New data on disability in Canada, 2022

Release date: December 1, 2023
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Infographic: New data on disability in Canada, 2022
Description: New data on disability in Canada, 2022

In 2022, 27.0% of Canadians aged 15 and over, or 8.0 million people, had at least one disability. This represents an increase of 4.7 percentage points from 2017.


From 2017 to 2022, the disability rate rose in all provinces and most of the territories.
Table summary
This table displays the results of From 2017 to 2022. The information is grouped by Province/territory (appearing as row headers), Prevalence, 2022 and Change in rate from 2017, in percentage points (appearing as column headers).
Province/territory Prevalence, 2022 Change in rate from 2017, in percentage points
Canada 27.0% +4.7
Newfoundland and Labrador 30.9% +7.3
Prince Edward Island 31.8% +5.8
Nova Scotia 37.9% +7.6
New Brunswick 35.3% +8.6
Quebec 21.0% +4.8
Ontario 28.0% +3.9
Manitoba 29.2% +4.4
Saskatchewan 29.8% +5.5
Alberta 27.5% +5.8
British Columbia 28.6% +3.9
Yukon 31.4% +6.3
Northwest Territories 25.7% +5.7
Nunavut 19.3% +1.1Note 1

The disability rate increases with age. Growth in the senior population in Canada between 2017 and 2022 contributed to the overall increase in the disability rate.


Women of all ages are more likely than men to have a disabilityNote 2
Table summary
This table displays the results of Women of all ages are more likely than men to have a disability. The information is grouped by Age group (appearing as row headers), Men+ , Women+ and Total (appearing as column headers).
Age group Men+ Women+ Total
Total population, 15 years and older 23.9% 29.9% 27.0%
Youth, 15 to 24 years 15.8% 24.7% 20.1%
Working-aged adults, 25 to 64 years 21.1% 26.9% 24.1%
Seniors, 65 years and over 38.9% 41.8% 40.4%

From 2017 to 2022, mental health-related, pain-related, and seeing disabilities had the largest increases, contributing the most to the rise in the Canadian disability rate.
Table summary
This table displays the results of From 2017 to 2022. The information is grouped by Disability type (appearing as row headers), Prevalence among the total Canadian population, 2022 and Change in rate from 2017, in percentage points (appearing as column headers).
Disability type Prevalence among the total Canadian population, 2022 Change in rate from 2017, in percentage points
Mental health-related 10.4% +3.2
Pain-related 16.7% +2.2
Seeing 7.4% +2.0
Learning 5.6% +1.6
Memory 4.9% +1.1
Mobility 10.6% +1.0
Flexibility 10.9% +0.9
Hearing 5.6% +0.8
Dexterity 5.0% +0.4
Developmental 1.5% +0.4
Unknown 0.8% +0.2

Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Survey on Disability, 2017 and 2022.

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Copyright

Published by authority of the Minister responsible for Statistics Canada.

© His Majesty the King in Right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of Industry, 2023

Use of this publication is governed by the Statistics Canada Open Licence Agreement.

Catalogue no. 11-627-M

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