.6%
3	Red Deer	Medium	99,718	89,715	+11.1%
4	Lethbridge	Medium	87,572	79,364	+10.3%
5	Fort McMurray	Medium	66,573	60,555	+9.9%
6	Medicine Hat	Medium	62,935	59,624	+5.6%
7	Grande Prairie	Medium	62,320	55,236	+12.8%
8	Airdrie	Medium	61,082	42,844	+42.6%
9	Spruce Grove	Small	36,125	27,970	+29.2%
10	Lloydminster (AB/SK)	Small	31,400	27,769	+13.1%
11	Leduc	Small	29,556	23,827	+24.0%
12	Okotoks	Small	28,833	24,470	+17.8%
13	Cochrane	Small	25,289	17,433	+45.1%
14	Fort Saskatchewan	Small	23,895	18,738	+27.5%
15	Chestermere	Small	19,472	14,363	+35.6%
16	Camrose	Small	18,520	17,057	+8.6%
17	Beaumont	Small	17,396	13,284	+31.0%
18	Stony Plain	Small	16,271	14,249	+14.2%
19	Sylvan Lake	Small	14,942	12,436	+20.2%
20	Brooks	Small	14,436	13,656	+5.7%
21	Strathmore	Small	13,592	12,179	+11.6%
22	High River	Small	13,420	12,498	+7.4%
23	Wetaskiwin	Small	12,486	12,221	+2.2%
24	Lacombe	Small	12,442	11,429	+8.9%
25	Canmore	Small	11,764	10,539	+11.6%
26	Morinville	Small	9,848	8,569	+14.9%
27	Whitecourt	Small	9,515	9,053	+5.1%
28	Hinton	Small	9,205	9,036	+1.9%
29	Olds	Small	8,944	8,025	+11.5%
30	Blackfalds	Small	8,749	6,123	+42.9%
31	Taber	Small	8,199	7,677	+4.3%
32	Coaldale	Small	8,153	7,239	+12.6%
33	Edson	Small	8,148	8,214	-0.8%
34	Banff	Small	7,851	7,854	+3.5%
35	Grand Centre	Small	7,256	6,868	+5.6%
36	Innisfail	Small	6,927	7,208	-3.9%
37	Ponoka	Small	6,899	6,505	+6.1%
38	Drayton Valley	Small	6,867	6,751	+1.7%
39	Cold Lake	Small	6,678	6,131	+8.9%
40	Devon	Small	6,578	6,515	+1.0%
41	Drumheller	Small	6,439	6,582	-2.2%
42	Rocky Mountain House	Small	6,429	6,687	-3.9%
43	Slave Lake	Small	6,155	6,517	-5.6%
44	Wainwright	Small	6,153	5,803	+6.0%
45	Stettler	Small	5,862	5,397	+8.6%
46	St. Paul	Small	5,728	5,337	+7.3%
47	Redcliff	Small	5,474	5,546	-1.3%
48	Vegreville	Small	5,436	5,440	-0.1%
49	Didsbury	Small	5,222	4,905	+6.5%
50	Bonnyville	Small	5,081	5,860	-13.3%
51	Langdon	Small	5,060	4,211	+20.2%
52	Westlock	Small	4,678	4,532	+3.2%
53	Barrhead	Small	4,387	4,158	+5.5%
54	Jasper	Small	3,948	3,489	+13.2%
55	Peace River	Small	3,924	4,078	-3.8%
56	Vermilion	Small	3,617	3,531	+2.4%
57	Raymond	Small	3,533	3,594	-1.7%
58	Pincher Creek	Small	3,523	3,572	-1.4%
59	Claresholm	Small	3,424	3,378	+1.4%
60	Grande Cache	Small	3,286	3,839	-14.4%
61	Cardston	Small	3,258	3,283	-0.8%
62	Penhold	Small	3,165	2,328	+36.1%
63	Carstairs	Small	3,080	2,665	+15.6%
64	Three Hills	Small	3,078	3,018	+2.0%
65	Crossfield	Small	2,973	2,843	+4.6%
66	High Level	Small	2,741	3,018	-9.2%
67	Fort Macleod	Small	2,708	2,874	-5.8%
68	Gibbons	Small	2,661	2,495	+6.7%
69	Coalhurst	Small	2,623	1,930	+35.9%
70	Grimshaw	Small	2,599	2,394	+8.6%
71	Fairview	Small	2,598	2,767	-6.1%
72	Black Diamond	Small	2,552	2,274	+12.2%
73	Sexsmith	Small	2,461	2,358	+4.4%
74	Hanna	Small	2,332	2,439	-4.4%
75	Beaverlodge	Small	2,327	2,245	+3.7%
76	Lac la Biche	Small	2,294	2,429	-5.6%
77	High Prairie	Small	2,264	2,281	-0.7%
78	Turner Valley	Small	2,249	1,967	+14.3%
79	Magrath	Small	2,179	2,027	+7.5%
80	Rimbey	Small	2,086	1,930	+8.1%
81	Heritage Pointe	Small	2,075	2,041	+1.7%
82	Nanton	Small	1,965	1,977	-0.6%
83	Provost	Small	1,945	1,975	-1.5%
84	Clairmont	Small	1,922	1,789	+7.4%
85	Millet	Small	1,905	2,038	-6.5%
86	Sundre	Small	1,866	1,799	+3.7%
87	La Crète	Small	1,860	2,501	-25.6%
88	Tofield	Small	1,854	1,924	-3.6%
89	Calmar	Small	1,849	1,726	+7.1%
90	Bow Island	Small	1,773	1,862	-4.8%
91	Fox Creek	Small	1,720	1,770	-2.8%
91	Picture Butte	Small	1,700	1,531	+11.0%
93	Vulcan	Small	1,680	1,624	+3.4%
94	Redwater	Small	1,591	1,440	+10.5%
95	Blairmore	Small	1,545	1,521	+1.6%
96	Bon Accord	Small	1,529	1,488	+2.8%
97	Wembley	Small	1,516	1,373	+10.4%
98	Springbrook	Small	1,502	1,079	+39.2%
99	Lancaster Park	Small	1,501	1,534	-2.2%
100	Coleman	Small	1,475	1,366	+8.0%
101	Elk Point	Small	1,437	1,412	+1.8%
102	Valleyview	Small	1,421	1,409	+0.9%
103	Westlake	Small	1,363	373	+265.4%
104	Lamont	Small	1,347	1,371	-1.8%
105	Nobleford	Small	1,278	1,000	+27.8%
106	Swan Hills	Small	1,275	1,413	-9.8%
107	Athabasca	Small	1,250	1,314	-4.9%
108	Bowden	Small	1,240	1,241	-0.1%
109	Vauxhall	Small	1,222	1,288	-5.1%
110	Mayerthorpe	Small	1,205	1,232	-2.2%
111	Alberta Beach - Val Quentin	Small	1,204	962	+25.2%
112	Two Hills	Small	1,198	1,161	+3.2%
113	Bassano	Small	1,196	1,200	-0.3%
114	Irricana	Small	1,160	1,114	+4.1%
115	Legal	Small	1,135	1,032	+10.0%
116	Eckville	Small	1,085	1,089	-0.4%
117	Manning	Small	1,072	1,065	+0.7%
118	Trochu	Small	1,058	1,067	-0.8%
119	Viking	Small	1,039	1,021	+1.8%
120	Falher	Small	1,032	1,050	-1.7%
121	Bentley	Small	1,027	944	+8.8%
122	Duchess	Small	1,009	934	+8.0%

Retired population centres

The following is a list of communities were once designated as population centres by Statistics Canada, but were retired after their populations dropped below 1,000 people. Some of them have since surpassed the minimum population threshold of 1,000 yet have not been reintroduced as population centres.

• Smoky Lake (retired after 2016)[5]
• Spirit River (retired after 2016)[5]

Retired urban areas

The following is a list of communities were once designated as urban areas by Statistics Canada, but were retired after their populations dropped below 1,000 people. Some of them have since surpassed the minimum population threshold of 1,000 yet have not been reintroduced as population centres.

• Bellevue (retired after 1991 census)[6]
• Castor (retired after 1991)[6]
• Coronation (retired after 1991)[6]
• Lake Louise (retired after 2001 census)[7]
• McLennan (retired after 1986)[8]

See also

• List of census agglomerations in Alberta
• List of census divisions of Alberta
• List of cities in Alberta
• List of communities in Alberta
• List of designated places in Alberta
• List of hamlets in Alberta
• List of municipalities in Alberta
• List of towns in Alberta
• List of villages in Alberta

References

1. "From urban areas to population centres" Archived 2012-12-13 at the Wayback Machine. Statistics Canada, May 5, 2011.
2. "2006 Census Dictionary: Table 1, Geographic units by province and territory, 2006 Census". Statistics Canada. 2007-11-14. Retrieved 2011-10-04.
3. Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and population centres, 2011 and 2006 censuses: Alberta. Statistics Canada.
4. "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and population centres, 2016 and 2011 censuses – 100% data (Alberta)". Statistics Canada. February 20, 2019. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
6. "Table 2: Population Counts, for Urban Areas With Census Subdivisions, 1991 – 100% Data". 1991 Census. Urban Areas, Population and Dwelling Counts. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. 1992.
7. "Population and Dwelling Counts and Population Rank, for Canada, Provinces and Territories, and Urban Areas, 2001 Census - 100% Data (Alberta)". Statistics Canada. Retrieved 2011-10-04.
8. "Table 14: Urban Areas With Census Subdivisions – Population, 1986". Census Canada 1986. Population and Dwelling Counts – Provinces and Territories, Alberta, Population. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. 1987.