2016 Census of Population advisory: Income

Released: 2017-09-06

Next week, Statistics Canada turns its attention to money matters, as the agency focuses on the income of Canadians. As Canada marks its 150th anniversary, Statistics Canada will continue to share its year-long story of our country and its people, based on the 2016 Census results.

Data on income will be published at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time on September 13, 2017, on Statistics Canada's website.

The census release will provide individual, family and household income statistics for various levels of geography and various demographic groups. This includes median incomes from a given source, income distribution and the prevalence of low income.

In 2016, for the first time, the Census of Population Program gathered income information solely from administrative data sources. This not only reduced respondent burden during data collection, but also increased the quality and quantity of income data available to Canadians.

An analytical article in The Daily will look at the change in median household incomes and low income over the past decade. In addition, two Census in Brief articles will be published, focusing on children living in low-income households and household contribution rates for selected registered savings accounts.

Subsequent major census releases featuring data on ethnocultural diversity, housing, education and labour characteristics—collected through the long-form census questionnaire—will provide additional insight on income.

As with previous census releases, the story of Canada as seen through the 2016 Census will be supplemented with data visualization products, including an infographic.

Over the coming months, Statistics Canada will release additional data from the 2016 Census of Population, providing greater insights on the Canadian population. Data and analyses on the following topics will be released throughout 2017:

• Immigration, ethnocultural diversity, housing and Aboriginal peoples (October 25, 2017)

• Education, labour, journey to work, language of work, mobility and migration (November 29, 2017).

For more information, please refer to the 2016 Census of Population: Income.

Contact information

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact us (toll-free 1-800-263-1136; 514-283-8300; STATCAN.infostats-infostats.STATCAN@canada.ca) or Media Relations (613-951-4636; STATCAN.mediahotline-ligneinfomedias.STATCAN@canada.ca).