Population growth stalls in Waterloo Region
Posted Jun 1, 2026 05:19:49 AM.
Last Updated Jun 1, 2026 12:22:32 PM.
Population growth has flatlined in Waterloo Region.
That’s according to statistics coming to a Region of Waterloo committee this week, which show that population growth in 2025 shrank to just 0.01 per cent, with only growing by just 90 people.
As of last year, the region claims that just over 678,000 people are living in Waterloo region, but the population growth is significantly lower than in 2023, when that number grew by almost 30,000 in one calendar year.
Staff note that the lower growth number is due to fewer international students, as the strict international student cap put in place by the federal government is felt significantly by institutions like Conestoga College.
In 2023, international students accounted for 37 per cent of the local post-secondary population. In 2025, that number fell to 17 per cent, which is on par with numbers from 2016.
Stats also show that the number of multi-generational households is on the rise, which includes folks whose parents or children have moved in with them to pool resources.
More in politics
