List of cities in Ontario

Cities in the Canadian province of Ontario

A city is a subtype of municipalities in the Canadian province of Ontario. A city can have the municipal status of either a single-tier or lower-tier municipality. Prior to 2003, Ontario had minimum population thresholds of 15,000 and 25,000 for city status. Minimum population thresholds are no longer necessary for a municipality to brand itself as a city.

Ontario has 52 cities,[1] which together had in 2016 a cumulative population of 9,900,179 and average population of 190,388.[2] The most and least populous are Toronto and Dryden, with 2,794,356 and 7,749 residents, respectively.[2] Ontario's newest city is Richmond Hill, whose council voted to change from a town to a city on March 26, 2019.[3] Previous to that, Markham changed from a town to a city on July 1, 2012.[4]

## History

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Under the former Municipal Act, 1990, a city was both an urban and a local municipality.[5] Under that act, the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) could change the status of a village or town, upon its request, to a city if it had a population of 15,000 or more.[5] The OMB could also incorporate a township as a city under the same conditions with the exception that the population requirements was 25,000 or more.[5] In either event, if located within a county, authorization by the Minister of Municipal Affairs was also required.[5]

In the transition to the Municipal Act, 2001, conventional municipal statuses and their associated population threshold requirements were abandoned. On December 31, 2002, every city that:[6]

* "existed and formed part of a county, a regional or district municipality or the County of Oxford for municipal purposes" became a lower-tier municipality yet retained its name as a city; and
* "existed and did not form part of a county, a regional or district municipality or the County of Oxford for municipal purposes" became a single-tier municipality yet retained its name as a city.

The current legislation also provides lower- and single-tier municipalities with the authority to name themselves as "cities", or other former conventional municipal status types such as "towns", "villages" or "townships", or generically as "municipalities".[7]

## List

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* Toronto is Ontario's capital and Canada's largest city

* Ottawa is Canada's capital and Ontario's second largest city

* Downtown Brampton

* Skyline of downtown Hamilton

* Skyline of downtown London

* Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts in Richmond Hill, Ontario's newest city

* Vaughan as viewed from Canada's Wonderland

* Downtown Kitchener

* Downtown Windsor

* Downtown Mississauga

Name[1][8] | Municipal status[1] | Census division[1][9] | Population (2021)[10] | Population (2016)[10] | Change (%)[10] | Area (km2)[10] | Population density[10]

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Barrie[ON 1] | Single-tier | Simcoe | 147,829  | 141,434  | +4.5% | 99.01 | 1,493.1
Belleville | Single-tier | Hastings | 55,071  | 50,716  | +8.6% | 247.15 | 222.8
Brampton | Lower-tier | Peel | 656,480  | 593,638  | +10.6% | 265.89 | 2,469.0
Brant | Single-tier | Brant | 39,474  | 35,640  | +10.8% | 817.66 | 48.3
Brantford[ON 2] | Single-tier | Brant | 104,688  | 98,563  | +6.2% | 98.65 | 1,061.2
Brockville | Single-tier | Leeds and Grenville | 22,116  | 21,569  | +2.5% | 20.91 | 1,057.7
Burlington | Lower-tier | Halton | 186,948  | 183,314  | +2.0% | 186.12 | 1,004.4
Cambridge[ON 3] | Lower-tier | Waterloo | 138,479  | 129,920  | +6.6% | 112.99 | 1,225.6
Clarence-Rockland | Lower-tier | Prescott and Russell | 26,505  | 24,512  | +8.1% | 297.47 | 89.1
Cornwall | Single-tier | Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry | 47,845  | 46,589  | +2.7% | 61.50 | 778.0
Dryden[ON 4] | Single-tier | Kenora | 7,388  | 7,749  | −4.7% | 65.58 | 112.7
Elliot Lake | Single-tier | Algoma | 11,372  | 10,741  | +5.9% | 696.06 | 16.3
Greater Sudbury[ON 5] | Single-tier | Sudbury | 166,004  | 161,531  | +2.8% | 3,186.26 | 52.1
Guelph | Single-tier | Wellington | 143,740  | 131,794  | +9.1% | 87.43 | 1,644.1
Haldimand County | Single-tier | Haldimand | 49,216  | 45,608  | +7.9% | 1,250.45 | 39.4
Hamilton[ON 6] | Single-tier | Hamilton | 569,353  | 536,917  | +6.0% | 1,118.31 | 509.1
Kawartha Lakes | Single-tier | Kawartha Lakes | 79,247  | 75,423  | +5.1% | 3,033.66 | 26.1
Kenora | Single-tier | Kenora | 14,967  | 15,096  | −0.9% | 211.65 | 70.7
Kingston | Single-tier | Frontenac | 132,485  | 123,798  | +7.0% | 451.58 | 293.4
Kitchener[ON 7] | Lower-tier | Waterloo | 256,885  | 233,222  | +10.1% | 136.81 | 1,877.7
London[ON 8] | Single-tier | Middlesex | 422,324  | 383,822  | +10.0% | 420.50 | 1,004.3
Markham | Lower-tier | York | 338,503  | 328,966  | +2.9% | 210.93 | 1,604.8
Mississauga[ON 9] | Lower-tier | Peel | 717,961  | 721,599  | −0.5% | 292.74 | 2,452.6
Niagara Falls[ON 10] | Lower-tier | Niagara | 94,415  | 88,071  | +7.2% | 210.25 | 449.1
Norfolk County | Single-tier | Norfolk | 67,490  | 64,044  | +5.4% | 1,597.68 | 42.2
North Bay | Single-tier | Nipissing | 52,662  | 51,553  | +2.2% | 315.53 | 166.9
Orillia | Single-tier | Simcoe | 33,411  | 31,166  | +7.2% | 28.53 | 1,171.1
Oshawa[ON 11] | Lower-tier | Durham | 175,383  | 159,458  | +10.0% | 145.72 | 1,203.6
Ottawa[ON 12] | Single-tier | Ottawa | 1,017,449  | 934,243  | +8.9% | 2,788.20 | 364.9
Owen Sound | Lower-tier | Grey | 21,612  | 21,341  | +1.3% | 24.21 | 892.7
Pembroke[ON 13] | Single-tier | Renfrew | 14,364  | 13,882  | +3.5% | 14.32 | 1,003.1
Peterborough[ON 14] | Single-tier | Peterborough | 83,651  | 81,032  | +3.2% | 64.76 | 1,291.7
Pickering | Lower-tier | Durham | 99,186  | 91,771  | +8.1% | 231.10 | 429.2
Port Colborne | Lower-tier | Niagara | 20,033  | 18,306  | +9.4% | 121.99 | 164.2
Prince Edward County | Single-tier | Prince Edward | 25,704  | 24,735  | +3.9% | 1,052.61 | 24.4
Quinte West | Single-tier | Hastings | 46,560  | 43,577  | +6.8% | 495.45 | 94.0
Richmond Hill[ON 15] | Lower-tier | York | 202,022  | 195,022  | +3.6% | 100.79 | 2,004.4
Sarnia | Lower-tier | Lambton | 72,047  | 71,594  | +0.6% | 163.90 | 439.6
Sault Ste. Marie | Single-tier | Algoma | 72,051  | 73,368  | −1.8% | 221.99 | 324.6
St. Catharines[ON 16] | Lower-tier | Niagara | 136,803  | 133,113  | +2.8% | 96.20 | 1,422.1
St. Thomas | Single-tier | Elgin | 42,840  | 38,909  | +10.1% | 35.61 | 1,203.0
Stratford | Single-tier | Perth | 33,232  | 31,470  | +5.6% | 30.02 | 1,107.0
Temiskaming Shores | Single-tier | Timiskaming | 9,634  | 9,920  | −2.9% | 176.67 | 54.5
Thorold | Lower-tier | Niagara | 23,816  | 18,801  | +26.7% | 83.29 | 285.9
Thunder Bay[ON 17] | Single-tier | Thunder Bay | 108,843  | 107,909  | +0.9% | 327.77 | 332.1
Timmins | Single-tier | Cochrane | 41,145  | 41,788  | −1.5% | 2,955.33 | 13.9
Toronto[ON 18] | Single-tier | Toronto | 2,794,356  | 2,731,571  | +2.3% | 631.10 | 4,427.8
Vaughan | Lower-tier | York | 323,103  | 306,233  | +5.5% | 272.44 | 1,186.0
Waterloo[ON 19] | Lower-tier | Waterloo | 121,436  | 104,986  | +15.7% | 64.06 | 1,895.7
Welland | Lower-tier | Niagara | 55,750  | 52,293  | +6.6% | 81.16 | 686.9
Windsor[ON 20] | Single-tier | Essex | 229,660  | 217,188  | +5.7% | 146.02 | 1,572.8
Woodstock | Lower-tier | Oxford | 46,705  | 41,098  | +13.6% | 56.46 | 827.2
Total cities | — | — | 10,400,243 | 9,900,603 | +5.0% | 25,902.47 | 401.5
Total lower-tier cities | — | — | 3,714,072 | 3,517,258 | +5.6% | 3,154.52 | 1,177.4
Total single-tier cities | — | — | 6,686,171 | 6,383,345 | +4.7% | 22,747.95 | 293.9

## See also

[edit]

* List of communities in Ontario
* List of municipalities in Ontario
* List of towns in Ontario
* List of township municipalities in Ontario
* List of villages in Ontario

## Notes and references

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### Notes

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1. ^ The Barrie census metropolitan area (CMA) is formed around the City of Barrie.
2. ^ The Brantford CMA includes the City of Brantford as well as the County of Brant, which is a single-tier city.
3. ^ The City of Cambridge, as well as the cities of Kitchener and Waterloo, form parts of the Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo CMA.
4. ^ Dryden is Ontario's smallest city by population.
5. ^ Greater Sudbury is Ontario's largest city by area. The Greater Sudbury CMA is formed around the City of Greater Sudbury.
6. ^ Hamilton is Canada's tenth-largest city. The Hamilton CMA includes the cities of Burlington and Hamilton.
7. ^ The City of Kitchener, as well as the cities of Cambridge and Waterloo, form parts of the Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo CMA.
8. ^ The London CMA includes the cities of London and St. Thomas.
9. ^ Mississauga is Ontario's largest lower-tier city.
10. ^ The City of Niagara Falls, as well as the cities of Port Colborne, St. Catharines, Thorold and Welland, form parts of the St. Catharines–Niagara CMA.
11. ^ The Oshawa CMA is formed around the City of Oshawa.
12. ^ Ottawa is Canada's capital and fourth-largest city. The Ontario portion of the Ottawa–Gatineau CMA includes the cities of Clarence-Rockland and Ottawa.
13. ^ Pembroke is Ontario's smallest city by area.
14. ^ The Peterborough CMA is formed around the City of Peterborough.
15. ^ Richmond Hill is Ontario's newest city, adopting the name on March 26, 2019.
16. ^ The City of St. Catharines, as well as the cities of Niagara Falls, Port Colborne, Thorold and Welland, form parts of the St. Catharines–Niagara CMA.
17. ^ The Thunder Bay CMA is formed around the City of Thunder Bay.
18. ^ Toronto is Ontario's capital and Canada's and Ontario's largest city by population. The Toronto CMA includes the cities of Brampton, Markham, Mississauga, Pickering, Richmond Hill, Toronto and Vaughan.
19. ^ The City of Waterloo, as well as the cities of Cambridge and Kitchener, form parts of the Kitchener–Cambridge–Waterloo CMA.
20. ^ The Windsor CMA is formed around the City of Windsor.

### References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d "List of Ontario Municipalities". Ontario Municipal Affairs and Housing. September 21, 2012. Archived from the original on February 28, 2013. Retrieved January 3, 2013.
2. ^ a b "subdivisions (municipalities) and designated places, 2016 and 2011 censuses – 100% data". Statistics Canada. 8 February 2017.
3. ^ "Richmond Hill Becomes a City". RichmondHill.ca. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
4. ^ "Markham to change from town to city". CBC News. May 30, 2012. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
5. ^ a b c d "Municipal Act, R.S.O. 1990, Chapter M.45". Service Ontario. Retrieved June 29, 2013.
6. ^ "Municipal Act, S.O. 2001, Chapter 25". Service Ontario. Retrieved June 29, 2013.
7. ^ "The Municipal Councillor's Guide". Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Retrieved June 29, 2013.
8. ^ "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2011 and 2006 censuses (Ontario)". Statistics Canada. May 28, 2012. Retrieved January 3, 2013.
9. ^ "Population and dwelling counts, for Canada, provinces and territories, and census divisions, 2011 and 2006 censuses (Ontario)". Statistics Canada. January 30, 2013. Retrieved June 27, 2013.
10. ^ a b c d e "Population and dwelling counts: Canada, provinces and territories, census divisions and census subdivisions (municipalities), Ontario". Statistics Canada. February 9, 2022. Retrieved December 26, 2024.

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Subdivisions of Ontario

Counties|

* Bruce
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* Leeds and Grenville
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* Perth
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* Prescott and Russell
* Renfrew
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Districts|

* Algoma
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Regional municipalities|

* Durham
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* Peel
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Single-tier municipalities|

* Brant
* Brantford
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* Greater Sudbury
* Haldimand
* Hamilton
* Kawartha Lakes
* Norfolk
* Ottawa
* Prince Edward
* Toronto

Separated municipalities|

* Barrie
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* Guelph
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