Why 3 in 4 Canadians Live Near the US Border

You've probably heard that 90% of Canadians live within 100 miles of the United States. It's wrong. Statistics Canada says two in three live within 100 km of the border, on about 4% of the country, and about three in four within 100 miles. We ran our own numbers on the EU's 1 km population grid: more than half of all Canadians live further south than North Dakota's southern border. So why do they all live down there? Rock, ice and soil: the Canadian Shield covers half the country, about half sits on permafrost, and only a thin strip in the south has good farmland. Then history: in the east, people and the border followed the same water; in the west, a straight line drawn by diplomats came first, and the railway and the towns followed it. At the end, a world map of how bunched up every country is, so you can find yours. Chapters 0:00 The 90% myth 0:45 The real numbers 1:39 Canada by distance 2:12 Further south than you think 3:15 Reason one: rock 3:53 Reason two: ice 4:37 Reason three: soil 5:18 The east: a water road 6:15 The west: a straight line 7:35 The neighbour 8:04 The North 8:50 Where's your country? 10:01 The answer Sources Statistics Canada: 66% within 100 km of the southern border (2016 Census): https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily... Statistics Canada: about three-quarters within 160 km: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily... Gigafact: the 90% claim (Sep 2026): https://gigafact.org/fact-briefs/does... Natural Resources Canada: Physiographic Regions (the Canadian Shield): https://open.canada.ca/data/en/datase... Natural Resources Canada: Permafrost: https://open.canada.ca/data/en/datase... Environment and Climate Change Canada: climate normals 1981-2010: https://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate... Parks Canada: Point Pelee and Middle Island: https://parks.canada.ca/pn-np/on/pelee Statistics Canada: 2021 Census of Agriculture, farmland: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/9... Government of Canada, Discover Canada: Canada's history: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-... Treaty of Paris, 1783 (text): https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_cent... Convention of 1818 (text): https://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_cent... Oregon Treaty, 1846 (text): https://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_cent... Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada: the Numbered Treaties: https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1... Open data: Historic treaties (map layer): https://open.canada.ca/data/en/datase... Open data: Modern treaties (map layer): https://open.canada.ca/data/en/datase... Canadian Society for Civil Engineering: the Canadian Pacific Railway: https://legacy.csce.ca/en/historic-si... Library and Archives Canada: the last spike: https://collectionscanada.gc.ca/canad... Statistics Canada: Canadian international merchandise trade, 2025: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily... Statistics Canada: population estimates, 1 July 2026: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily... Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami: Inuit Nunangat: https://itk.ca/?p=26064 Credits Stock footage: Pexels, Pixabay Maps: Natural Earth (public domain) Population grid: European Commission, JRC, GHS-POP R2023A, 2020 (CC BY 4.0), https://jeodpp.jrc.ec.europa.eu/ftp/j... ; distances, latitude shares and land shares are our calculations Adapted from Statistics Canada, Agricultural Ecumene Boundary File 2021 and census and trade releases. This does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada of this product. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada (Natural Resources Canada: Physiographic Regions of Canada, geographical names; Statistics Canada: Agricultural Ecumene; Environment and Climate Change Canada: climate normals) Permafrost zones: Obu et al. 2019, ESA GlobPermafrost, PANGAEA (CC BY 3.0), https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.888600 Treaty areas and Inuit land claim regions: Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, Historic Treaties and Modern Treaties, Open Government Licence - Canada (https://open.canada.ca/en/open-govern...) #Canada #Geography #Maps