A Survey Asked Canadians Where They Would Feel Comfortable Living & Quebec Came In Last

Not many Canadians outside Quebec would be comfortable putting down roots in the province, a recent survey from Maru/Blue suggests.

The survey asked 1,510 Canadians in December 2021 about their level of comfort with the prospect of living in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador). Residents were not able to answer the question about their own province or region.

Results released by Maru Public Opinion show that British Columbia was the most attractive part of Canada. When asked, 65% of respondents either strongly or somewhat agreed they would feel comfortable living there.

The West Coast province was followed by Atlantic Canada (63%). Ontario and Alberta were distant thirds (49% each). 38% of respondents said they would be comfortable living in either Saskatchewan or Manitoba.

In last place was Quebec, where only 24% of poll respondents would be comfortable living.

Maru cautions, however, that the survey did not ask about respondents' reasoning.

"Remember, a place where people feel comfortable living is purely subjective — sometimes it can depend on being able to speak the local language, what you might know of the terrain, or even be based solely on what you’ve seen, read, or heard about the people, the economy, or how welcoming they can be to newcomers," the firm said in a statement.

Quebec, of course, is the only province where French is the sole official and common language. Just 3.8% of residents of Canada outside Quebec identified as francophone in the 2016 census, according to Statistics Canada.