Atlantic Canada’s cities are the driving force behind strong growth in the region’s economy, with Moncton, Halifax and Charlottetown leading the county in population growth in 2022, according to APEC’s new report, Atlantic City Trends. This member-only publication assesses the economic trends and developments in six Atlantic leading cities: Halifax, St. John’s, Charlottetown, Fredericton, Moncton, and Saint John.

“All Atlantic cities were growing at above average rates in 2022 due to increased immigration and strong migration flows from other parts of Canada,” says report author, Patrick Brannon, Senior Researcher. Population growth is expected to continue at elevated rates due to high immigration targets, but weaker interprovincial flows may slow the rapid growth seen in 2022.

“With rapid growth, comes increased concerns regarding housing availability and affordability.” says report author, Patrick Brannon, Senior Researcher. “Large gains in house prices have slowed with recent interest rate hikes but affordability issues remain.” Apartment vacancy rates are currently very low ranging from 1-2% in Maritime cities.

St. John’s, NL
St. John’s population grew 2.3% in the year to July 2022 to 219,000. This is a larger increase than the city saw throughout the entire 2016 to 2021 period. St. John’s now accounts for 42% of the provincial population up from 34% in 2022. Population in the rest of the province increased by 0.2%.

Charlottetown, PE
Charlottetown’s population grew 4.2% between July 2021 and July 2022, reaching almost 87,000. The city had the third highest growth of major Canadian cities in 2022 and was the fastest growing city between 2016-2021. Charlottetown accounted for 51% of the PEI population in 2022 up from 44% in 2002.

Halifax, NS
The population of Halifax topped 480,000 in July 2022 with a growth rate of 4.5% over the previous year. This was the second fastest growth for any city in the country. Halifax’s share of the provincial population has increased from 40% in 2002 to 47% in 2022.

Moncton, NB
Moncton’s population grew 5.4% between July 2021 and July 2022, faster than any city in the country. High rates of immigration and interprovincial migration pushed its population to nearly 172,000. The city’s population grew nearly 9,000 in 2022 and over 21,000 over the last five years. Moncton share of the provincial population has grown from 17% in 2002 to 21% in 2022.

Saint John, NB
The population of Saint John grew 2.2% between July 2021 and July 2022 to 136,000. This growth rate was slightly above the national average, but was the lowest of the six[?] Atlantic cities.

Fredericton, NB
Fredericton saw its population grow by 3.3% between July 2021 and July 2022, reaching over 116,000. This was more than double the average annual population growth from 2016 to 2021.

To receive a media copy of this full report or to schedule an interview, please contact: 

Erica Parrill 
Communications Manager 
Email: erica.parrill@apec-econ.ca
Mobile: 902-877-2159