Demographics of Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia  (Latin for New Scotland; ; ) is a Canadian province located on Canada's southeastern coast. It is the most populous province in the Atlantic Canada, and its capital, Halifax, is a major economic centre of the region.  Nova Scotia is the second smallest province in Canada, with an area of 55,284 km².  Its population of 1,072,545 (as of 2024) makes it the fourth least populous province of the country.

Population
Nova Scotia is the seventh most populous province in Canada with an estimated 1,079,627 residents as of 2025. It accounts for 2.6 percent of the population of Canada.  The population density is approximately 20.4 persons/km².  Roughly 60% of the population live in rural parts of the province.

Regional municipalities
Nova Scotia has four regional municipalities.

Towns 

Nova Scotia has 25 towns.

 Towns of Nova Scotia

Population centres 

The Halifax population centre is the largest urban area in Nova Scotia. Statistics Canada recognizes a total of 37 population centres in the province.

Population of Nova Scotia since 1851
 Year  Population  % change  Rank*</tr> 5-year  10-year</tr> 1851  276,854  –  –  3</tr> 1861  330,857  –  19.5</tr> 1871  387,800  –  17.2</tr> 1881  440,572  –  13.6</tr> 1891  450,396  –   2.2</tr> 1901  459,574  –   2.0</tr> 1911  492,338  –   7.1  4</tr> 1921  523,837  –   6.4  7</tr> 1931  512,846  –   - 2.1</tr> 1941  577,962  –  12.7</tr> 1951  642,584  –  11.2</tr> 1956  694,717  8.1  –</tr> 1961  737,007  6.1  14.7</tr> Year  Population  % change  Rank*</tr> 5-year  10-year</tr> 1966  756,039  2.6   8.8  7</tr> 1971  788,965  4.4   7.0</tr> 1976  828,570  5.0   9.6</tr> 1981  847,442  2.3   7.4</tr> 1986  873,175  3.0   5.4</tr> 1991  899,942  3.1   6.2</tr> 1996  909,282  1.0   4.1</tr> 2001  908,007  - 0.1   0.9</tr> 2006  913,462  0.6  0.5</tr> 2011  921,727  0.9  1.5</tr> 2016  923,598  0.2  1.1</tr> 2021  969,383  5.0  5.2</tr>

Visible minorities and Indigenous people
 Visible minority and Indigenous population (Canada 2021 Census) Population group Population  % European  809,995  84.7% Visible minority group South Asian  21,655  2.3% Chinese  11,600  1.2% Black  28,220  3.0% Filipino  6,615  0.7% Arab  10,610  1.1% Latin American  2,915  0.3% Southeast Asian  2,400  0.3% West Asian  1,875  0.2% Korean  2,845  0.3% Japanese  985  0.1% Visible minority,   970  0.1% Multiple visible minorities  2,750  0.3% Total visible minority population  93,430  9.8% Indigenous groupFirst Nations (North American Indian) 28,050  2.9%Métis 21,090  2.2%Inuk (Inuit) 1,100  0.1% Multiple Indigenous responses  885  0.1% Indigenous responses   1,300  0.1%Total Indigenous population52,4305.5%Total population955,855100.0%

Languages

Red – majority anglophone, Orange – mixed, Blue – majority francophone.

The 2021 Canadian census showed a population of 969,383.Of the 941,105 singular responses to the census question concerning mother tongue the most commonly reported languages were:
 Ranking Language Population Percentage1.English851,54590.48%2.French27,3402.91%3.Arabic7,9600.85%4.Mandarin6,7300.72%5.Punjabi4,5500.48%6.Tagalog3,2400.34%7.Mi'kmaq3,1450.33%8.German3,0500.32%9.Spanish2,6800.28%10.Korean2,3400.25%11.Hindi2,0350.22%12.Malayalam1,9750.21%13.Russian1,7350.18%14.Persian1,4350.15%15.Dutch1,3950.15%16.Portuguese1,3050.14%17.Yue (Cantonese)1,2500.13%18.Gujarati1,1600.12%19.Urdu9650.10%20.Vietnamese9500.10%21.Bengali8900.09%22.Polish8700.09%23.Telugu7500.08%24.Italian7300.08%25.Greek7100.08%26.Serbo-Croatian5800.06%27.Tamil5550.06%

Migration

Immigration
The 2021 Canadian census counted a total of 71,570 immigrants living in Nova Scotia. They are 7.5 percent of the total population of Nova Scotia.
The most commonly reported origins for these immigrants were:
+Immigrants in Nova Scotia by country of birthCountry of Birth20212016201120062001United Kingdom11,93011,27011,00011,66010,800United States7,5707,3758,2757,9608,065India5,6052,2251,4151,4401,140Philippines4,7552,5751,325420495China4,3202,8301,7101,7401,025Syria2,4201,150185135180Germany2,3752,6002,3852,8502,455Nigeria1,745350215165105Lebanon1,5651,3651,5901,2651,460Netherlands1,4651,6451,5301,8301,975Total immigrants71,57055,68048,27545,19041,315Total responses955,855908,340906,175903,090897,570Total population969,383923,598921,727913,462908,007

Internal migration
A total of 101,035 people moved to Nova Scotia from other parts of Canada between 1996 and 2006 while 110,335 people moved in the opposite direction. These movements resulted in a net outmigration of 11,925 people to Alberta and 4,120 to Ontario; as well as a net influx of 4,690 people from Newfoundland and Labrador and 2,930 from New Brunswick. During this period there was a net outmigration of 835 francophones to Quebec and 340 to Alberta; and a net influx of 575 anglophones from Quebec and 145 francophones from New Brunswick. (All net inter-provincial movements of more than 500 persons and official minority movements of more than 100 persons are given.)Province or Territory of Residence 5 Years Ago (14), Mother Tongue (8), Age Groups (16) and Sex (3) (2006 Census) 

Religion
+ Religious groups in Nova Scotia (1981−2021)Religious group20212011200119911981 Christianity 15px 556,115  690,460  780,530  815,815  800,325  No religion 359,395  197,665  106,405  68,010  34,335  Islam 15px 14,715  8,505  3,545  1,435  790  Hinduism 15px 8,460  1,850  1,235  970  1,025  Sikhism 15px 4,735  390  270  330  275  Buddhism 15px 2,955  2,205  1,735  1,485  420  Judaism 15px 2,195  1,805  2,120  1,950  2,010  Indigenous spirituality 1,090  570        Other 6,195  2,720  1,720  960  525  Total responses 955,855  906,175  897,570  890,950  839,800  Total population 969,383  921,727  908,007  899,942  847,442 

Employment
As of February 2019, the unemployment rate for the province  is 6.4 percent. Halifax Regional Municipality 4.9 percent 

Income
+ Median Household Income By County By CommunityRankCounty2011National Household Survey (NHS) Profile - Select from a List  Statistics Canada 1  Halifax County  $62,049 	 2  Hants County  $60,186 3  Antigonish County  $57,577  Nova Scotia  $53,606  4  Inverness County  $53,194  5  Kings County  $51,850  6  Richmond County  $50,745  7  Colchester County  $50,568   8  Pictou County  $50,417  9  Lunenburg County  $48,154  10  Yarmouth County  $47,676  11  Victoria County  $47,413  12  Cape Breton County  $47,224  13  Queens County  $45,050  14  Shelburne County  $44,267  15  Cumberland County  $43,385  17  Annapolis County  $43,522 17  Digby County  $42,293 18  Guysborough County  $42,063  
RankCommunity2011 1  Halifax Regional Municipality  $62,069 2  Port Hawkesbury  $61,013     Nova Scotia  $53,606   3  Stewiacke  $52,118  4  Mahone Bay  $49,158  5  Wolfville  $48,671  6  Hantsport  $48,584  7  Clark's Harbour  $48,102  8  Cape Breton Regional Municipality  $47,830  9  Stellarton  $46,307  10  Antigonish  $45,538  11  Kentville  $45,098  12  New Glasgow  $44,942  13  Westville  $44,647 14  Middleton  $44,048  15  Annapolis Royal  $43,956  16  Trenton  $42,535  17  Pictou  $41,905 18  Truro  $41,878  19  Windsor  $41,859  20  Amherst  $41,027 21  Bridgewater  $40,049   22  Berwick  $39,674  23  Lunenburg  $39,529  24  Bridgetown  $38,248 25  Oxford  $37,734 26  Springhill  $36,995 27  Mulgrave  $36,200  28  Canso  $35,574  29  Shelburne  $35,526  30  Yarmouth  $34,572  31  Lockeport  $33,854 32  Digby  $33,437  33  Parrsboro  $27,472

Notes

References

Category:Nova Scotia
Category:Demography