Brantford is a growing and progressive community, continually welcoming new businesses, residents, and visitors. Our population growth is paralleled by increased demand for commercial and industrial land and buildings.

Defined as an urban growth centre in Ontario's Places to Grow Act, Brantford has immense potential. The expansion of our municipal boundaries in 2017 further supports the City's plans for long term growth.

As we grow, it is important to understand our residents, our neighbourhoods, our community, and why Brantford is a destination of choice for so many new companies and families.

On this page

Population growth

In 2021, the Brantford's population was 104,688, representing a healthy growth rate of nearly 6.21% since 2016. Our growth rate is higher than the provincial (5.8%) and national (5.2%) averages for the same period. Explore the data charts below for more details on our population change.

Brantford Population Growth (Census Years 1996 to 2021)

Brantford Annual Population Growth and Estimated Future Population Growth (1996 to 2026)

Age and gender

Age and gender characteristics are important data sets used in helping to understand the population. Explore the data table and charts below for more details on these characteristics.

Brantford Age and Gender Population Characteristics (2021)
Brantford Age and Gender Population Characteristics (2021)
Characteristic* Data Type Total Men+ Women+
Total Population Count 104,688 51,205 53,480
Total Population Percentage 100.0% 48.9% 51.1%
Age 0 to 9 years Count 11,660 6,045 5,615
Age 0 to 9 years % of total pop. 11.1% 5.8% 5.4%
Age 10 to 19 years Count 12,235 6,305 5,935
Age 10 to 19 years % of total pop. 11.7% 6.0% 5.7%
Age 20 to 39 years Count 27,425 13,725 13,700
Age 20 to 39 years % of total pop. 26.2% 13.1% 13.1%
Age 40 to 65 years Count 33,575 16,385 17,190
Age 40 to 64 years % of total pop. 32.1% 15.7% 16.4%
Age 65 years and over Count 19,790 8,755 11,040
Age 65 years and over % of total pop. 18.9% 8.4% 10.5%
Average Age Years 41 40 43
Median Age Years 41 39 42

 * Rounding numbers may result in tiny discrepancies for number summation. See notes in the section below from Statistics Canada about about gender data.
Brantford Population Percentage by Age (2021)

Brantford Population Count by Age and Gender (2021)

* Statistics Canada Notes on Gender

Gender refers to an individual's personal and social identity as a man, woman or non-binary person (a person who is not exclusively a man or a woman).

Gender includes the following concepts:

  • gender identity, which refers to the gender that a person feels internally and individually;
  • gender expression, which refers to the way a person presents their gender, regardless of their gender identity, through body language, aesthetic choices or accessories (e.g., clothes, hairstyle and makeup), which may have traditionally been associated with a specific gender.

A person's gender may differ from their sex at birth, and from what is indicated on their current identification or legal documents such as their birth certificate, passport or driver's licence. A person's gender may change over time.

Some people may not identify with a specific gender.

Given that the non-binary population is small, data aggregation to a two-category gender variable is sometimes necessary to protect the confidentiality of responses provided. In these cases, individuals in the category "non-binary persons" are distributed into the other two gender categories and are denoted by the "＋" symbol.

"Men＋" includes men and boys, as well as some non-binary persons.

"Women＋" includes women and girls, as well as some non-binary persons.

Private occupied dwellings and household size

A private dwelling is defined as "a person or group of persons who occupy the same dwelling and do not have a usual place of residence elsewhere in Canada or abroad." Explore the charts below for more details on these characteristics.

Brantford Occupied Private Dwellings by Structure Type (2021)

Brantford Private Household Size (2021)

Archive

Archived data from past census years.

The tables, graphs, and reports below are primarily based on the Census program conducted by Statistics Canada every five years. Information on this page is frequently added and updated. Our forthcoming mapping section will also offer additional geographically presented data.

Estimated Population (2016 to 2020)

Demographic Snapshot

Brantford CMA 2016

  • Population: 134,203
  • 2006 Population: 124,607
  • Population Change: 7.7%
  • Median Age: 41.8 years
  • 2015 Avg. Household Income: $83,010
  • % Population with High School Diploma or Higher (15+ years): 79.3%
  • Average Value of Dwelling: $337,344

Brantford (City) 2016

  • Population: 97,496
  • 2011 Population: 93,650
  • Population Change: 4.1%
  • Median Age: 40.9 years
  • 2015 Avg. Household Income: $75,506
  • % Population with High School Diploma or Higher (15+ years): 78.3%
  • Average Value of Dwelling: $297,094

Source: Statistics Canada
Chart: Brantford Age Pyramid (2016 Census Data)

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