

An increasing number are no longer living in private dwellings and need different types of housing options, such as seniors’ residences at first, and nursing care facilities as they get older. Many face activity limitations and need health and home care services - the rapid growth of this population in coming years is likely to add to the existing pressures in the health care and home care sectors. These older Canadians have contributed greatly to society through their long working lives, by taking care of younger generations, transmitting their experience and knowledge, acting as role models for younger people, and being memory-keepers of the past and of family traditions. The growth of this population will accelerate even further in coming years, as the first baby boomer cohorts will turn 85. Despite being impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, this population continues to increase faster than Canada as a whole. Seniors aged 85 and older are growing in number and as a proportion of the population. This will put increasing pressure on all levels of government to ensure adequate support, in areas such as housing, health care and home care, as well as transportation, among other things. As more seniors are living to 85 and beyond, an increasing number of individuals will face limitations and long-term health challenges.Downtown areas tend to have more services and amenities, such as hospitals, long-term care and other housing types better adapted to the specific needs of older populations. Much like young adults, older seniors are also living downtown: in three-fifths of the country’s large urban centres, there is a higher percentage of people aged 85 and older living in the downtown core than in the large urban centre as a whole.


Currently, 2.3% of the population is aged 85 and older. The population aged 85 and older is one of the fastest-growing age groups, with a 12% increase from 2016.Over 861,000 people aged 85 and older were counted in the 2021 Census, more than twice the number observed in the 2001 Census.Looking ahead: A portrait of the lives of older Canadians.The municipalities with the largest proportions of people aged 85 and older are in British Columbia and Quebec.Downtowns are home to many older Canadians.The large urban centres with the highest proportion of people aged 85 and older are in Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia.More older Canadians live in Quebec, New Brunswick, Saskatchewan and British Columbia.Among older seniors living in collective dwellings, the proportion in nursing care facilities increases with age.More than one in four people aged 85 and older live in a collective dwelling.

Close to two women per man among the 85-and-older population, but the ratio is decreasing.Three times more people aged 85 and older by 2050.The population aged 85 and older has doubled since 2001, and the growth among centenarians was even stronger.
