Fertility is higher in the territories and the Prairies provinces

In 2011, Nunavut registered the highest total fertility rate in Canada with 2.97 children per woman, followed by Saskatchewan with 1.99 children per woman. Nunavut usually has the highest fertility rate due to a large population with Aboriginal identity (Inuit), who generally have higher fertility compared to the non-Aboriginal population.
The three Prairie provinces also have fertility rates usually exceeding the national average, partly owing to the higher proportion of their population reporting an Aboriginal identity. The total fertility rate was 1.99 children per woman in Saskatchewan, 1.86 in Manitoba and 1.81 in Alberta compared to 1.61 in Canada as a whole.
It is usually in the Atlantic provinces and British Columbia that the lowest fertility is observed. In 2011, British Columbia posted the lowest total fertility rate in Canada, at 1.42 children per woman.

Table 9
Total fertility rate (number of children per woman), Canada, provinces and territories, 1931 to 2011
Table summary
This table displays the results of Total fertility rate (number of children per woman). The information is grouped by Region (appearing as row headers), 1931, 1941, 1951, 1961, 1971, 1981, 1991, 2001 and 2011, calculated using number of children per woman units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Region	1931	1941	1951	1961	1971	1981	1991	2001	2011
Region	number of children per woman
Newfoundland and Labrador^Note 1	...	...	...	...	...	...	1.44	1.30	1.45
Prince Edward Island	3.54	3.23	4.20	4.91	2.86	1.89	1.86	1.55	1.62
Nova Scotia	3.41	3.09	3.68	4.19	2.46	1.62	1.59	1.40	1.47
New Brunswick	4.00	3.69	4.38	4.58	2.62	1.67	1.56	1.41	1.54
Quebec	4.00	3.38	3.76	3.71	1.84	1.58	1.65	1.50	1.69
Ontario	2.65	2.40	3.21	3.76	2.15	1.58	1.69	1.53	1.52
Manitoba	2.82	2.50	3.29	3.96	2.49	1.83	1.98	1.82	1.86
Saskatchewan	3.49	2.81	3.59	4.25	2.67	2.11	2.05	1.90	1.99
Alberta	3.38	2.83	3.71	4.28	2.35	1.86	1.90	1.67	1.81
British Columbia	2.18	2.29	3.19	3.81	2.05	1.63	1.68	1.40	1.42
Yukon	...	...	...	5.39	3.08	2.06	2.17	1.57	1.73
Northwest Territories	...	...	...	7.17	4.59	2.88	2.87	1.84	1.97
Nunavut^Note 2	...	...	...	...	...	...	...	3.08	2.97
Canada	3.20	2.83	3.49	3.86	2.13	1.65	1.72	1.54	1.61
... not applicable Note 1. Data by age of mother not available in Newfoundland and Labrador before 1991. Return to note 1 referrer Note 2. Nunavut is included in the Northwest Territories before 2001. Return to note 2 referrer Note(s): Births to mothers for whom the age is unknown were prorated according to the observed distributions. Source(s): Statistics Canada, Canadian Vital Statistics, Births Database, 1931 to 2011, Survey 3231 and Demography Division, Population Estimates Program.

Language selection