ExecutivePulse
Schedule a Demo
Official Canadian Data

Kootenay, British Columbia

BC Economic Region 5940 · Population 176,982
16 Sources Updated June 22, 2026
176,982 ▲
Population
$77,153 ▲
Median Income (CAD)
$84,000 national
5.5% ▲
Unemployment
$429.1B
Provincial GDP (CAD)
79,800
Total Employment
27% ▲
Bachelor's+
25% national
Community Data / Canada / British Columbia / Kootenay

Demographics & Population

Statistics Canada · 2021 Census of Population

Household Income

Source: Statistics Canada · 2021 Census of Population
Median Household Income
$77,153
Poverty Rate (LIM-AT) ⓘ
12.1%
Low Income Measure, after tax · British Columbia 2024 · Canada: 12.5%
Median Income Comparison (CAD)
Kootenay$77,153
National$84,000

Community Snapshot

Source: Statistics Canada · 2021 Census of Population
176,982
Population
86,517
Total Dwellings
Total Employment
79,800
Unemployment Rate StatCan LFS 2024 annual
5.5% ▲ +0.1 pts YoY
Industry Sectors
10
Age Distribution
0-14: 13.1% (23,236 residents) 15-54: 47.6% (84,170 residents) 55-64 (near retirement): 13.4% (23,731 residents) 65+: 25.9% (45,845 residents) 46.3 Avg Age
0-14: 23,236
15-54: 84,170
55-64: 23,731
65+: 45,845
Visible Minority Composition
South Asian 1.2%
Filipino 0.8%
Chinese 0.6%
Black 0.5%
Japanese 0.4%
Latin American 0.4%
Not a visible minority(complement) 95.3%
"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
7.4% identify as Indigenous
Métis 4.1%
First Nations 3%
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.
Kootenay's median household income sits 8% below the Canadian national median across 176,982 residents with a senior-skewed age structure (65+: 25.9%, 0-14: 13.1%).
Source: Statistics Canada 2021 Census of Population via CensusMapper.ca
Key Takeaways
  • Aging population: Seniors (65+) outnumber youth (0-14); succession and senior-services demand.

Educational Attainment

Source: Statistics Canada · Table 37-10-0130 · British Columbia province-wide (ages 25-64)
95%
High School+
Canada: 93%
▲ +2.0 pts
27%
Bachelor's+
Canada: 25%
▲ +2.0 pts
16%
Graduate+
Canada: 14%
▲ +2.0 pts

Economy & Industry

Statistics Canada · Labour Force Survey · Provincial GDP

$429.1B
Provincial Gross Domestic Product (CAD)
Source: Statistics Canada · Provincial Economic Accounts
79,800
Total Employment
$77,153
Median Income
79,800
Total Employment
Source: StatCan Labour Force Survey
$77,153
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		 13,900 17.4%
2Wholesale and retail trade		 13,300 16.7%
3Construction		 9,900 12.4%
4Technical trades and transportation officers and controllers		 9,200 11.5%
5Accommodation and food services		 8,300 10.4%
6Manufacturing		 5,800 7.3%
7Educational services		 5,800 7.3%
8Forestry, fishing, mining, quarrying, oil and gas		 5,300 6.6%
9Professional, scientific and technical services		 4,600 5.8%
10General trades		 3,700 4.6%
Seeing a change here?

EP customers get year-over-year deltas, WARN-equivalent layoff alerts, and federal/provincial filings for every sector tracked above, surfaced as proactive alerts, not after-the-fact news.

Get Deeper Trends
Track industry shifts with AI

ExecutivePulse monitors labour market changes, investment announcements, and industry trends for your top employers.

Learn More
Key Takeaways
  • Largest sector: Health care and social assistance employs 13,900 workers (17.4% of total employment).
  • Diversified base: Top 5 sectors are Health care and social assistance, Wholesale and retail trade, Construction, Technical trades and transportation officers and controllers, and Accommodation and food services.
Source: Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey.
Kootenay'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
22.9%
Annual Rent (2BR) as % of Median Household Income - Affordable
30% threshold = "cost-burdened" (CMHC / HUD convention). Computed from $1,472 average 2BR rent × 12 / $77,153 household income.
Bachelor
$828/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,052/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,472/mo
3+ Bedroom
$1,805/mo
30% of monthly median household income (~$1,929/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 - 2021 Census Dwellings
4%
CMHC Vacancy Rate (apartment structures of 6+ units)
Near the 3% balanced-market benchmark.
Total Dwellings
86,517
Avg 2BR Rent
$1,472/mo
Vacancy Rate
4%
Key Takeaways
  • Affordable rental market: Annual 2BR rent eats 22.9% of median household income, well below the 30% cost-burdened threshold; supports talent attraction.
Source: CMHC RMS rent data and StatCan median household income.

Industry Concentration

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

Provincial NAICS-3 sub-sector basis (no ER-level NAICS-3 data is published by StatCan; provincial figures inherit to Kootenay).

Concentrated Industries
Source: Statistics Canada Table 33-10-0222-01 · 3-digit NAICS sub-sector, establishment basis, LQ computed vs. national share. Note: LFS-based or SEPH-based employment LQ may differ, StatCan publishes household and payroll employment series with different methodologies.
Manufacturing
2.34x
5,800
Accommodation and food services
2.21x
8,300
Construction
1.92x
9,900
General trades
1.52x
3,700
Technical trades and transportation officers and controllers
1.45x
9,200
Professional, scientific and technical services
1.33x
4,600
Key Takeaways
  • Top specialization: Manufacturing concentrates at 2.34x the national norm.
  • Cluster depth: 6 sectors register LQ >= 1.5, suggesting an interconnected industrial base rather than reliance on a single sector.
Source: StatCan Table 33-10-0222-01 (NAICS-3 sub-sector establishment counts), provincial inheritance.

Workforce & Labour

Labour force composition from Statistics Canada population estimates and employment data

Source: StatCan Table 17-10-0137
107,901
Working Age (15-64)
Employment rate: 74% of working-age population (15-64) 74% Employment Rate

Labour Summary

Source: StatCan LFS + Population Estimates
Total Employment
79,800
Working Age Pop
107,901
Youth (0-14)
23,236
Seniors (65+)
45,845

Dependency & Aging

Source: StatCan population estimates
26%
Seniors (65+) Share
Senior population exceeds youth, aging workforce risk. Succession planning and talent attraction recommended.
Youth / Senior Ratio
51:100

Aging Workforce

Source: StatCan 17-10-0150 · Population estimates by economic region, age
22%
55-64 of working-age (15-64)
Elevated retirement risk, above the 20% threshold. Succession planning recommended.

Workforce by Occupation

Source: Statistics Canada Table 14-10-0416 NOC 2021 broad categories (2025 - province-level)
Management / Professional
58.1%
Sales & Service
22.1%
Trades / Transport
15.5%
Natural Resources
1.5%
Manufacturing
2.8%
Bars scaled 2x for visual differentiation; percentage labels show actual share of 2,946,200 employed workers across British Columbia. 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 6.3 min above national avg
30.0 min

Work From Home

Source: StatCan 2021 Census Table 98-10-0455
Worked At Home vs 24.3% national
24.4%
Census 2021 long-form: percent of employed labour force aged 15+ whose place of work is "at home".
Key Takeaways
  • Working-age base: 107,901 residents aged 15-64 (61% of population) form the labour pool.
  • Employment rate: 74% of working-age residents are employed (79,800 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 16 Canadian data sources

Sample AI Insight

Kootenay's industrial base is anchored by Health care and social assistance with 13,900 workers, followed by Wholesale and retail trade and Construction. The region skews older: seniors outnumber youth, which has implications for succession planning and workforce transition strategy.

Illustrative example

Take it further

AI Insights: Built into ExecutivePulse. Continuous analysis tied to your own pipeline: industry-shift signals, prospect matches, retention prompts.

Managed Services: Prefer to hand it off? Our team delivers the analysis and consulting for you.

Schedule a Demo
Available as premium offerings.

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
CRTC Broadband Data2025
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 Kootenay, British Columbia, from Statistics Canada.

What is the population of Kootenay, British Columbia?

176,982 (Statistics Canada, Population Estimates, Table 17-10-0150).

What is the median household income in Kootenay, British Columbia?

$77,153 (Statistics Canada, Census 2021).

What is the unemployment rate in Kootenay, British Columbia?

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