Highest Poverty in Ontario

Top 100 cities ranked by highest poverty

Largest Cities Smallest Cities Most Dense Least Dense Highest Income Lowest Income Lowest Unemployment Highest Unemployment Lowest Poverty Highest Poverty Highest Home Value Most Affordable Highest Rent Lowest Rent Most Educated Youngest Cities Oldest Cities Safest Cities Highest Crime Warmest Cities Coldest Cities Rainiest Cities Driest Cities

All Countries · Canada · Ontario

Highest Poverty — Ontario

1 Parry Sound 20.9%

2 Hawkesbury 20.6%

3 Elliot Lake 20.0%

4 Cornwall 18.1%

5 Kirkland Lake 17.1%

6 Renfrew 16.8%

7 Pembroke 16.5%

8 Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh 16.5%

9 Smiths Falls 16.4%

10 Chatsworth 16.2%

11 Windsor 15.6%

12 Owen Sound 15.2%

13 Huron-Kinloss 15.0%

14 Brockville 14.6%

15 North Glengarry 14.5%

16 West Nipissing 14.2%

17 Midland 14.2%

18 Perth 14.0%

19 London 13.8%

20 Arran-Elderslie 13.7%

21 Havelock-Belmont-Methuen 13.6%

22 Kingsview Village-The Westway 13.5%

23 Alta Vista 13.5%

24 Etobicoke 13.5%

25 Fergus 13.5%

26 Bayview Village 13.5%

27 Rockcliffe-Smythe 13.5%

28 St. Andrew-Windfields 13.5%

29 Stonegate-Queensway 13.5%

30 Nepean 13.5%

31 Keswick 13.5%

32 Black Creek 13.5%

33 South Parkdale 13.5%

34 Gloucester 13.5%

35 Birchcliffe-Cliffside 13.5%

36 Eglinton East 13.5%

37 Bolton 13.5%

38 Englemount-Lawrence 13.5%

39 Centretown 13.5%

40 O'Connor-Parkview 13.5%

41 Orléans 13.5%

42 Ottawa South 13.5%

43 Hespeler 13.5%

44 Rosedale-Moore Park 13.5%

45 Brookhaven-Amesbury 13.5%

46 Don Valley Village 13.5%

47 Clairlea-Birchmount 13.5%

48 Eringate-Centennial-West Deane 13.5%

49 Kanata 13.5%

50 Newtonbrook West 13.5%

51 Danforth East York 13.5%

52 Willowdale 13.5%

53 Thorncliffe Park 13.5%

54 West Hill 13.5%

55 Stoney Creek 13.5%

56 Kensington-Chinatown 13.5%

57 East End-Danforth 13.5%

58 Waterfront Communities-The Island 13.5%

59 Fallingbrook 13.5%

60 Lindsay 13.5%

61 Fiddlesticks 13.5%

62 Woburn 13.5%

63 Willowdale East 13.5%

64 Agincourt South-Malvern West 13.5%

65 Bedford Park-Nortown 13.5%

66 Flemingdon Park 13.5%

67 Rouge 13.5%

68 Georgetown 13.5%

69 L'Amoreaux 13.5%

70 Islington-City Centre West 13.5%

71 Strathroy 13.5%

72 The Beaches 13.5%

73 Moss Park 13.5%

74 Ancaster 13.5%

75 Brooklin 13.5%

76 Bowmanville 13.5%

77 Stouffville 13.5%

78 Dovercourt-Wallace Emerson-Junction 13.5%

79 Downsview-Roding-CFB 13.5%

80 Parkwoods-Donalda 13.5%

81 Mimico 13.5%

82 West Humber-Clairville 13.5%

83 Mount Olive-Silverstone-Jamestown 13.5%

84 Victoria Village 13.5%

85 Tam O'Shanter-Sullivan 13.5%

86 Church-Yonge Corridor 13.5%

87 Niagara 13.5%

88 Westminster-Branson 13.5%

89 Annex 13.5%

90 Glenfield-Jane Heights 13.5%

91 Dorset Park 13.5%

92 Bendale 13.5%

93 Alliston 13.5%

94 Mount Pleasant West 13.5%

95 Agincourt North 13.5%

96 Waterdown 13.5%

97 Wexford/Maryvale 13.5%

98 South Riverdale 13.5%

99 Banbury-Don Mills 13.5%

100 York University Heights 13.5%

Cities with the highest poverty rates in Ontario face deep economic challenges affecting a significant portion of their population. Parry Sound has a poverty rate of 20.9%.

High poverty rates impact communities in multiple ways: reduced access to healthcare and healthy food, lower educational outcomes, higher crime rates, and deteriorating infrastructure. These challenges are interconnected and require comprehensive solutions.

Addressing poverty in these cities requires a multi-pronged approach including economic development, affordable housing, quality education, healthcare access, and workforce training programs targeting underserved populations.

Did You Know?

1. In Parry Sound, 20.9% of residents — roughly 1 in 5 people — live below the poverty line.
2. Child poverty rates in these cities are often even higher than the overall rate, sometimes exceeding 40%.
3. Poverty is measured by household income relative to family size — the threshold varies from $15,060 for an individual to $31,200 for a family of four.

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