Waterloo Region population growth one of the highest among large municipalities in Canada: StatsCan

An aerial image of Waterloo.

New census data has revealed that the population of the Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge municipality grew by 10.1 per cent between 2016 and 2021.

According to Statistics Canada, the area's population increased by 51,953 in the five-year span and now sits at a total of 575,847.

The increase is one of the highest among the top 25 largest municipalities in Canada. Only Brampton (10.6 per cent increase) and Oakville (10.3 per cent increase) saw larger surges, while London grew by 10 per cent.

KWC's growth, however, wasn't in the top 25 of largest increases in Canada. East Gwillimbury's was the biggest population increase at 44.4 per cent, but only has a total population of 34,637.

Statistics Canada reports that there are 229,809 private dwellings in the Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge area. Of those, 219,060 are occupied by people who live there for at least most of the year.

The population density of KWC is 527.2 people per square kilometre. The agency says there is 1,092.33 square kilometres in the area.

Statistics Canada says Canada's population was just over 36.9 million on census day last year, growing by 5.2 per cent between 2016 and 2021.

The five-year growth rate was double that of any peer country in the G7, and Statistics Canada says most of the growth happened prior to the onset of the pandemic in 2020.