The Census of Population provides high-quality information on key socioeconomic trends, supporting Canadians as they make important decisions that affect their families, neighbourhoods, and businesses. Census information can help communities plan services that support employment, childcare, schools, public transportation, and healthcare.
The Census of Agriculture is conducted at the same time and collects information about every agricultural operation in Canada. The Census of Agriculture is Canada's sole source of community-level data on agriculture and provides valuable information to farmers, agricultural organizations, and policy makers at all levels of government.
In preparation for each census cycle, Statistics Canada follows a detailed content determination process, which includes several stages of consultative engagement, testing and evaluation, to recommend questionnaire content for the next census cycle.
Consulting with census data users and the Canadian public allows Statistics Canada to identify whether the questions asked in the Census of Population are relevant, how census data are used and how important the census is to Canadians. A formal consultation is set at the start of each census cycle. During that time, Statistics Canada invites data users, stakeholders, and the public to provide feedback on what information they use, for what purpose they use it and what (if any) data gaps Statistics Canada should consider addressing in the next census cycle.
A similar approach is used for the Census of Agriculture, with Statistics Canada conducting extensive consultations with different governments, agricultural operators, farm organizations, and data users.
Following the consultation, Statistics Canada qualitatively and quantitively tests new and/or modified questions for the Census of Population and the Census of Agriculture to ensure data quality and the continued relevance of the census content.
Census questions are reviewed by the Cabinet of Canada and approved by the Governor in Council, who issues an order in council, as required by the Statistics Act. The census questions are then published in the Canada Gazette.
For details on the census content changes for 2026, visit the Road to the 2026 Census.
To learn more about the 2026 Census of Agriculture, visit Census of Agriculture.