Alberta had 284,470 Indigenous people in private households in the 2021 Census. They represented 6.8% of the province’s population, and Alberta accounted for 15.7% of Canada’s Indigenous population. These figures describe the 2021 Census reference period and should not be treated as a current estimate or forecast. 2021 Census of Canada - Indigenous People
Contents
- How large is Alberta’s Indigenous population?
- How is the population identified and counted?
- What do ancestry statistics show?
- How did the population change from 2016 to 2021?
- Where do Indigenous people live?
- What are the Calgary and Edmonton statistics?
How large is Alberta’s Indigenous population?
The 2021 Census counted 284,470 Indigenous people in Alberta’s private households. Indigenous people made up 6.8% of Alberta’s population. In the national provincial comparison, Alberta had the third-largest Indigenous population among Canada’s provinces, behind Ontario and British Columbia. The province was home to 15.7% of Canada’s Indigenous population in 2021.
These are different ways to describe the same census context: a provincial count, a share of Alberta’s population, and Alberta’s position within the Canadian provincial total. The private-household wording matters because the count is defined by the census population concept used in the profile data. It is therefore best read as a 2021 Census count rather than a live population estimate. The figures and provincial comparison come from 2021 Census of Canada - Indigenous People.
The Statistics Canada profile also provides a useful comparison population: 4,051,185 Alberta residents were not Registered or Treaty Indians in the 2021 comparison population. That figure is a separate classification from the total Indigenous count, so it should not be subtracted from the provincial Indigenous total to produce another population measure. Profile table, Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population - Alberta
How is the population identified and counted?
The census identity categories show how the 284,470 people were distributed across reported Indigenous responses. Alberta had 145,640 people reporting First Nations identity, 127,470 reporting Métis identity and 2,945 reporting Inuk (Inuit) identity in 2021. A further 4,785 people reported multiple Indigenous responses, while 3,620 were in the Indigenous responses not included elsewhere category.
The profile also counted 276,060 people reporting a single Indigenous response. These categories are designed to describe reported identity responses, so the categories should be read as census classifications rather than as interchangeable labels for every Indigenous person in the province. The detailed counts are from the Statistics Canada Alberta census profile.
Another related measure is Registered or Treaty Indian status. The 2021 Census counted 126,530 Registered or Treaty Indians in Alberta’s private households. Status is not the same measure as identity: one describes a legal or administrative status reported in the census, while the other describes Indigenous identity responses. Keeping those measures separate prevents a status count from being mistaken for the full Indigenous population count.
| 2021 Alberta measure | Count |
|---|---|
| Indigenous people in private households | 284,470 |
| First Nations identity | 145,640 |
| Métis identity | 127,470 |
| Inuk (Inuit) identity | 2,945 |
| Multiple Indigenous responses | 4,785 |
| Indigenous responses not included elsewhere | 3,620 |
| Registered or Treaty Indians in private households | 126,530 |
The counts above are not intended to be added across rows. Some are broad totals, some are response categories, and Registered or Treaty Indian status is a different dimension of the census profile.
What do ancestry statistics show?
Ancestry statistics provide another lens on Alberta’s Indigenous population. In 2021, 135,650 people reported Indigenous ancestry only. Within that total, 131,200 Alberta residents reported a single Indigenous ancestry only: 101,455 reported First Nations single ancestry, 28,695 reported Métis single ancestry and 1,050 reported Inuit single ancestry.
The ancestry profile also recorded 4,455 people reporting multiple Indigenous ancestries only. This included 4,090 people reporting First Nations and Métis ancestry only, 160 reporting First Nations and Inuit ancestry only, 160 reporting Métis and Inuit ancestry only, and 50 reporting all three Indigenous ancestries only.
An additional 187,365 Alberta residents reported Indigenous and non-Indigenous ancestries together. That measure helps explain why ancestry results should not be treated as a replacement for identity results. Identity and ancestry answer different census questions, and the counts can describe overlapping but non-equivalent aspects of population experience. All ancestry figures are for the 2021 Census and come from the Statistics Canada Alberta census profile.
The most useful reading is therefore comparative: identity statistics show how people reported their Indigenous identity, while ancestry statistics show reported family or cultural origins under the census ancestry classification. Neither set should be used to create unsupported totals by combining rows from both measures.
How did the population change from 2016 to 2021?
Alberta’s Indigenous population grew 10.0% between the 2016 and 2021 censuses. Its average annual growth rate was 1.9% over that period. The same Alberta report gives a reported doubling time of 36.1 years if the 2016–2021 growth rate continued. This is a rate-based projection, not a forecast of what Alberta’s population will actually be.
Growth differed among identity groups. Alberta’s First Nations population grew 6.6%, with an average annual growth rate of 1.3%. The report gives a 53.6-year doubling time if that rate continued. Alberta’s Métis population grew 11.4%, with average annual growth of 2.2% and a reported doubling time of 31.6 years under the same rate-continuation assumption. Alberta’s Inuit population grew 17.8%, with average annual growth of 3.3% and a reported doubling time of 20.8 years.
For comparison, Alberta’s non-Indigenous population grew 4.7% from 2016 to 2021. Its average annual growth rate was 0.9%, and the report’s rate-based doubling time was 75.6 years. These comparisons show faster reported growth for the Indigenous population and its listed identity groups than for the non-Indigenous population during this census interval; they do not establish the causes of the difference.
| Alberta population group | Growth, 2016–2021 | Average annual growth | Reported doubling time* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indigenous population | 10.0% | 1.9% | 36.1 years |
| First Nations | 6.6% | 1.3% | 53.6 years |
| Métis | 11.4% | 2.2% | 31.6 years |
| Inuit | 17.8% | 3.3% | 20.8 years |
| Non-Indigenous population | 4.7% | 0.9% | 75.6 years |
*Each doubling time is reported on the assumption that the 2016–2021 rate continued. It is not a current estimate or an official forecast. The growth measures are from 2021 Census of Canada - Indigenous People.
The pace was also different from the preceding period. Alberta’s Indigenous average annual growth slowed from 3.2% in 2006–2016 to 1.9% in 2016–2021. For First Nations people, average annual growth slowed from 3.4% to 1.3% across those periods. These are comparisons of reported census-period growth rates; they should not be read as a claim that the later rate will continue unchanged.
Where do Indigenous people live?
The 2021 location figures distinguish reserve and settlement residence for two population groups. In Alberta, 36.2% of the First Nations population resided on reserve. Among Alberta’s Métis population, 2.8% resided on a Métis Settlement.
Those percentages describe different population groups and different types of locations, so they should not be compared as if they measured the same residential category. They also do not provide a complete urban-versus-rural distribution for all Indigenous people in Alberta. The figures are reported in Honouring our Roots: Growing together towards a culturally safe, wholistic primary health care system for Indigenous peoples, using the 2021 Census period.
The residence measures are especially useful alongside the city counts. A provincial total includes Indigenous people living in many kinds of communities, while a city profile counts residents within a particular census subdivision and, in the supplied city profiles, refers to private households. The geographic scope needs to remain explicit when comparing these numbers.
What are the Calgary and Edmonton statistics?
Edmonton had 58,165 Indigenous residents in private households in 2021, compared with 41,350 in Calgary. The city profiles show different distributions by reported identity.
| 2021 city measure | Calgary | Edmonton |
|---|---|---|
| Indigenous residents in private households | 41,350 | 58,165 |
| First Nations residents | 18,440 | 27,840 |
| Métis residents | 20,855 | 27,570 |
| Inuit residents | 430 | 820 |
| Multiple Indigenous responses | 865 | 1,300 |
| Registered or Treaty Indian residents | 14,405 | 23,320 |
Calgary’s profile counted 18,440 First Nations residents, 20,855 Métis residents and 430 Inuit residents. It also counted 865 residents reporting multiple Indigenous responses and 14,405 Registered or Treaty Indian residents. These figures are from the Calgary 2021 Census profile.
Edmonton’s profile counted 27,840 First Nations residents, 27,570 Métis residents and 820 Inuit residents. It counted 1,300 residents reporting multiple Indigenous responses and 23,320 Registered or Treaty Indian residents. These figures are from the Edmonton 2021 Census profile.
The city comparison is descriptive, not a ranking of Indigenous communities. Edmonton’s private-household Indigenous count was higher than Calgary’s in the 2021 Census, and Edmonton also had higher counts in each listed identity or response category in the comparison table. The figures remain census counts for 2021, rather than updated municipal estimates.