Demography of Indigenous Peoples in Canada

Historical Population Estimates

Estimates vary as to the populations of Indigenous peoples in what would become Canada at the beginning of sustained European contact in the early 16th century. Anthropologists and historians have, however, given a tentative range of between 350,000 and 500,000 people. Some estimates are as high as 2 million. By 1867, it is thought that between 100,000 and 125,000 First Nations people remained in what is now Canada. At this time, estimates also indicate there were approximately 10,000 Métis in Manitoba and 2,000 Inuit in the Arctic. The Indigenous population in Canada continued to decline until the early 20th century. This dramatic population decline is attributed to disease, starvation and warfare directly stemming from European settlement and practices (see Health of Indigenous Peoples in Canada; Indigenous-British Relations Pre-Confederation; Indigenous-French Relations; Smallpox in Canada; Tuberculosis).

Since that time, the Indigenous population has increased at a rate faster than that of the general Canadian population. Between 2016 and 2021, the Indigenous population increased by 9.4 per cent. During that same time period, the non-Indigenous population increased by 5.3 per cent.

Population Measurement>

Estimates of the Indigenous population in Canada vary depending on the source. Indigenous population statistics are reported in the Indian Register administered by Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) and the Canadian census as published by Statistics Canada (see also Federal Departments of Indigenous and Northern Affairs). The Indian Register consists of individuals who are registered under the Indian Act (see also Indian Status). Figures reported by Statistics Canada comprise all persons who self-identify as having Indigenous ancestry and/or Indigenous identity, though registered status is recorded separately. Consequently, population estimates by Statistics Canada are significantly larger than the number reported in the register. Funding for health care, housing, education and other provincial and federal programs and services are based on population forecasts. Therefore, it is critically important to identify which populations were used to create projections. Demographic projections based on Indian Register data have been used by ISC to support its programs and to plan for the registered Indigenous population.

Caution must be taken when comparing data on Indigenous peoples across time and data sources because of amendments to the Indian Act. Prior to the 1985 enactment of Bill C-31, An Act to Amend the Indian Act, many people were disqualified from ‘Indian status’ and any related rights through forcible enfranchisement (see Indigenous Women's Issues in Canada; Indigenous Women and the Franchise; Enfranchisement). Disqualified groups included Indigenous women that married non-Indigenous men or non-status Indigenous men (“marrying out” rule). Additionally, Indigenous persons who obtained a university degree and/or professional employment (e.g., doctor, lawyer) were impacted by enfranchisement. Once a person lost his or her status, his or her children were no longer eligible for Indian status. Bill C-31 restored status to many those who were forcibly enfranchised. Membership in a First Nations band also no longer required Indian status. However, there remained a “second generation cut-off” where children of women that had “married out” were now eligible for status, but they could not pass status onto their children. On 31 January 2011, Bill C-3, the Gender Equity in Indian Registration Act, went into force. This act entitled eligible grandchildren of women who “married out” to registration.

Current Population

According to Statistics Canada, in 2016 approximately 1.67 million people, or 4.9 per cent of Canada's population, identified themselves as Indigenous. According to the 2021 census, 1.8 million people, or 5 per cent of the population, identified as Indigenous. This represents a 9.4 per cent population increase for people claiming Indigenous identity. Of the 1.8 million people who identified as Indigenous in 2021, 1,048,405 identified as First Nations, 624,220 identified as Métis and 70,545 identified as Inuit.

 The 2021 census indicates that 831,720 people claimed to have registered or Treaty Indian status, with 753,115 people of that total claiming to be First Nations, 39,115 claiming to be Métis and 835 claiming to be Inuit. According to the Indian Register, as of 31 December 2023, 1,088,573 people were registered under the Indian Act as having Indian status.

Statistics show that the Indigenous population is younger than the non-Indigenous population in Canada. According to the 2021 Canadian census, the average age of the Indigenous population is 8.2 years younger than that of the non-Indigenous population.

Population changes may reflect legislative amendments to registration criteria, modifications of self-identification and reporting (whether someone identifies as an Indigenous person and which identity or identities they report), and data collection methods in addition to natural increase (the difference between births and death).

Population Projections

The number of individuals identifying as First Nations people has increased by 9.7 per cent between 2016 and 2021, while those identifying as Métis and Inuit increased by 6.3 per cent and 8.5 per cent, respectively. Projections developed by Statistics Canada in 2021 indicate that the Indigenous population in Canada could reach between approximately 2.495 million and 3.182 million in 2041. In addition to natural population growth and legislative changes, other factors that partially account for the significant growth of the Indigenous population are higher birth rates, a younger population, and more accurate enumeration on reserves. More accurate enumeration is itself not an indicator of population growth as much as it is perceived growth (i.e., those who may not have been previously counted are now being counted.)

Provincial/Territorial Distribution

The western provinces are home to the largest proportion of the Indigenous population in Canada. In 2021, over 55 per cent of First Nations persons lived in Western Canada. The single province with the highest percentage of people reporting an Indigenous identity was Ontario, with 406,590 people. While the provinces are home to the largest proportion of the total Indigenous population in Canada, Indigenous peoples represent the largest proportion of the total population in the territories. Indigenous peoples represent over 85 per cent of the total population of  Nunavut, almost 50 per cent of the population of the Northwest Territories, and over 22 per cent of the population of Yukon. The provinces with the highest percentage of the total population claiming an Indigenous identity are Manitoba (18.1 per cent) and Saskatchewan (17.0 per cent).

Ontario is home to the largest population of First Nations people (251,030 people or 23.9 per cent) and Métis people (134,615 people) in Canada. The 2021 census also included information about membership in Métis organizations and settlements, which found that the Métis Nation of Alberta (now Otipemisiwak Métis Government) had the largest membership population, with 45,350 members.

According to the 2021 census, approximately 69 per cent of Inuit in Canada live in Inuit Nunangat, which comprises four regions: Nunatsiavut (Labrador), Nunavik (Quebec), Nunavut and the Inuvialuit region (Northwest Territories). Nunavut has the largest population of Inuit, with 30,865 people in the territory claiming to be Inuit. This represents 43.7 per cent of the total Inuit population in Canada.

Information from the 2021 census indicates that approximately 40.6 per cent of all persons with registered Indian status in Canada lived on a reserve or settlement. Nova Scotia had the highest proportion of First Nations people living on-reserve (59 per cent), while the Northwest Territories had the highest proportion of First Nations people living off-reserve. There are no reserves or settlements in the Yukon or Nunavut.

Population Migration

From the mid-1960s to the mid-1980s, there was a significant out-migration of Indigenous people away from reserves or home communities, usually to urban centres. As urban Indigenous communities become more salient, the trend for urban migration is expected to grow. This migration stems primarily from the lack of economic opportunity in or near reserves and more remote Indigenous communities. After the 1985 enactment of Bill C-31, and the restoration of status for many Indigenous people, many returned to their reserves. However, urban migration has continued (see Urban Migration of Indigenous Peoples in Canada).

Many Indigenous people in Canada live in the large metropolitan areas such as Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal. The 2021 census states that the population of Indigenous people living in large urban centres increased by 12.5 per cent. The 2021 census also indicated that among the major metropolitan areas, Winnipeg had the largest Indigenous population, with 102,080 claiming Indigenous identity. Edmonton had the second largest Indigenous identity population, with 87,605 people claiming Indigenous identity.