Prayer Times in Canada

Muslims and mosques in Canada

Islam is the second most reported religion in Canada after Christianity. The 2021 census counted 1,775,715 Muslims, 4.9% of the population, up from 579,640 (2.0%) in 2001 and 1,053,945 (3.2%) in 2011, which means the community has roughly tripled in twenty years. By share of the population, Ontario (6.7%), Quebec (5.1%) and Alberta (4.8%) lead the provinces. In numbers, Ontario has the most, 942,990, followed by Quebec with 421,710, Alberta with 202,535 and British Columbia with 125,915. In the metropolitan areas, Toronto has 626,010 Muslims (10.2% of its residents) and Montreal 365,675 (8.7%). The community is young: the median age is 30 compared with 41.2 for Canada as a whole, and most Canadian Muslims were born abroad.

Canadian Muslims have roots in many regions. Using Statistics Canada's broad groups, 40% are West Asian, 34% South Asian, almost 11% European and 10% African. Immigration has brought newcomers from a widening list of Muslim-majority countries with each decade. The weight of Toronto is striking: its metropolitan area alone has more Muslims (626,010) than Quebec, Alberta or British Columbia has in total, and Toronto and Montreal together hold more than half of all Muslims in Canada.

The first Muslim organisation in Canada was registered in Regina in 1934 by immigrants from greater Syria. The Al-Rashid Mosque in Edmonton, built in 1938, was the first mosque in the country, and it was followed by congregations across the Prairies. By 2024 there were at least 458 mosques and Islamic centres, and the Ahmadiyya community alone had 25 mosques. National bodies include the Muslim Association of Canada, the National Council of Canadian Muslims and Islamic Relief Canada. In Quebec, where the public debate about religion and secularism has been intense, mosques and community centres also work as cultural and language hubs for newcomers.

Canada's geography shapes the prayer day. Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg lie between roughly 49 and 53.5 degrees north, so in June the sun sets very late and the sky never gets fully dark, and a high-latitude rule is used to set Fajr and Isha. In winter the days are short, which makes a Ramadan fast in that season much shorter than one in summer. Clocks go forward an hour in March and back in November across most of the country, and most mosques follow the ISNA method with Standard Asr. Communities differ on how the start of Ramadan and Eid is decided, and each mosque sets its own congregation times.

Sources, checked 2026-10: Statistics Canada: A snapshot of the Muslim population in Canada; Wikipedia: Islam in Canada; New Canadian Media: Islam now second most popular religion in Canada.