Are Canadians changing their fertility plans?

The number of children per woman in Canada has been on a general downward trend for over a decade, falling from 1.69 in 2009 to 1.43 in 2021.

But why?

To have or not to have children

In 2022, people aged 15 to 49 years reported various factors that could influence their fertility intentions, such as affordability, work-life balance, as well as access to suitable housing, satisfactory childcare and sufficient parental leave.

In total, 44% of people aged 15 to 49 years believed they could afford to have a child in the next three years, while 37% did not believe they could afford to have a child in the next three years.

When it came to adequate work-life balance, 47% of people believed that this condition would be met in the next three years, while 27% did not believe they would reach adequate work-life balance in that timeframe.

Overall, people aged 25 to 49 years were more optimistic about the likelihood of meeting various conditions related to having children in the next three years. In contrast, people aged 15 to 24 years were more likely to believe that economic conditions (such as financial capacity and adequate housing) and work-life balance would be insufficient for them to have a child.

Conditions related to having children vary by person and often change at different points of life; these conditions may also influence the number of children desired.

In 2022, the average desired number of children per woman was 1.50 in Canada. The average number of children desired was higher among people aged 35 to 49 years. Differences between age groups could be related to generational factors or variations in financial security.

Pandemic babies? Not so much

The COVID-19 pandemic was another factor reported to have affected Canadians’ fertility intentions.

In 2021, 24% of people aged 15 to 49 years changed their plans around having children as a result of the pandemic. Most often, they planned on having fewer children or having a child later.

In 2022, among people living in a couple, 9% felt that the number of disagreements about having children had increased compared with before the pandemic. Among couples with at least one child, 18% felt that the number of disagreements about parenting tasks had also increased.

For more information on fertility indicators, consult Statistics Canada’s interactive dashboard.