--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/research/turning-the-tide-demographic-developments-in-new-brunswick-1951-2020/" title: "Turning the Tide: Demographic Developments in New Brunswick, 1951-2020" author: name: "CSLS" url: "https://csls.ca/author/cslc/" date_published: "2026-07-02T10:22:44+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-02T10:22:44+00:00" post_type: "research" summary: "" post_tag: - "age structure" - "census divisions" - "demographics" - "international migration" - "interprovincial migration" - "migration" - "New Brunswick" - "population growth" country_focus: - "Canada" province_region: - "NB" research_theme: - "Labour Markets" - "Regional Economic Development" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/old-reports_hero_banner_bg.webp" status: "publish" --- # Turning the Tide: Demographic Developments in New Brunswick, 1951-2020 Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/research/turning-the-tide-demographic-developments-in-new-brunswick-1951-2020/ # Turning the Tide: Demographic Developments in New Brunswick, 1951-2020 [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2021-05-1.pdf) Cite this report × Cite this report as: Bonsall, Nettie. 2021. “Turning the Tide: Demographic Developments in New Brunswick, 1951-2020.” CSLS Research Report 2021-05. Ottawa: Centre for the Study of Living Standards. https://csls.ca/research/turning-the-tide-demographic-developments-in-new-brunswick-1951-2020/ ## Author: - Nettie Bonsall Atlantic Institute for Policy Research, University of New Brunswick ## Report 2021-05 October 2021 105 pages ## Related research [The Canada-Atlantic Canada Manufacturing Productivity Gap: A Detailed Analysis Andrew Sharpe December 2003 | Report 2003-08 | 127 pages](https://csls.ca/research/the-canada-atlantic-canada-manufacturing-productivity-gap-a-detailed-analysis/) [The Impact of Interprovincial Migration on Aggregate Output and Labour Productivity in Canada, 1987-2006 Andrew Sharpe, Jean-François Arsenault, Daniel Ershov July 2007 | Report 2007-02 | 113 pages](https://csls.ca/research/the-impact-of-interprovincial-migration-on-aggregate-output-and-labour-productivity-in-canada-1987-2006/) [Three Policies to Improve Productivity Growth in Canada Andrew Sharpe December 2007 | Report 2007-05 | 49 pages](https://csls.ca/research/three-policies-to-improve-productivity-growth-in-canada/) [Interprovincial Migration in Canada: Implications for Output and Productivity Growth, 1987-2014 Roland Tusz, Erika Rodrigues, Matthew Calver November 2015 | Report 2015-19 | 61 pages](https://csls.ca/research/interprovincial-migration-in-canada-implications-for-output-and-productivity-growth-1987-2014/) [Slower Economic Growth and Subjective Well-Being in the Canadian Context: A Discussion Paper Mike Pennock July 2016 | Report 2016-09 | 51 pages](https://csls.ca/research/slower-economic-growth-and-subjective-well-being-in-the-canadian-context-a-discussion-paper/) [Innovation in New Brunswick Kimberly Wong September 2020 | Report 2020-08 | 94 pages](https://csls.ca/research/innovation-in-new-brunswick/) [The Productivity Performance of New Brunswick Manufacturing: A Detailed Analysis, 1997-2019 Andrew Sharpe June 2021 | Report 2021-03 | 93 pages](https://csls.ca/research/the-productivity-performance-of-new-brunswick-manufacturing-a-detailed-analysis-1997-2019/) [Richer and Fairer: New Brunswick Income Trends, 1976-2019 Nettie Bonsall October 2021 | Report 2021-06 | 131 pages](https://csls.ca/research/richer-and-fairer-new-brunswick-income-trends-1976-2019/) [North Versus South: Income Disparities in New Brunswick, 2000-2019 Nettie Bonsall October 2021 | Report 2021-07 | 115 pages](https://csls.ca/research/north-versus-south-income-disparities-in-new-brunswick-2000-2019/) [The Index of Economic Well-being for New Brunswick, 1981-2019 Andrew Sharpe October 2021 | Report 2021-08 | 92 pages](https://csls.ca/research/the-index-of-economic-well-being-for-new-brunswick-1981-2019/) ## Abstract ## Résumé EN FR Copy link Email LinkedIn New Brunswick experienced virtually no population growth in the 17-year period from 1991 to 2007 after enjoying a 0.92 per cent average annual growth rate from 1951 to 1991. Since 2007, the tide has turned, and the population of the province is once again growing, averaging 0.36 per cent per year. The main driver of this development is gross immigration. After averaging less than 1,000 per year in the1972-2007 period, gross immigration rose to around 2,000 per year between 2008 and 2013 and then jumped to an annual average of around 4,000 in the 2014-2020 period. Net interprovincial migration also contributed to the turnaround, rising from an average annual loss of around 600 in the 1972-2007 period to an average annual gain of about 900 in the 2017-2020 period. The report provides a detailed analysis of these demographic developments at the level of the province, the 15 census divisions (counties), and the three census metropolitan areas and four census agglomerations. Le Nouveau-Brunswick n’a pratiquement connu aucune croissance démographique durant la période de 17 ans allant de 1991 à 2007, après avoir affiché un taux de croissance annuel moyen de 0,92 % entre 1951 et 1991. Depuis 2007, la tendance s’est inversée, et la population de la province croît de nouveau, à un rythme moyen de 0,36 % par année. Le principal moteur de cette évolution est l’immigration brute. Après avoir affiché une moyenne de moins de 1 000 personnes par année entre 1972 et 2007, l’immigration brute est passée à environ 2 000 personnes par année entre 2008 et 2013, puis a bondi à une moyenne annuelle d’environ 4 000 personnes durant la période 2014-2020. La migration interprovinciale nette a également contribué à ce revirement, passant d’une perte annuelle moyenne d’environ 600 personnes entre 1972 et 2007 à un gain annuel moyen d’environ 900 personnes entre 2017 et 2020. Le rapport fournit une analyse détaillée de ces évolutions démographiques à l’échelle de la province, des 15 divisions de recensement (comtés), ainsi que des trois régions métropolitaines de recensement et des quatre agglomérations de recensement. [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2021-05-1.pdf)