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Data

Milton by the numbers

Population, age, income, housing, background, language and work, from Statistics Canada.

Summary

Milton had 132,979 residents at the 2021 Census, up 20.7 per cent in five years. Statistics Canada’s latest estimate is 157,345 on 1 July 2025. The median household income was $126,000 in 2020, 42.1% of residents were immigrants, and 56.7% of homes are single-detached houses.

All figures are for the census subdivision Milton, Town (code 3524009), as Statistics Canada defines it. Checked against Statistics Canada on October 8, 2026.

Population
132,979
2021 Census · StatCan
5-year growth
+20.7%
2016–2021
Latest estimate
157,345
1 July 2025 · StatCan
Median household income
$126,000
Households, 2020

How many people live in Milton?

132,979 at the 2021 Census, up from 110,128 in 2016. Statistics Canada estimates 157,345 on 1 July 2025 (preliminary). There is no 2026 figure yet: the first 2026 Census results are due on February 10, 2027.

Census counts
Measure20162021
Population110,128132,979
Change over five years—+20.7%

Both counts are on the 2021 boundaries, as the 2021 Census Profile publishes them.

Land and dwellings, 2021
Measure2021
Land area363.83 km²
Population density365.5 per km²
Private dwellings41,000
Occupied by usual residents40,038
Population estimates, 1 July of each year

Statistics Canada's annual estimates. They adjust for people the census missed, so they run higher than census counts and should not be compared with them directly.

Population estimates, 1 July of each year
CategoryResidents
2016114,355
2017118,132
2018123,238
2019129,022
2020135,129
2021138,930
2022142,627
2023147,740
2024152,528
2025157,345

2025 is preliminary. Table 17-10-0155-01.


How old is Milton?

The median age was 36.0 in 2021, and the average 35.2. 9.9% of residents were 65 or over and 24.0% were under 15.

Share of residents by age
Measure20162021
Aged 0 to 1425.8%24.0%
Aged 15 to 6465.0%66.0%
Aged 65 and over9.2%9.9%
Aged 85 and over0.9%0.9%

2016 shares are Statistics Canada's, recalculated on the 2021 boundaries (table 98-10-0032-01).


Households

There were 40,035 households in 2021, with an average of 3.3 people each.

Household size, 2021
MeasureShare of households
1 person12.8%
2 persons23.2%
3 persons18.5%
4 persons26.1%
5 or more persons19.4%

What is the average household income in Milton?

The median household income was $126,000 before tax in 2020, and the average was $142,600. The average is pulled up by a smaller number of very high incomes, so the median is the better guide to a typical household.

Income (2020 income year, reported in the 2021 Census)
Measure2020
Median household income, before tax$126,000
Median household income, after tax$107,000
Average household income, before tax$142,600
Median individual income, age 15+$47,600
Low income (LIM-AT)5.8%

2020 incomes include COVID-19 emergency and recovery benefits, which 29.5% of residents aged 15 and over received.


Homes and housing costs

82.6% of households owned their home in 2021 and 17.4% rented. Among renters, 41.6% spent 30 per cent or more of their income on shelter.

Type of dwelling, 2021
MeasureShare of households
Single-detached house56.7%
Semi-detached house9.4%
Row house22.8%
Apartment or flat in a duplex0.7%
Apartment in a building that has fewer than five storeys4.8%
Apartment in a building that has five or more storeys5.5%
Housing costs, 2021
MeasureOwnersRenters
Median monthly shelter cost$2,320$2,200
Spending 30%+ of income on shelter21.9%41.6%

Owners estimated the median value of their home at $950,000 in May 2021; that is the owner's own estimate, not a sale price. 9.2% of households were in core housing need.


Where Milton residents come from

42.1% of residents were immigrants in 2021. The largest countries of birth among them were Pakistan, India and the Philippines.

Immigrants by place of birth, 2021 (share of all immigrants)
MeasureShare
Pakistan21.0%
India15.4%
Philippines5.8%
United Kingdom4.2%
Egypt3.9%
Iraq3.3%
China2.7%
Poland2.6%

Only the countries Statistics Canada lists individually can be ranked; regional residual groups are left out.

Visible minority population, 2021 (share of residents)
MeasurePeopleShare
Total visible minority population72,53555.2%
South Asian37,10028.2%
Chinese3,6852.8%
Black7,6555.8%
Filipino5,3004.0%
Arab7,4055.6%
Latin American3,4052.6%
Southeast Asian1,2851.0%
West Asian1,7651.3%
Multiple visible minorities2,6852.0%
Not a visible minority58,89544.8%

Visible minority is Statistics Canada's term, from the federal Employment Equity Act. Each person is counted in one group.

What percentage of Milton is Indian?

There is no single census figure for this, because the census asks two different questions. 28.2% of Milton residents (37,100 people) identified as South Asian in 2021, a group that includes people of Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi and other South Asian backgrounds. Separately, 10.7% (14,120 people) reported Indian ancestry, either alone or alongside other origins.

Among Milton residents born outside Canada, 8,510 (15.4% of immigrants) were born in India.


Religion

48.2% of residents were Christian in 2021 and 18.9% reported no religion. The next largest group was Muslim: 30,405 residents, 23.1%.

Religion, 2021
MeasurePeopleShare
Christian63,38048.2%
of which Catholic36,81528.0%
Muslim30,40523.1%
No religion and secular perspectives24,83018.9%
Hindu7,9806.1%
Sikh3,2202.4%
Buddhist8450.6%
Other religions and spiritual traditions4700.4%
Jewish2850.2%

The 2016 Census did not ask about religion, so there is no comparison.


Languages

English is the most common mother tongue, for 55.6% of residents, and the main home language of 70.1%. Urdu is the most common other language spoken at home. 7.8% can speak both English and French.

Mother tongue, 2021
MeasureShare
English55.6%
Urdu9.7%
Arabic4.1%
Spanish2.3%
Punjabi (Panjabi)1.8%
Tagalog (Pilipino, Filipino)1.5%
Polish1.3%
Portuguese1.3%
Language spoken most often at home, 2021
MeasureShare
English70.1%
Urdu6.3%
Arabic2.3%
Spanish1.4%
Punjabi (Panjabi)1.1%
Mandarin0.9%
Tagalog (Pilipino, Filipino)0.7%
Hindi0.6%
Knowledge of official languages, 2021
MeasureShare
English only90.4%
French only0.1%
English and French7.8%
Neither English nor French1.8%

Education, work and commuting

50.3% of residents aged 25 to 64 held a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2021. The 2021 work and commuting figures were collected in May 2021 under COVID-19 restrictions, when 37.0% of workers were working from home, so they describe that moment rather than a normal year.

Work, 2021 Census
Measure2021
Participation rate71.1%
Employment rate63.0%
Unemployment rate11.4%

The 2021 reference week was 2 to 8 May 2021. The unemployment rate is a pandemic-era snapshot, not a typical figure.

Where workers worked, 2021
MeasureShare of workers
Worked at home37.0%
Worked outside Canada0.4%
No fixed workplace address10.5%
Usual place of work52.1%
How commuters got to work, 2021
MeasureShare of commuters
Car, truck or van91.2%
Public transit3.7%
Walked2.3%
Bicycle0.3%
Other method2.4%

Commuters are the residents who had a usual place of work or no fixed workplace.

Where commuters with a usual place of work worked, 2021
MeasureWorkers
Milton12,495
Mississauga7,440
Toronto3,095
Oakville2,315
Brampton1,870
Burlington1,260
Halton Hills945

Mississauga was the most common place of work outside Milton. Table 98-10-0459-01.


When the 2026 Census numbers arrive

Statistics Canada has finished collecting the 2026 Census. The first of its seven releases of results, population and dwelling counts, is scheduled for February 10, 2027. This page will be updated as each release lands.


How these numbers work

Every figure is for Milton as Statistics Canada draws it, census subdivision 3524009. The 2021 figures come from the Census Profile, which randomly rounds counts to multiples of five, so parts may not add exactly to totals. Most social figures come from the long-form questionnaire and cover residents of private households, which leaves out people in collective dwellings such as nursing homes. Statistics Canada puts total non-response at 1.4% for the short form and 2.6% for the long form here.

The only 2016 comparisons shown are the population count and the broad age groups, which Statistics Canada republished on the 2021 boundaries. There are no figures for smaller areas here: Statistics Canada’s census tracts and dissemination areas are not the areas this site reports on, and splicing them together would produce numbers nobody published. Every dataset behind MiltonIQ is listed on our data page.

Sources

Every factual claim above traces to one of these documents.

  1. Statistics Canada

    Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population: Milton, Town [Census subdivision], Ontario

    Published November 30, 2022 · Retrieved October 8, 2026

  2. Statistics Canada

    Population estimates, July 1, by census subdivision, 2021 boundaries (Table 17-10-0155-01)

    Published January 14, 2026 · Retrieved October 8, 2026

  3. Statistics Canada

    Statistics Canada thanks Canadians for their exceptional participation in the 2026 Census

    Published September 14, 2026 · Retrieved October 8, 2026

Source: Statistics Canada. Reproduced and distributed on an "as is" basis with the permission of Statistics Canada. Statistics Canada Open Licence.