Nurses by age and sex — Health and social employment in Canada

Canada: Nurses by age and sex — Health and social employment was 461,742 Persons in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
461,742 Persons
Change on year
up 4.4%
World rank
4th
of 21 countries
All-time high
461,742 Persons
in 2024
All-time low
365,410 Persons
in 2012
Years of data
13
2012–2024

Nurses by age and sex — Health and social employment in Canada, 2012–2024

0100.0k200.0k300.0k400.0k500.0k2012201820242012: 365.4k Persons2013: 375.8k Persons2014: 383.8k Persons2015: 390.3k Persons2016: 396.2k Persons2017: 398.8k Persons2018: 402.9k Persons2019: 411.1k Persons2020: 417.9k Persons2021: 427.4k Persons2022: 433.4k Persons2023: 442.4k Persons2024: 461.7k Persons

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Persons.

Analysis

In 2024, nurses by age and sex — health and social employment in Canada stood at 461,742 Persons. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.

That represents a change of up 4.4% on the previous year and up 20.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, nurses by age and sex — health and social employment in Canada peaked at 461,742 Persons in 2024 and was at its lowest, 365,410 Persons, in 2012.

That places Canada 4th out of 21 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.

Nurses by age and sex — Health and social employment in Canada, year by year

Annual values for Nurses by age and sex — Health and social employment in Canada, 2012 to 2024.
Year Persons Change
2012 365,410 Persons
2013 375,753 Persons +2.8%
2014 383,836 Persons +2.2%
2015 390,344 Persons +1.7%
2016 396,166 Persons +1.5%
2017 398,825 Persons +0.7%
2018 402,895 Persons +1.0%
2019 411,131 Persons +2.0%
2020 417,893 Persons +1.6%
2021 427,390 Persons +2.3%
2022 433,370 Persons +1.4%
2023 442,400 Persons +2.1%
2024 461,742 Persons +4.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 390,545 Persons 365,410 Persons 411,131 Persons 8
2020s 436,559 Persons 417,893 Persons 461,742 Persons 5

Countries ranked near Canada

  1. 1 Japan 1.56 million Persons compare
  2. 1 Türkiye 264,857 Persons compare
  3. 2 Estonia 9,374 Persons compare
  4. 2 Germany 1.04 million Persons compare
  5. 3 France 607,644 Persons compare
  6. 3 Latvia 7,731 Persons compare
  7. 5 Australia 365,030 Persons compare
  8. 6 Argentina 288,875 Persons compare
  9. 7 Spain 280,200 Persons compare

See the full ranking of 25 places →

More work & labour data for Canada

All data for Canada →

Frequently asked questions

What is nurses by age and sex — health and social employment in Canada?
Nurses by age and sex — health and social employment in Canada was 461,742 Persons in 2024, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest nurses by age and sex — health and social employment recorded in Canada?
The highest recorded value was 461,742 Persons in 2024.
What is the lowest nurses by age and sex — health and social employment recorded in Canada?
The lowest recorded value was 365,410 Persons in 2012.
How does Canada rank for nurses by age and sex — health and social employment?
Canada ranks 4th out of 21 countries with data for 2024.
Is nurses by age and sex — health and social employment rising or falling in Canada?
Over the last ten years it is up 20.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Canada data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Nurses by age and sex — Health and social employment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Nurses by age and sex — Health and social employment in Canada. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 10 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/nurses-by-age-and-sex-health-and-social-employment/canada/

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About this data

Indicator
Nurses by age and sex — Health and social employment
Unit
Persons
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
25 places, 342 data points, 2000–2025
Last refreshed

This dataset provides data on the number of nurses by age groups and sex. Age groups include less than 25, 25-34, 35-44, 45-54, 55-64, 65-74, 75+, for total, female and male nurses. The breakdown by age and gender is provided for practising nurses. If not available, the data are reported for professionally active nurses or nurses licensed to practise. Please refer to the Sources and Methods for detailed country-specific information.