Overview

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The Canada Quiz

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To Raise Kids

For New Canadians

Best Weather

Lowest Taxes

[bc_video video_id=”6023927818001″ account_id=”6015698167001″ player_id=”lYro6suIR”] Danee Georgiou and Joakim Keussen have lived all over the world. Their list of cities resembles something you might see on the back of a concert t-shirt: San Fransisco, Berlin, Melbourne. And like a rock band on the final leg of a tour, they were exhausted. Two years ago the young couple was living in Berlin. “There was always something going on,” says Georgiou, 33, of her time in the German capital. “I constantly had a fear of missing out on things.” It sounds like a nice pitch for the city, but there were drawbacks too, adds Keussen, 25. “We both didn’t feel like we could raise a family in Berlin,” explains Georgiou. They already contemplating making another move when Keussen got a recruiting call from Shopify to move to Ottawa to work as a senior designer. They were skeptical at first. Canada was never on their radar and neither of them had ties to the country. Keussen would visit twice before jumping at the opportunity. They expect to never look back.

Photo gallery: Top 10 Best Places for New Canadians »

Anyone looking to move to Canada would likely start with the cities they’ve heard of like Toronto and Vancouver or maybe Montreal. There are many other places with a lot to offer anyone searching for a new place to call home. Some might be surprised to see Ottawa at the top of this list—but you shouldn’t be. Ottawa has a strong and diverse economy, fronted by government and well-paid high-tech jobs, which are a particular draw. It’s true the city isn’t quite as cosmopolitan as say Toronto or Vancouver, but it’s still a welcome blend of cultures and nationalities. One in five people in the city speaks a language other than French or English. And for a big city, it’s also pretty friendly. The community index value for the city, a measure of how engaged residents are in the city, also compares favourably to other large cities. The city has a way of cultivating this sense of community says Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson. In 1970 it welcomed 4,000 Vietnamese Boat people and helped them settle in the area. Now those some of those same immigrants in the city are holding fundraisers to help Syrian refugees start a new life in Canada. “A lot of people felt we couldn’t do it,” says Waston. “What warmed my heart, was attending a fund raising with the Vietnamese community.”

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“Canada is tricky to explain, but it quickly felt like home,” says Georgiou, who also works at Shopify as a recruiter. They love how the way they interact with the city as it changes with the seasons. Georgiou who was born and raised in Australia is particularly appreciative of the hot summers. Integrating into the city has been a breeze. Shopify not only helps with the transition, like a lot of tech companies in the area they actively push employees to live outside of work. While Ottawa doesn’t quiet offer the level of grandeur that you’d find in some of the other places they lived, there are still more than enough food events and craft brewers and outdoor activities to enjoy. In the coming weeks Gerogiou and Keussen plan to apply for permanent residency and keep the door open for eventual citizenship. For now they have no plans to leave. “I think we’d call Ottawa home,” says Keussen.

B.C. & The Territories

Alberta

Prairies

Ontario

Quebec

Atlantic Canada

Best Places to Raise For New Canadians – by region

Atlantic Canada:

Fredericton, N.B. (No. 70)

Quebec:

Brossard, Que. (No. 4)

Ontario:

Ottawa (No. 1)

Prairies:

Regina, Sask. (No. 3)

Alberta:

Lethbridge, Alta. (No. 22)

British Columbia & the Territories:

Delta, B.C. (No. 10)

The Top 100

Rank	Name	Province	City Size	Population	Population Change (2012 to 2017)	Estimated Unemployment Rate	Regional Unemployment rate	Median Household Income	Average Household Discretionary Income	Average Household Net Worth	Avg. Value Of Primary Real Estate	Avg. Rent	Vacancy %	Home to income ratio	Travel To Work By Public Transit	% of pop. Who say English/French is not their first language
1	Ottawa CV	Ont.	L	974,701	5.5%	5.0%	6.5%	$91,122	$57,260	$631,905	$481,223	$1,204	3.0%	4.2	13.8%	21.0%
2	Waterloo CY	Ont.	M	109,532	5.4%	5.4%	5.6%	$90,726	$54,852	$710,206	$467,659	$1,098	1.4%	4.3	4.1%	25.1%
3	Regina	Sask.	M	226,682	10.9%	5.7%	4.5%	$83,178	$56,360	$428,940	$378,617	$1,109	5.5%	3.7	3.5%	13.6%
4	Brossard V	Que.	S	87,842	7.4%	7.0%	6.2%	$73,711	$48,765	$552,418	$395,627	$793	4.2%	4.1	16.3%	36.7%
5	Brandon	Man.	S	50,634	6.2%	7.7%	6.1%	$71,811	$46,400	$322,026	$285,708	$844	3.3%	3.3	2.5%	19.6%
6	Guelph	Ont.	M	134,832	6.0%	5.6%	5.6%	$83,447	$47,113	$516,064	$490,591	$1,079	1.0%	5.2	5.2%	18.2%
7	Thunder Bay	Ont.	M	111,415	0.1%	5.5%	5.6%	$70,929	$46,375	$349,161	$269,059	$940	5.0%	3.2	2.4%	11.1%
8	Oakville T	Ont.	M	211,025	10.0%	5.8%	6.8%	$111,468	$72,845	$1,303,745	$879,261	$1,423	1.1%	5.8	8.0%	29.3%
9	London	Ont.	M	399,125	4.7%	6.9%	5.6%	$68,459	$44,509	$428,006	$326,499	$1,002	2.1%	3.8	4.9%	19.3%
10	Delta DM	B.C.	M	108,943	5.6%	6.0%	6.1%	$97,174	$58,892	$955,028	$820,429	$1,113	-	7.3	5.9%	27.7%
11	Blainville V	Que.	S	58,099	6.4%	4.2%	5.8%	$93,677	$52,538	$575,467	$373,781	$779	3.9%	3.5	4.8%	6.2%
12	Kitchener	Ont.	M	238,951	4.5%	5.9%	5.6%	$74,656	$43,295	$405,032	$396,963	$1,033	2.6%	4.6	5.2%	26.4%
13	Aurora T	Ont.	S	60,096	7.7%	5.9%	6.8%	$99,328	$67,090	$1,179,111	$814,390	$1,270	3.1%	5.8	5.3%	25.2%
14	Burlington CY	Ont.	M	199,858	8.6%	5.5%	6.9%	$93,893	$57,730	$862,227	$710,453	$1,294	1.1%	6.2	5.5%	18.2%
15	Winnipeg	Man.	L	736,028	7.1%	7.4%	6.3%	$72,265	$44,503	$399,382	$330,022	$1,067	2.8%	3.8	8.5%	24.0%
16	Ajax T	Ont.	M	124,489	8.5%	7.0%	6.8%	$103,983	$55,464	$585,154	$573,539	$1,212	6.0%	5.1	10.8%	20.6%
17	Vaughan CY	Ont.	M	330,306	9.1%	5.1%	6.8%	$101,325	$61,637	$1,265,691	$959,514	$1,327	1.3%	7.6	6.7%	52.3%
18	Newmarket T	Ont.	S	89,595	6.9%	5.9%	6.8%	$96,053	$54,925	$750,212	$700,481	$1,178	1.7%	6.3	5.3%	21.6%
19	North Vancouver DM	B.C.	S	91,984	5.6%	6.4%	6.1%	$99,393	$69,980	$1,575,419	$1,264,378	$1,449	0.1%	9.4	8.4%	23.4%
20	Barrie	Ont.	M	149,572	7.1%	6.5%	5.6%	$86,518	$46,376	$419,495	$429,222	$1,153	2.2%	4.6	4.1%	9.6%
21	Gatineau V	Que.	M	283,706	4.4%	4.7%	7.0%	$71,300	$42,665	$287,600	$300,848	$763	6.3%	3.5	10.6%	9.5%
22	Lethbridge	Alta.	S	95,293	8.0%	9.7%	6.6%	$81,598	$60,661	$707,258	$435,799	$939	8.5%	4.3	2.5%	13.0%
23	Cambridge CY	Ont.	M	136,830	3.9%	5.8%	5.6%	$83,564	$46,706	$432,153	$411,770	$1,065	1.6%	4.4	3.4%	18.1%
24	Halton Hills T	Ont.	S	67,094	8.7%	5.2%	6.8%	$110,086	$60,390	$816,020	$659,079	$1,140	0.6%	5.3	2.3%	12.2%
25	Saskatoon	Sask.	M	268,127	13.3%	6.2%	6.3%	$76,938	$53,065	$462,103	$431,700	$1,101	10.3%	4.2	3.8%	17.5%
26	St. Albert CY	Alta.	S	72,372	11.3%	8.3%	6.8%	$133,871	$82,998	$787,660	$466,879	$1,322	5.6%	3.1	4.4%	9.0%
27	Québec V	Que.	L	552,528	4.6%	3.3%	5.2%	$59,904	$40,307	$304,661	$300,648	$816	4.8%	4	9.9%	3.7%
28	Hamilton C	Ont.	L	566,276	4.7%	7.5%	6.9%	$70,412	$45,546	$500,649	$459,992	$965	4.5%	5.2	6.1%	22.9%
29	Port Coquitlam CY	B.C.	S	60,366	6.2%	6.3%	6.1%	$88,337	$53,455	$575,767	$608,518	$1,065	1.2%	5.9	8.5%	28.9%
30	Saanich DM	B.C.	M	117,781	4.3%	3.9%	7.5%	$82,867	$51,421	$892,539	$709,974	$1,206	0.5%	7.1	6.9%	17.5%
31	Longueuil V	Que.	M	247,715	4.7%	6.4%	6.2%	$56,412	$36,192	$267,986	$318,020	$733	4.9%	4.5	12.5%	12.2%
32	Markham T	Ont.	M	344,557	8.5%	7.6%	6.8%	$92,329	$58,341	$1,202,922	$946,996	$1,271	1.4%	8.1	8.2%	59.3%
33	Edmonton CY	Alta.	L	973,755	12.2%	10.1%	6.8%	$84,865	$59,056	$510,793	$469,827	$1,229	7.0%	4.3	9.6%	29.6%
34	Coquitlam CY	B.C.	M	138,151	6.9%	6.9%	6.1%	$80,825	$49,934	$790,894	$793,321	$1,123	1.9%	8.1	10.0%	43.0%
35	Richmond Hill T	Ont.	M	211,841	7.0%	7.4%	6.8%	$71,922	$55,178	$1,246,188	$1,059,612	$1,327	0.7%	9.4	9.2%	61.0%
36	Repentigny V	Que.	S	85,626	2.8%	4.7%	6.7%	$77,896	$45,298	$365,299	$293,317	$717	4.9%	3.4	4.5%	5.8%
37	Mississauga CY	Ont.	L	802,272	7.2%	7.5%	6.8%	$85,588	$51,789	$719,658	$691,426	$1,276	1.4%	6.7	9.3%	48.3%
38	Laval V	Que.	L	434,017	5.6%	5.4%	8.5%	$66,449	$40,614	$412,399	$365,417	$3	3.0%	4.5	8.9%	30.9%
39	North Vancouver CY	B.C.	S	53,605	6.7%	5.9%	6.1%	$67,209	$41,557	$663,775	$906,374	$1,432	0.3%	10.9	13.8%	31.2%
40	Milton T	Ont.	M	107,247	17.6%	4.0%	6.8%	$114,128	$55,565	$721,124	$634,980	$1,248	1.8%	5.4	4.2%	29.1%
41	Caledon T	Ont.	S	67,697	8.5%	5.1%	6.8%	$100,214	$66,257	$1,108,884	$769,024	$1,327	1.3%	5.8	2.2%	21.3%
42	Langley DM	B.C.	M	116,915	7.8%	4.7%	6.1%	$94,233	$58,469	$922,000	$766,515	$1,319	1.2%	6.9	2.5%	15.7%
43	Toronto C	Ont.	L	2,882,614	5.4%	8.4%	6.8%	$62,285	$49,239	$794,583	$808,377	$1,341	1.3%	8	19.3%	44.2%
44	Kingston	Ont.	M	132,757	3.5%	5.3%	7.3%	$71,011	$46,829	$490,337	$378,930	$1,119	2.6%	4.2	4.8%	9.4%
45	Richmond CY	B.C.	M	210,539	8.1%	6.0%	6.1%	$93,911	$46,734	$991,692	$926,614	$1,353	1.0%	10.3	7.9%	57.5%
46	Pickering CY	Ont.	S	98,741	6.6%	8.3%	6.8%	$103,664	$59,075	$776,452	$634,214	$1,327	1.3%	5.3	7.9%	18.6%
47	Whitby T	Ont.	M	136,296	6.9%	6.8%	6.8%	$103,442	$56,169	$650,311	$577,398	$1,103	1.1%	4.9	7.2%	13.6%
48	Vancouver CY	B.C.	L	669,660	6.0%	7.4%	6.1%	$62,938	$45,250	$997,799	$1,348,591	$1,757	0.8%	14.8	15.9%	46.6%
49	St. Catharines CY	Ont.	M	136,554	1.0%	6.6%	6.9%	$65,265	$41,211	$410,409	$333,466	$1,008	2.4%	4.3	2.8%	15.2%
50	Châteauguay V	Que.	S	51,356	6.4%	7.0%	6.2%	$65,026	$41,497	$284,224	$264,124	$775	-	3.4	6.7%	9.8%
51	Maple Ridge DM	B.C.	S	84,387	6.8%	6.0%	6.1%	$89,525	$49,877	$592,510	$579,164	$947	0.5%	5.9	5.9%	13.4%
52	Calgary	Alta.	L	1,326,819	13.1%	9.0%	8.5%	$88,670	$72,067	$733,978	$517,030	$1,260	6.9%	3.9	10.1%	29.8%
53	Brampton CY	Ont.	L	607,113	9.6%	7.1%	6.8%	$88,831	$49,529	$542,885	$599,148	$1,243	1.2%	6.1	7.0%	44.7%
54	Lévis V	Que.	M	146,830	3.8%	2.4%	6.4%	$77,911	$46,485	$346,183	$287,403	$744	4.6%	3.3	4.3%	0.8%
55	Surrey CY	B.C.	L	527,547	7.9%	7.2%	6.1%	$82,166	$50,756	$696,992	$711,382	$1,006	0.4%	7.2	7.7%	45.4%
56	New Westminster CY	B.C.	S	73,584	7.0%	7.1%	6.1%	$69,035	$40,729	$399,744	$546,270	$1,217	0.4%	6.7	17.1%	34.1%
57	Terrebonne V	Que.	M	115,632	6.0%	3.9%	6.7%	$81,512	$44,159	$323,545	$305,038	$727	2.2%	3.5	4.0%	7.3%
58	Niagara Falls CY	Ont.	S	87,938	2.6%	6.4%	6.9%	$67,159	$40,459	$384,963	$335,520	$945	2.3%	4.4	2.1%	16.4%
59	Abbotsford - Mission	B.C.	M	150,015	7.9%	7.2%	6.1%	$75,931	$46,390	$550,887	$490,198	$928	0.5%	5.5	1.3%	31.6%
60	Medicine Hat	Alta.	S	64,548	3.3%	8.2%	6.6%	$81,027	$55,504	$497,398	$335,088	$825	5.4%	3.4	1.8%	8.9%
61	Wood Buffalo	Alta.	S	78,008	9.6%	6.8%	9.3%	$196,285	$120,607	$463,550	$524,111	$1,454	17.8%	2.4	21.5%	19.8%
62	Burnaby CY	B.C.	M	248,793	6.8%	8.6%	6.1%	$68,715	$43,499	$782,804	$902,864	$1,318	0.8%	10.6	14.8%	55.2%
63	Prince George	B.C.	S	72,134	-1.6%	7.5%	7.4%	$83,250	$52,454	$299,389	$220,572	$827	4.2%	2.4	2.3%	9.1%
64	Oshawa CY	Ont.	M	166,527	6.5%	8.9%	6.8%	$77,242	$43,456	$393,585	$411,204	$1,121	2.1%	4.8	5.2%	10.5%
65	Windsor	Ont.	M	219,373	1.0%	8.7%	7.6%	$58,221	$36,678	$281,799	$226,424	$840	2.9%	3.3	1.8%	26.5%
66	Red Deer County	Alta.	M	106,620	10.9%	7.3%	8.3%	$94,743	$88,694	$1,054,577	$516,588	$1,016	13.6%	3.4	3.3%	11.6%
67	Victoria CY	B.C.	S	87,387	5.1%	4.4%	7.5%	$53,288	$34,255	$435,509	$574,166	$1,224	0.5%	8.3	8.8%	12.9%
68	Strathcona County SM	Alta.	M	109,680	12.0%	7.4%	6.8%	$130,942	$89,201	$962,500	$514,234	$1,359	3.2%	3.2	3.3%	9.0%
69	Brantford	Ont.	M	100,442	3.5%	7.0%	6.9%	$68,241	$40,861	$325,190	$301,757	$911	2.2%	3.9	2.4%	9.7%
70	Fredericton	N.B.	S	60,805	5.4%	6.6%	8.9%	$63,285	$42,270	$328,704	$286,656	$838	4.3%	3.6	2.8%	6.9%
71	Clarington MU	Ont.	S	95,594	7.9%	6.2%	6.8%	$97,472	$50,970	$530,597	$480,444	$979	0.2%	4.6	3.7%	6.6%
72	Peterborough	Ont.	S	83,394	2.5%	8.6%	4.9%	$67,196	$38,845	$408,402	$321,190	$982	1.0%	4.1	3.1%	5.5%
73	Norfolk	Ont.	S	65,675	1.1%	6.3%	6.9%	$70,547	$44,410	$499,483	$373,109	$683	2.4%	4.6	0.5%	11.4%
74	Welland CY	Ont.	S	53,368	2.2%	7.6%	6.9%	$65,058	$38,271	$301,554	$261,341	$915	1.4%	3.6	1.0%	9.4%
75	Chilliwack	B.C.	S	88,645	9.3%	8.1%	6.1%	$74,846	$42,826	$489,978	$457,237	$872	1.5%	5.6	1.1%	11.2%
76	Kelowna	B.C.	M	134,397	9.9%	5.5%	9.3%	$71,038	$47,677	$705,218	$510,948	$1,052	0.6%	5.6	3.1%	11.5%
77	Sault Ste. Marie	Ont.	S	74,710	-2.5%	6.8%	7.6%	$69,050	$44,118	$330,526	$247,110	$873	3.1%	3.1	2.1%	8.1%
78	Greater Sudbury	Ont.	M	164,818	0.0%	6.3%	7.6%	$78,956	$50,724	$387,783	$316,977	$990	5.3%	3.3	3.2%	5.9%
79	Sherbrooke	Que.	M	167,635	5.6%	7.3%	7.0%	$53,225	$35,642	$251,440	$258,242	$619	6.3%	3.9	3.3%	5.5%
80	Chatham-Kent	Ont.	M	105,467	-0.5%	10.2%	7.6%	$62,715	$41,065	$339,129	$207,192	$763	3.1%	2.7	1.3%	8.0%
81	Saint-Jérôme V	Que.	S	76,911	8.9%	6.3%	5.8%	$54,179	$33,611	$218,256	$240,657	$720	5.4%	3.7	1.9%	2.3%
82	Dollard-Des Ormeaux V	Que.	S	53,144	5.0%	7.0%	11.0%	$78,854	$52,798	$730,247	$504,877	$869	2.5%	4.8	9.5%	37.7%
83	Montréal V	Que.	L	1,785,468	5.3%	8.7%	11.0%	$48,261	$32,117	$309,197	$478,859	$799	4.0%	7.4	19.3%	32.8%
84	Kamloops	B.C.	S	89,574	2.0%	6.9%	9.3%	$83,004	$50,107	$477,399	$384,328	$949	1.1%	4	2.8%	8.5%
85	Halifax	NS	L	426,537	4.9%	6.1%	7.0%	$71,162	$40,824	$384,647	$340,296	$1,063	2.6%	4	7.1%	6.9%
86	Nanaimo	B.C.	S	92,357	6.6%	5.6%	7.5%	$66,710	$40,497	$494,534	$439,399	$895	1.5%	5.6	1.9%	8.8%
87	Moncton	N.B.	S	75,401	6.3%	8.1%	8.1%	$60,235	$37,406	$242,508	$231,842	$793	6.5%	3.2	2.6%	3.6%
88	Sarnia	Ont.	S	73,758	-0.6%	13.8%	7.6%	$78,754	$48,955	$432,698	$266,098	$999	3.8%	2.9	1.6%	7.6%
89	Belleville	Ont.	S	50,597	-0.2%	6.1%	7.3%	$69,972	$38,131	$332,761	$279,342	$980	3.1%	3.8	2.1%	5.2%
90	Mirabel V	Que.	S	52,054	17.8%	3.8%	5.8%	$80,564	$40,913	$306,461	$331,100	$740	4.3%	4	2.5%	1.6%
91	Saint-Hyacinthe	Que.	S	55,076	2.0%	6.3%	6.2%	$55,783	$33,896	$290,554	$256,054	$640	3.7%	4	1.1%	3.4%
92	Grande Prairie County No. 1	Alta.	S	66,952	12.8%	7.0%	7.9%	$110,179	$88,565	$879,718	$516,620	$1,022	19.8%	3.3	2.5%	8.4%
93	Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu	Que.	S	96,695	2.9%	4.9%	6.2%	$62,998	$38,526	$314,968	$309,440	$673	2.8%	4.2	3.8%	1.3%
94	Airdrie	Alta.	S	55,877	20.3%	7.4%	8.5%	$113,222	$61,110	$428,647	$402,756	$1,242	12.5%	3.4	2.4%	8.5%
95	North Bay	Ont.	S	55,511	0.3%	7.0%	7.6%	$62,750	$43,988	$320,935	$297,603	$918	2.9%	3.6	2.8%	3.7%
96	Granby	Que.	S	67,127	3.8%	5.7%	6.2%	$54,949	$35,352	$309,635	$293,367	$637	3.1%	4.4	0.7%	3.4%
97	Drummondville	Que.	S	76,599	4.4%	4.9%	6.8%	$51,558	$35,215	$232,239	$191,182	$582	2.8%	3	0.8%	1.8%
98	Trois-Rivières	Que.	M	136,511	2.3%	5.6%	11.3%	$51,769	$35,216	$247,482	$202,139	$587	6.2%	3.1	2.3%	1.8%
99	Saint John	N.B.	S	69,279	-1.7%	10.0%	9.0%	$58,273	$35,063	$212,425	$221,332	$730	8.6%	3.3	3.8%	3.8%
100	Kawartha Lakes	Ont.	S	76,609	2.0%	6.2%	4.9%	$71,723	$43,832	$525,500	$398,367	$1,101	0.3%	4.7	0.8%	3.9%

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Ayo Abioro says:

April 14, 2021 at 10:19 pm

I really love Canada–[clean & neat] I can’t wait to relocate for my retirement. Though, a little pretty expensive; but Healthcare still manageable & may be NOT too much gun violence there. New Zealand, Panama & Botswana are still ok for retirement too.

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Best Places for New Canadians 2017