- Electricity cost to households — what households actually pay for power.
- Gas prices — what Canadians pay at the pump.
- Housing cost burden — the share of household income going to housing.
- Food bank use — food insecurity and reliance on food banks.
- Currency strength — the Canadian dollar against its G7 peers.
Canada's level of GDP per capita is comfortably mid-pack, roughly third in the G7 on a purchasing-power basis. The problem this metric tracks is the direction of travel. On the rate of growth in output per person, the measure that tracks rising living standards, Canada has been the weakest economy in the G7, and one of the weakest in the developed world, for a decade.
Over 2014–2024, real GDP per capita (output per person, stripped of inflation) rose only 1.1% in Canada. That is dead last among the seven G7 economies, and barely a quarter of the next-worst performer, Germany. The G7, EU, and OECD as a whole each grew about 15% over the same period. Across all 38 advanced economies in the dataset, only Luxembourg grew less than Canada.
Canada's total economy did not look weak. Real GDP grew about 17% over the decade — the second-fastest aggregate growth in the G7, behind only the United States. But GDP is a fraction: total output on top, population on the bottom. When the denominator swells, the topline can rise briskly even as output per person stalls.
That is exactly what happened. The gap between Canada's +17% total GDP and its +1.1% per person, roughly sixteen percentage points, is population growth, and Canada's population grew faster than any other G7 country's. Rapid, immigration-driven population growth inflated the numerator and, for years, masked the weakest per-capita growth in the group. Over 2014–2023, 84.9% of all of Canada's GDP growth came simply from having more people, the highest share in the G7, and 42 points more than the second-place United Kingdom.
Real GDP per capita grew just 1.1% in total over 2014–2024, last of the seven G7 economies, against roughly 15% for the G7, EU, and OECD as a whole. Only Luxembourg grew less among 38 advanced economies.
Total real GDP rose ~17% (2nd-fastest in the G7), but output per person only 1.1%. The ~16-point wedge is population growth. Over 2014–2023, 84.9% of GDP growth was just more people, the highest share in the G7. That is what hid the weakest per-capita growth in the group.
Before 2014, Canada grew per capita ~0.9%/yr, on par with the US (0.8%) and OECD (0.9%). The divergence tracks deliberate admissions choices: permanent immigration ~260k→~500k/yr, temporary residents under 1M→~3M. Abundant labour blunted the incentive to invest in capital per worker, a major driver though not the sole cause.
Canada is still ~3rd in the G7 on PPP level and 19th of 38 in the OECD (down from 17th in 2014), having slipped from 83.1% to 71.4% of US GDP per capita and below the OECD average for the first time on record.
Ranking all 60 North American jurisdictions (50 US states and 10 Canadian provinces) on GDP per capita, eight of Canada's ten provinces fall in the bottom third. Only the resource economies of Alberta (20th) and Saskatchewan (26th) reach the top half. Ontario sits 48th, poorer per person than 43 states; Quebec 55th, ahead of only Mississippi; and New Brunswick ranks last of all 60.
This is offered as supporting context, not the headline: it is a level comparison, and it reinforces the same conclusion the growth data reach. Canada's output per person has fallen behind its North American peers. The figures reconstruct economist Trevor Tombe's 2024 ranking and reproduce its published anchors (Ontario 48th, Quebec 55th, 43 states above Ontario).
| Province | GDP per capita 2024 (US$, PPP) | Rank of 60 |
|---|---|---|
| Alberta | $84,700 | 20 |
| Saskatchewan | $79,300 | 26 |
| Newfoundland & Labrador | ~$66,900 | 44 |
| British Columbia | $66,400 | 46 |
| Ontario | $65,000 | 48 |
| Quebec | $60,100 | 55 |
| Manitoba | $56,500 | 56 |
| Nova Scotia | ~$51,200 | 58 |
| Prince Edward Island | ~$50,900 | 59 |
| New Brunswick | ~$50,100 | 60 |
Highest US states for reference: New York ~$116,900, Massachusetts ~$109,100, Washington ~$107,600. Values with "~" are Benchmark Canada reconstructions (see source note); the six unmarked provinces are Tombe's published figures.
Real GDP per capita rose just 1.1% in total over 2014–2024, last in the G7 and about a quarter of next-worst Germany's 4.4%.
- Compared with
- The seven G7 economies, on total real GDP per capita growth over 2014–2024.
- Where Canada sits
- Canada is last of the seven G7 economies on real GDP per capita growth over 2014–2024, at +1.1% against about 15% for the G7 as a whole. Among 38 advanced economies, only Luxembourg grew less.
- Which way it is moving
- Flat. Output per person barely moved over the decade while total real GDP grew about 17%, mostly from population growth. Canada also slipped from 17th to 19th of 38 in the OECD on the level measure.
- What the verdict follows
- Position in the peer set on growth. The level is respectable at 3rd of 7, which on its own would sit in the middle third, but the page leads on growth and the verdict reflects that.
- Data basis
- OECD per-capita output volumes via Visual Capitalist / Voronoi, "Ranked: Real GDP Per Capita Growth by Country (2014–2024)," 7 Apr 2025, data current to 2024. Page last reviewed June 2026.
Primary sources
- Visual Capitalist / Voronoi (OECD data) — "Ranked: Real GDP Per Capita Growth by Country (2014–2024)" — the cross-country per-capita growth figures and G7/EU/OECD aggregates.
- The Hub — Charles Lammam, "Why Canada's GDP per capita crisis is real" (DeepDive) — OECD PPP-basis growth, OECD rank, Canada-vs-US and Canada-vs-OECD ratios, immigration/admissions figures.
- The Daily Economy — "The Frozen North: Canada's Economic Stagnation" — population growth (13.2%) and population's 84.9% share of GDP growth, 2014–2023.
- Statistics Canada — population estimates and quarterly population growth.
- World Bank, via TheGlobalEconomy.com — GDP per capita PPP levels (constant 2021 international $), G7, 2024, for the level context.
- The Hub — Trevor Tombe, "Ontario and Quebec are poorer than Louisiana and 42 other states" — province-vs-state GDP per capita (2024), 60-jurisdiction ranking and method; the published anchors the full reconstruction is calibrated to.
- Visual Capitalist (US BEA data) — "Mapped: GDP per Capita, by U.S. State" — nominal GDP per capita for all 50 states, scaled to 2024 for the full ranking.
- Government of Alberta Economic Dashboard (Statistics Canada data) — real GDP per capita by province, used to derive the four provinces Tombe did not publish.
Methodology notes
- Definitions. "Real GDP per capita growth" is the total inflation-adjusted change in output per person over 2014–2024. The headline series (Canada +1.1%) uses OECD per-capita output volumes, seasonally adjusted and indexed to 2007. "Level" is GDP per capita at purchasing power parity (constant 2021 international $).
- Comparability. Two valid per-capita-growth measures exist and differ in magnitude but not direction: the OECD volume-index basis (Canada +1.1%) and the OECD PPP basis (Canada +3.2%, 0.4%/yr, 3rd-lowest of 38). The headline uses the volume-index basis to match the single cross-country source. The "~15%" G7/EU/OECD figures are weighted aggregates dominated by the US, not the simple average of the seven G7 members (~8.6%); the chart therefore shows the seven members individually.
- The decomposition. Total real GDP (~17%) minus real GDP per capita (+1.1%) gives the implied population wedge (~16 pts). This is cross-checked against Statistics Canada's recorded population growth of 13.2% (2014–2023); the small difference reflects the slightly different endpoints. Immigration is presented as the major driver of the denominator, not as the sole cause of weak productivity. Declining business investment, capital shallowing, low R&D, and emigration of high earners also contribute.
- Province vs. state comparison. Supplementary level comparison (not the headline). Tombe's 60-jurisdiction ranking adjusts each state and province for purchasing power (cost of living and the USD exchange rate); ranks are out of 60 with territories excluded. Tombe published dollar values for six provinces. The other four (NL, PEI, NS, NB) are Benchmark Canada reconstructions, marked "~" in the table, and the chart shows all ten provinces alongside all 50 states.
- Companion workbook. The editable series live in Elevating_GDP-Per-Capita-Growth_Data.xlsx: G7 growth, the Canada decomposition, population & immigration, level context, province-vs-state, sources, and caveats.
