(Image Credit: CFJC Today/File Photo)

By Victor Kaisar

Population Decline

New StatsCan data shows slight population decline in Kamloops for first time in over two decades

Jan 19, 2026 | 2:52 PM

KAMLOOPS — New data from Statistics Canada shows there was a slight drop in the population in the Kamloops area for the first time in over two decades.

The estimated population in the Kamloops census metropolitan area (CMA) — which includes the city of Kamloops, Sun Peaks, Logan Lake and Chase — on July 1, 2025 was 127,198 people. That’s down 0.2 per cent — or 259 people — from the July 1, 2024 population estimate of 127,457 people.

Year-over-year population changes in the Kamloops CMA between 2015 and 2025. (Image Credit: Statistics Canada)

The specific breakdown of the population in each community that makes up the Kamloops CMA is not immediately available. However, according to provincial estimates, Kamloops had a population of 108,834 people 2025, down from 109,628 in 2024.

The Kamloops population is also projected to decrease further to 107,230 people in 2026.

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Population estimates and projections in the City of Kamloops from 2019 to 2026 along with the year-over-year change. (Image Credit: Province of BC/BC Stats)

The last census in May 2021 enumerated a population of 97,902 in the City of Kamloops, while the Kamloops CMA had a population of 114,142 people.

According to the data from Statistics Canada, the period between July 2024 and July 2025 marked the first population decrease in the Kamloops CMA since 2002.

While the population growth in the Kamloops CMA has generally trended up over the past two decades, the actual growth each year has varied quiet significantly — from just 246 people in 2002-03 to as many as 3,778 people in 2017-18.

Kamloops CMA population estimates as of July 1, 2025. (Image Credit: Statistics Canada)

Data from the 2021 census revealed that the Kamloops CMA was the third-fastest growing census metropolitan area in Canada, behind only Kelowna and Chilliwack, and ahead of London, Ont. and Nanaimo.

The next Canadian census is scheduled to be conducted in May 2026.

More information on the latest population estimates can be found on this interactive dashboard here.