PEI Population Report Quarterly

Population Report, Fourth Quarter 2024

DIAGRAM 1: PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND POPULATION, QUARTERLY, 2020 - 2025

On March 19, 2025 Statistics Canada published its provincial population estimates for the fourth quarter of 2024. The data shows Prince Edward Island’s population was estimated to be 179,280 as of January 1, 2025. This represents a yearly increase of 2,962 people or a 1.7 percent annual growth rate. This is the fourth highest year-over-year growth rate among provinces and territories, behind Alberta (3.5%), Manitoba (2.0%), and Saskatchewan (2.0%). New Brunswick, Quebec, and British Columbia also had growth rates of 1.7 percent. PEI’s year-over-year population growth has slowed in each of the past five quarters, after reaching an all-time high of 4.0 percent during the third quarter of 2023. 

Canada’s population reached 41.5 million as of January 1, 2025, an increase of 1.8 percent from one year ago.

The quarterly estimates since October 1, 2022 and growth rates for Canada and Prince Edward Island can be seen in Table 1.

TABLE 1: NATIONAL AND PROVINCIAL POPULATION & GROWTH RATES, QUARTERLY

All jurisdictions saw a year-over-year population increase January 1, 2025 compared to January 1, 2024. Population estimates for January 1, 2024 and 2025 for all provinces and territories are shown in Table 2 below. The population growth rates and level change for the twelve-month period ending December 31, 2024 are also included.

TABLE 2: POPULATION OF PROVINCES & TERRITORIES, JANUARY 1, 2024, 2025 & ANNUAL GROWTH RATES

Components of Growth

The total change in PEI’s population during the fourth quarter of 2025 (October 1, 2024 to December 31, 2024) was -21 people.

Natural Increase

There were 357 births and 450 deaths on Prince Edward Island from October 1, 2024 to December 31, 2024, resulting in natural growth (births minus deaths) of -93. Deaths have outnumbered births in each quarter since the third quarter of 2021.

International Migration

During fourth quarter of 2024, a total of 505 international immigrants came to the province, the least since the fourth quarter of 2022. At a rate of 2.8 per thousand¹, the province had the sixth highest quarterly immigration rate in the country. The immigration rate for Canada was 2.5 per thousand.

Net international migration was estimated to be 270 people during the fourth quarter of 2024. This consisted of the aforementioned 505 international immigrants plus 760 non-permanent residents (NPRs) and 25 returning Canadians entering the province, while 979 NPRs and 41 international emigrants left the province. Net international migration for PEI over the 2024 calendar year was 3,370. This compares to 5,591 in 2023, a decline of 39.7 percent.

It was estimated that 760 non-permanent residents came to PEI during the fourth quarter of 2024, while 979 NPRs left the province, for a net change of -219. As of January 1, 2025, there were 11,150 NPRs on PEI consisting of 5,942 work permit holders, 3,855 study permit holders, 832 with both work and study permits, 398 other permit holders, and 123 asylum claimants. NPRs include foreign workers, foreign students, the humanitarian population and other temporary residents. The humanitarian population includes refugee claimants and temporary residents who are allowed to remain in Canada on humanitarian grounds and are not categorized as either foreign workers or foreign students.

In February 2024, the Government of PEI announced changes to immigration to refocus on in-demand labour and reducing the number of nominations to slow overall population growth in the province².
 

Inter-provincial Migration

A total of 440 inter-provincial migrants came to PEI during the fourth quarter of 2024, while 638 people left the province for other areas of Canada, for a net interprovincial loss of 198. This compares to a net loss of 190 people over the same period in 2023. As shown in Table 3, the primary source of PEI’s inter-provincial in-migrants during this period was from Alberta, followed by Ontario and Nova Scotia. The main destinations of out-migrants from Prince Edward Island were Ontario, Alberta, and Quebec. Alberta gained the most from inter-provincial migration, with 33.4 percent of all interprovincial migrants from other provinces destined for Alberta.

TABLE 3: ORIGIN & DESTINATION OF INTER-PROVINCIAL MIGRANTS, OCTOBER 1, 2024 TO DECEMBER 31, 2024

Prince Edward Island quarterly components of growth from July 1, 2022 to January 1, 2025 can be seen in table 4.

TABLE 4: PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND QUARTERLY POPULATION AND COMPONENTS OF GROWTH JULY 1 2022 – JANUARY 1 2025

DIAGRAM 2: PEI COMPONENTS OF GROWTH OCTOBER 1 2024 – DECEMBER 31 2024

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