10 Cities In BC & Alberta Named In Top 25 Popular Places To Move To In Canada

Parts of B.C. and Alberta have become hotspot areas for people looking to move, according to a new report of Canada's most sought-after destinations.

U-Haul named the 25 most popular cities that Canadians chose to move to last year within Canada.

While there are some cities you might expect to be included, there are also some glaring absentees like Victoria which didn't make the cut.

Calgary was the highest-ranked western Canadian city in fourth spot, followed by Kelowna and West Kelowna in fifth place.

Red Deer and Lacombe were Alberta's second area to feature in the list, followed closely by B.C.'s North Vancouver and Kamloops.

Also making the list were Alberta's Medicine Hat/Redcliff and Airdrie, and B.C.'s Penticton, Abbotsford and Vancouver.

“At the start of the pandemic we saw a mass exodus from Ontario to other provinces, particularly the Maritimes,” said Jake Spelic, U-Haul Area District Vice President of Eastern Canada.

“People were in search of cheaper housing as they worked from home. As time has passed and things are shifting closer to normal, we are starting to see that trend reverse. Ontario is still the economic centre of Canada and offers a high quality of living, thousands of job opportunities and attractive salaries.”

Here were Canada's top 25 most popular cities to move to last year:

1. North Bay, ON
2. Belleville, ON
3. Greater Sudbury, ON
4. Quebec City, QC
5. Calgary, AB
6. Kelowna-West Kelowna, BC
7. Kingston, ON
8. Red Deer-Lacombe, AB
9. Owen Sound-Port Elgin, ON
10. North Vancouver, BC
11. Kamloops, BC
12. Sault Ste. Marie, ON
13. Chatham, ON
14. St. Thomas, ON
15. Medicine Hat-Redcliff, AB
16. Sarnia, ON
17. Brantford, ON
18. Orillia, ON
19. Peterborough, ON
20. Cornwall, ON
21. Penticton, BC
22. Abbotsford, BC
23. Vancouver, BC
24. Airdrie, AB
25. St. Catharines, ON