Although the country's population aging continues, it was slowed by the increase in permanent and temporary immigration observed in 2022 and 2023. As the many recent immigrants are on average younger than the rest of the Canadian population, the average age of the Canadian population fell slightly from July 1, 2022, to July 1, 2023, a first since 1958.
However, the number and proportion of people aged 65 years and older have continued to rise, driven by the aging of the large baby boomer cohorts.
The share of millennials and Generation Z is increasing, while that of baby boomers and Generation X is decreasing
On July 1, 2023, for the first time, the millennial generation (born between 1981 and 1996) comprised a greater number of people in the population than the baby boomer generation (born between 1946 and 1965).
The baby boomer generation became the largest in the population in 1958, seven years before the last baby boomer was even born. For 65 years, they remained the largest generation in the Canadian population. From the mid-1960s to the early 1970s, baby boomers accounted for around 40% of the population. By comparison, millennials' demographic weight will never reach the level of baby boomers' and is expected to peak at its current level of 23%, according to the most recent population projections.
