Number of children under 5 in Canada
Canada: Number of children under 5 was 1.88 million people in 2023. ▼ Falling
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.
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
- Spring temperature anomalies -4.58 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 1.7 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month 2.12 °C (2026)
- Universal right to vote in practice 2 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 2.47 °C (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies -2.57 °C (2025)
- Consumer price index 140.97 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Competitive elections 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
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
The total population, measured on 1 July of the year shown. This only includes people aged 0-4.