V9R vs V9S

British Columbia

This page does not pick a winner. Every row shows two measurements and the gap between them. There is no score, no tally of which area “wins” more categories, and no overall result — those would be a rating of two places and the people who live in them, assembled by the layout.

Both areas are forward sortation areas, and every figure describes the whole of one. Crime is not shown here: it is reported at the metropolitan level, so for two areas in the same city it is usually the same number twice. It is on each area’s own page, with the geography it describes.

Selected 2021 Census figures for V9R and V9S, with the national figure for scale. The last column states the gap between the two areas as a direction and a size, never as a preference.
Measure	V9R	V9S	Canada	Difference
Median household income	$67,500	$64,500	$84,000	V9R is about the same as V9S
Median after-tax income	$62,000	$58,800	$73,000	V9R is 5% higher than V9S
Median age	41.2	46	41.6	V9R is 10% lower than V9S
Unemployment rate	8.9%	8.5%	10.3%	V9R is about the same as V9S
Low income (LIM-AT)	13.9%	13.8%	11.1%	V9R is about the same as V9S
Average household size	2.2	2	2.4	V9R is 10% higher than V9S

Counts for each area. These describe the place and are not compared as ratios.
Measure	V9R	V9S
Population	31,992	17,977
Private dwellings	14,937	8,800
Land area	63 km²	13 km²

Share of each area’s residents with an amenity within reach, weighted by where people live. A blank is a coverage fact, not a zero.
Amenity	Within	V9R	V9S
Grocery store	1 km walk	63%	94%
Public transit	1 km walk	90%	99%
Park	1 km walk	97%	99%
Pharmacy	1 km walk	37%	53%
Child care	1.5 km walk	90%	100%
Primary school	1.5 km walk	58%	87%
Secondary school	1.5 km walk	60%	82%
Library	1.5 km walk	28%	2%
Health care	3 km drive	100%	100%
Employment	10 km drive	100%	100%

These measure how close an amenity is, never its quality. A school 500 m away is a school 500 m away — nothing here says anything about the school itself.
The proximity index is scaled against all of Canada, where 1 is the single most well-served block in the country and the national average is close to zero. It is useful for comparing places and misleading as a score.

What tenants pay, from CMHC’s survey of purpose-built rental buildings. The two areas may sit in different survey zones, or one may not be surveyed at all — that is a coverage fact and is stated rather than left blank.
Unit	V9R	V9S
studio	not surveyed	not surveyed
1	not surveyed	not surveyed
2	not surveyed	not surveyed
3plus	not surveyed	not surveyed

The air quality index is a reading at the nearest station, which may be far away — the distance is shown because it decides whether the reading describes the area at all. Facility counts are reported releases within 10 km.
Measure	V9R	V9S
Nearest AQHI station	Nanaimo / Parksville · 2.1 km	Nanaimo / Parksville · 3.3 km
Current reading	1.33 — Low risk	1.33 — Low risk
Reporting facilities within 10 km	11	11
Reported releases to air	5,891 t	5,891 t

V9R: Measured at Nanaimo / Parksville, 2.1 km from V9R. The index runs from 1 upward and combines ozone, fine particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide into one health-risk scale.
V9S: Measured at Nanaimo / Parksville, 3.3 km from V9S. The index runs from 1 upward and combines ozone, fine particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide into one health-risk scale.

This page carries the figures the two areas can be set against each other on. Each area’s own page has the rest — including crime, the boundary map, and every source note and caveat in full.

V9R in full · V9S in full

Source: Census Profile, 2021 Census (98-401-X). Data current as of 2026-08-12. Statistics Canada Open Licence. Each figure describes a whole forward sortation area. Amenity, rent and air figures carry their own sources and vintages on the area pages.