Demographics of British Columbia
British Columbia is a Canadian province with a population of over 5.7 million people. The province represents about 13.2% of the Canadian population. Most of the population is between the ages of 15 and 49. About 60 percent of British Columbians have European descent with significant Asian and Aboriginal minorities. Just under 30% of British Columbians are immigrants. Over half of the population is irreligious, with Christianity and Sikhism being the most followed religions.
Vital statistics
| Total population | Total fertility rate | |
| 2026 | 5,812,800 | 1.076 |
| 2027 | 5,901,600 | 1.082 |
| 2028 | 5,997,300 | 1.086 |
| 2029 | 6,093,500 | 1.088 |
| 2030 | 6,189,400 | 1.088 |
| 2031 | 6,284,800 | 1.085 |
| 2032 | 6,379,700 | 1.082 |
| 2033 | 6,473,900 | 1.077 |
| 2034 | 6,567,600 | 1.071 |
| 2035 | 6,660,500 | 1.065 |
| 2036 | 6,752,800 | 1.057 |
| 2037 | 6,844,200 | 1.049 |
| 2038 | 6,934,700 | 1.041 |
| 2039 | 7,024,200 | 1.031 |
| 2040 | 7,112,500 | 1.022 |
| 2041 | 7,199,400 | 1.012 |
| 2042 | 7,284,800 | 1.002 |
| 2043 | 7,368,900 | 0.991 |
| 2044 | 7,451,500 | 0.981 |
| 2045 | 7,532,800 | 0.970 |
| 2046 | 7,612,800 | 0.959 |
Population history
| Year | Population | Five year % change | Ten year % change | Rank among provinces |
| 1851 | 55,000 | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| 1861 | 51,524 | n/a | −6.3 | n/a |
| 1871 | 36,247 | n/a | −29.7 | 7 |
| 1881 | 49,459 | n/a | 36.4 | 8 |
| 1891 | 98,173 | n/a | 98.5 | 8 |
| 1901 | 178,657 | n/a | 82.0 | 6 |
| 1911 | 392,480 | n/a | 119.7 | 6 |
| 1921 | 524,582 | n/a | 33.7 | 6 |
| 1931 | 694,263 | n/a | 32.3 | 6 |
| 1941 | 817,861 | n/a | 17.8 | 4 |
| 1951 | 1,165,210 | n/a | 42.5 | 3 |
| 1956 | 1,398,464 | 20.0 | n/a | 3 |
| 1961 | 1,629,082 | 16.5 | 39.8 | 3 |
| 1966 | 1,873,674 | 15.0 | 34.0 | 3 |
| 1971 | 2,184,620 | 16.6 | 34.1 | 3 |
| 1976 | 2,466,610 | 12.9 | 31.6 | 3 |
| 1981 | 2,744,467 | 11.3 | 25.6 | 3 |
| 1986 | 2,883,370 | 5.1 | 16.9 | 3 |
| 1991 | 3,282,061 | 13.8 | 19.6 | 3 |
| 1996 | 3,724,500 | 13.5 | 29.2 | 3 |
| 2001 | 3,907,738 | 4.9 | 19.1 | 3 |
| 2006 | 4,113,487 | 5.4 | 10.4 | 3 |
| 2011 | 4,400,057 | 7.0 | 12.6 | 3 |
| 2016 | 4,648,055 | 5.6 | 13.0 | 3 |
| 2021 | 5,000,879 | 7.6 | 13.7 | 3 |
Ethnic origins
First-generation immigrants from the British Isles remain a strong component of local society despite the end of special immigration status for British subjects in the 1960s. Also present in large numbers relative to other Canadian cities is a diverse background of European ethnicities, with many first- and second-generation immigrants, notably Germans, Ukrainians, Scandinavians, Yugoslavs and Italians. Third-generation Europeans are generally of mixed lineage, traditionally intermarrying with other ethnic groups more than in any other Canadian province.In recent decades, the proportion of people with Chinese and Indian ethnicity has risen sharply, specifically in the Lower Mainland. This has led to an extremely diverse population compared to many other provinces, especially the neighbouring prairie provinces.
''Note: The following statistics represent both single and multiple responses to the 2006 and 2016 census, and thus add up to more than 100%.''
Languages
Knowledge of languages
The question on knowledge of languages allows for multiple responses, and first appeared on the 1991 Canadian census.Mother tongue
Figures shown are for the number of single language responses and the percentage of total single-language responses. Numerous other languages were also counted, but only languages with more than 2,000 native speakers are shown.Religion
The largest denominations by number of adherents according to the 2021 census were Irreligion with 2,559,250 ; Christianity with 1,684,870 ; Sikhism with 290,870 ; Islam with 125,915 ; Buddhism with 83,860 ; and Hinduism with 81,320.Migration
Immigration
The 2021 census reported that immigrants comprise 1,425,715 persons or 29.0 percent of the total population of British Columbia.Recent immigration
A large number of immigrants have lived in British Columbia for 30 years or less.The 2021 Canadian census counted a total of 197,420 people who immigrated to British Columbia between 2016 and 2021.
Interprovincial migration
British Columbia has also traditionally been gaining from interprovincial migration. Over the last 50 years, British Columbia had 12 years of negative interprovincial immigration: the lowest in the country. The only time the province significantly lost population to this phenomenon was during the 1990s, when it had a negative interprovincial migration for 5 consecutive years.| In-migrants | Out-migrants | Net migration | |
| 2009–2010 | 49,469 | 40,741 | 8,728 |
| 2010–2011 | 47,854 | 44,433 | 3,421 |
| 2011–2012 | 48,593 | 51,304 | −2,711 |
| 2012–2013 | 43,830 | 45,698 | −1,868 |
| 2013–2014 | 52,281 | 42,806 | 9,475 |
| 2014–2015 | 61,026 | 40,647 | 20,379 |
| 2015–2016 | 63,788 | 37,215 | 26,573 |
| 2016–2017 | 57,210 | 38,376 | 18,834 |
| 2017–2018 | 55,300 | 41,311 | 13,989 |
| 2018–2019 | 55,612 | 49,501 | 6,111 |
| 2019–2020 | 71,180 | 61,122 | 10,058 |
''Source: Statistics Canada''