Greater Sudbury - Demographics

Demographics

Greater Sudbury is the most populous municipality and census metropolitan area in Northern Ontario. In the 2011 census, the city's population increased to 160,274, a growth of 1.5 per cent over the 2006 population of 157,857. The median age is 41.1 years, slightly higher than the provincial average of 39.0 years.

In the 2011 census, six distinct "population centres", or urban areas, were listed within the city: Sudbury (population 106,840, density 392.9 per km2), comprising the portion of the pre-amalgamation city of Sudbury lying north of Highway 17 and Highway 69, as well as the neighbourhoods of Azilda and Chelmsford in the former town of Rayside-Balfour, and the neighbourhoods of Garson and Falconbridge in the former town of Nickel Centre; Capreol (population 3,276, density 537.7 per km2), comprising the main populated area in the former town of Capreol; Dowling (population 1,690, density 475.0 per km2), comprising the neighbourhood of Dowling in the former town of Onaping Falls; Lively (population 6,922, density 350.9 per km2), comprising the neighbourhoods of Lively, Waters, Mikkola and Naughton in the former town of Walden; Onaping-Levack (population 2,042, density 251.3 per km2), comprising the neighbourhoods of Onaping and Levack in the former town of Onaping Falls; and Valley East (population 20,676, density per 368.9 km2), comprising the neighbourhoods of Val-Caron, Blezard Valley, Val-Thérèse and Hanmer in the former city of Valley East. In total, these six population centres have 141,446 residents, or 88 per cent of the city's total population. The remaining 12 per cent of the city's population, 18,828 people, live in more rural areas within the city limits for which distinct population statistics were not published separately from those for the city as a whole.

Sudbury is a bilingual city with a large francophone population. Some 80.1% of the population speak English most often at home, followed by French at 16.3%, which is higher than the Ontario average of 2.4%. According to the 2001 census, the residents of Greater Sudbury are predominantly Christian. Almost 90 percent of the population claims adherence to Christian denominations including: Roman Catholic (64.6%), Protestant (23.1%), and other Christian groups (1.6%). Those with no religious affiliation accounted 9.9% of the population. Other religions such as Islam, Judaism, and Hinduism constitute less than one per cent of the population. According to the 2006 Census, Greater Sudbury is 91.8% White, 6.1% Aboriginal, and 2.1% Visible Minorities. The largest visible minority population is of Black Canadians, who comprise 0.7% of the city's population.

The census metropolitan area of Greater Sudbury (population 160,770) consists of the city and the adjacent First Nations reserves of Wahnapitei (population 102) and Whitefish Lake (population 394). As the Wahnapitei First Nation is an enclave within the city boundaries, it is also counted as part of Greater Sudbury's census division population of 160,376; this figure excludes Whitefish Lake, which is part of the separate Sudbury District.