Population 132,690: What 815 New Residents Mean for Thunder Bay
After years of near-flat growth, the city added 815 people in 2025. Modest - but the direction is the story.
Thunder Bay's estimated population now sits at 132,690, up by about 815 residents over 2025. In a city long accustomed to flat or declining numbers, even modest growth is notable.
Where is it coming from? Immigration and international students account for much of the gain, alongside a slowing of the out-migration of young adults that defined the previous decade. Lakehead University and Confederation College remain the city's most reliable population anchors.
Why 815 matters
Growth, even small, changes the math on housing demand, transit planning, and the labour pool that local employers draw from. It also shifts the per-capita denominators behind every rate this paper reports - including crime.
We'll be watching whether 2026 sustains the trend.
