One city is leading the way in population growth near Calgary
New population numbers are out for Alberta, and while Calgary topped the charts, one nearby city saw some pretty large gains as well.
Statistics Canada released its population estimates by census subdivision on Wednesday, revealing that over the past five years, Alberta as a whole went from a population of 4,431,531 in July 2021 to 5,029,346 in July 2025, an increase of nearly 600,000.
The City of Calgary had a population of 1,356,293 in 2021, and as of July 2025, it has increased to 1,612,834, an increase of over 250,000.
Statistics Canada
Looking at the Calgary region, one area also has a pretty significant population growth. Airdrie had a population of 77,079 in 2021, and has since added over 15,000 residents,Ā reaching 92,544 as of July 2025, which is the largest gain in the Calgary area.
Statistics Canada
Chestermere came in second with 8,666 new residents, bumping its population up to 31,671, followed by Cochrane, which recorded a population of 33,295 in 2021 and has since jumped to 39,397.
Some other growing areas included Banff, with an almost 3,000 increase up to 11,402, Okotoks, which saw an increase of over 2,000 and now has a population of 33,482, and Strathmore, which saw an increase of 1,585, bringing its population up to 14,831.
Our northern neighbour, Edmonton, had a population of 1,050,954 in July 2021, and as of July 2025, it rose to 1,238,295, an increase of 187,350.
Population estimates are based on the Standard Geographical Classification (SGC) 2021 as delineated in the 2021 census.
You can check out the full population estimates report on the Statistics Canada website.
With files from Laine Mitchell