Number of children under 5 in Canada
Canada: Number of children under 5 was 1.88 million people in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
1.88 million people
Change on year
down 0.5%
World rank
63rd
of 236 countries
All-time high
2.29 million people
in 1963
All-time low
1.65 million people
in 1950
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Number of children under 5 in Canada, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
Canada recorded 1.88 million people for number of children under 5 in 2023.
That represents a change of down 0.5% on the previous year and down 2.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of children under 5 in Canada peaked at 2.29 million people in 1963 and was at its lowest, 1.65 million people, in 1950.
Canada ranks 63rd of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.
Number of children under 5 in Canada, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 1.65 million people | — |
| 1951 | 1.72 million people | +4.6% |
| 1952 | 1.78 million people | +3.6% |
| 1953 | 1.84 million people | +3.0% |
| 1954 | 1.89 million people | +3.0% |
| 1955 | 1.94 million people | +2.7% |
| 1956 | 2.00 million people | +2.9% |
| 1957 | 2.07 million people | +3.7% |
| 1958 | 2.14 million people | +3.3% |
| 1959 | 2.19 million people | +2.2% |
| 1960 | 2.22 million people | +1.7% |
| 1961 | 2.26 million people | +1.5% |
| 1962 | 2.28 million people | +1.1% |
| 1963 | 2.29 million people | +0.5% |
| 1964 | 2.29 million people | -0.4% |
| 1965 | 2.25 million people | -1.5% |
| 1966 | 2.19 million people | -2.6% |
| 1967 | 2.12 million people | -3.4% |
| 1968 | 2.03 million people | -4.0% |
| 1969 | 1.95 million people | -4.0% |
| 1970 | 1.89 million people | -3.4% |
| 1971 | 1.84 million people | -2.4% |
| 1972 | 1.81 million people | -1.6% |
| 1973 | 1.79 million people | -1.0% |
| 1974 | 1.78 million people | -0.6% |
| 1975 | 1.77 million people | -0.5% |
| 1976 | 1.76 million people | -0.4% |
| 1977 | 1.76 million people | -0.0% |
| 1978 | 1.77 million people | +0.4% |
| 1979 | 1.78 million people | +0.6% |
| 1980 | 1.79 million people | +0.7% |
| 1981 | 1.81 million people | +0.8% |
| 1982 | 1.82 million people | +1.0% |
| 1983 | 1.84 million people | +1.0% |
| 1984 | 1.85 million people | +0.6% |
| 1985 | 1.85 million people | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 1.85 million people | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 1.86 million people | +0.6% |
| 1988 | 1.88 million people | +0.9% |
| 1989 | 1.91 million people | +1.4% |
| 1990 | 1.94 million people | +1.7% |
| 1991 | 1.97 million people | +1.7% |
| 1992 | 2.00 million people | +1.5% |
| 1993 | 2.02 million people | +1.0% |
| 1994 | 2.02 million people | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 2.00 million people | -1.0% |
| 1996 | 1.97 million people | -1.5% |
| 1997 | 1.93 million people | -2.0% |
| 1998 | 1.89 million people | -2.3% |
| 1999 | 1.85 million people | -2.2% |
| 2000 | 1.81 million people | -2.1% |
| 2001 | 1.77 million people | -2.0% |
| 2002 | 1.74 million people | -1.7% |
| 2003 | 1.72 million people | -1.0% |
| 2004 | 1.72 million people | -0.3% |
| 2005 | 1.73 million people | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 1.74 million people | +1.0% |
| 2007 | 1.77 million people | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 1.81 million people | +2.0% |
| 2009 | 1.84 million people | +2.2% |
| 2010 | 1.88 million people | +2.0% |
| 2011 | 1.91 million people | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 1.93 million people | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 1.94 million people | +0.4% |
| 2014 | 1.94 million people | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 1.94 million people | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 1.95 million people | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 1.95 million people | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 1.95 million people | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 1.94 million people | -0.4% |
| 2020 | 1.92 million people | -0.9% |
| 2021 | 1.90 million people | -1.1% |
| 2022 | 1.89 million people | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 1.88 million people | -0.5% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 1.88 million people is above the median for high income countries, which is 127,928 people, 14.7× the median. (85 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 1.92 million people | 1.65 million people | 2.19 million people | 10 |
| 1960s | 2.19 million people | 1.95 million people | 2.29 million people | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.80 million people | 1.76 million people | 1.89 million people | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.85 million people | 1.79 million people | 1.91 million people | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.96 million people | 1.85 million people | 2.02 million people | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.76 million people | 1.72 million people | 1.84 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.93 million people | 1.88 million people | 1.95 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.90 million people | 1.88 million people | 1.92 million people | 4 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More reference data data for Canada
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.92 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 20.47 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.92 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 20.47 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 6.86 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 7.45 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 22.03 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 99.83 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 15.88 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of children under 5 in Canada?
- Number of children under 5 in Canada was 1.88 million people in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of children under 5 recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 2.29 million people in 1963.
- What is the lowest number of children under 5 recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.65 million people in 1950.
- How does Canada rank for number of children under 5?
- Canada ranks 63rd out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is number of children under 5 rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Number of children under 5. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total population, measured on 1 July of the year shown. This only includes people aged 0-4.