List of communities in Alberta

The province of Alberta, Canada, is divided into ten types of local governments – urban municipalities (including cities, towns, villages and summer villages), specialized municipalities, rural municipalities (including municipal districts (often named as counties), improvement districts, and special areas), Métis settlements, and Indian reserves. All types of municipalities are governed by local residents and were incorporated under various provincial acts, with the exception of improvement districts (governed by either the provincial or federal government), and Alberta's Indian reserves (governed by local band governments under federal jurisdiction).

Alberta also has numerous unincorporated communities (including urban service areas, hamlets and a townsite) that are not independent municipalities in their own right. However, they are all recognized as sub-municipal entities by Ministry of Municipal Affairs under the jurisdiction of specialized municipalities or rural municipalities, with the exception of the lone townsite (its jurisdiction is shared with an Indian reserve that surrounds it).

With the exception of Métis settlements, Statistics Canada recognizes all of Alberta's municipalities as census subdivisions and groups them into 19 census divisions based on geography. Within census divisions, Statistics Canada groups some of Alberta's municipalities/census subdivisions into two census metropolitan areas (CMAs) or 12 census agglomerations (CAs) for enumeration purposes. All CMAs include large urban centres and surrounding census subdivisions. All CAs also include large urban centres and in some cases their surrounding census subdivisions.

With the exception of Indian reserves, the administration of municipalities in Alberta is regulated by the Municipal Government Act,^[1] the Special Areas Act^[2] and the Metis Settlements Act.^[3]

As of 2019, the combined unofficial population of all of Alberta's municipalities was 4,271,759.^[4]

According to Section 82 of the Municipal Government Act (MGA), an area may incorporate as a city if:

• it has a population of 10,000 people or more; and
• the majority of its buildings are on parcels of land smaller than 1,850 m² (19,900 sq ft).^[1]

Essentially, cities are formed from urban communities with populations of at least 10,000 people.^[5]

Alberta currently has a total of 19 cities with a combined population totalling 2,959,559 as of 2019.^[4]

Name	Region	Incorporation date (city)[6]	Council size[6]	2021 Census of Population[7]
				Population (2021)	Population (2016)	Change (%)	Land area (km2)	Population density (per km2)
Airdrie	Calgary Metro	Jan 1, 1985	7	74,100	61,581	+20.3%	84.39	878.1
Beaumont[AB 1]	Edmonton Metro	Jan 1, 2019	7	20,888	17,457	+19.7%	24.70	845.7
Brooks[AB 2]	Southern	Sep 1, 2005	7	14,924	14,451	+3.3%	18.21	819.5
Calgary[AB 3]	Calgary Metro	Jan 1, 1894	15	1,306,784	1,239,220	+5.5%	820.62	1,592.4
Camrose	Central	Jan 1, 1955	9	18,772	18,742	+0.2%	41.67	450.5
Chestermere[AB 4]	Calgary Metro	Jan 1, 2015	7	22,163	19,887	+11.4%	32.83	675.1
Cold Lake	North	Oct 1, 2000	7	15,661	14,976	+4.6%	66.61	235.1
Edmonton[AB 5]	Edmonton Metro	Oct 8, 1904	13	1,010,899	933,088	+8.3%	765.61	1,320.4
Fort Saskatchewan	Edmonton Metro	Jul 1, 1985	7	27,088	24,169	+12.1%	56.50	479.4
Grande Prairie	Northern	Jan 1, 1958	9	64,141	63,166	+1.5%	132.71	483.3
Lacombe	Central	Sep 5, 2010	7	13,396	13,057	+2.6%	20.59	650.6
Leduc	Edmonton Metro	Sep 1, 1983	7	34,094	29,993	+13.7%	42.25	807.0
Lethbridge	Southern	May 9, 1906	9	98,406	92,729	+6.1%	121.12	812.5
Lloydminster (part)[AB 6]	Central	Jan 1, 1958	7	19,739	19,645	+0.5%	23.98	823.1
Medicine Hat	Southern	May 9, 1906	9	63,271	63,260	0.0%	111.97	565.1
Red Deer	Central	Mar 25, 1913	9	100,844	100,418	+0.4%	104.34	966.5
Spruce Grove	Edmonton Metro	Mar 1, 1986	7	37,645	34,108	+10.4%	37.52	1,003.3
St. Albert	Edmonton Metro	Jan 1, 1977	7	68,232	65,589	+4.0%	47.84	1,426.3
Wetaskiwin[AB 7]	Central	May 9, 1906	7	12,594	12,655	−0.5%	18.75	671.7
Total cities	—	—	157	3,023,641	2,838,191	+6.5%	2,572.21	1,175.5

According to Section 81 of the Municipal Government Act (MGA), an area may incorporate as a town if:

• it has a population of 1,000 people or more; and
• the majority of its buildings are on parcels of land smaller than 1,850 m² (19,900 sq ft).^[1]

Essentially, towns are formed from urban communities with populations of at least 1,000 people. When a town's population exceeds 10,000 people, its council may apply to change its status to that of a city, but the change in incorporated status is not mandatory.^[5]

Communities with shrinking populations are allowed to retain town status even if the number of residents falls below the 1,000 limit. Some of Alberta's towns have never reached a population of 1,000 people, but were incorporated as towns before the current requirement to have a population of 1,000 or more.

Alberta currently has a total of 107 towns, with a combined population totalling 466,470 as of 2019.^[4]

Name	Specialized/rural municipality[8]	Incorporation date (town)[9]	Municipal census population (year)[10]	Population (2016)[11]	Population (2011)[11]	Change (%)[11]	Land area (km2)[11]	Population density (per km2)[11]
Athabasca[N 1]	Athabasca County	Sep 19, 1911		2,965	2,990	−0.8%	17.65	168.0
Banff	Improvement District No. 9 (Banff)	Jan 1, 1990	8,875 (2017)	7,851	7,584	+3.5%	4.77	1,645.9
Barrhead	Barrhead No. 11, County of	Nov 26, 1946		4,579	4,432	+3.3%	8.17	560.5
Bashaw	Camrose County	May 1, 1964		830	873	−4.9%	2.99	277.6
Bassano	Newell, County of	Jan 16, 1911		1,206	1,282	−5.9%	5.22	231.0
Beaverlodge	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	Jan 24, 1956		2,465	2,365	+4.2%	5.73	430.2
Bentley	Lacombe County	Jan 1, 2001		1,078	1,073	+0.5%	2.24	481.3
Blackfalds	Lacombe County	Apr 1, 1980	10,125 (2018)	9,328	6,300	+48.1%	16.44	567.4
Bon Accord	Sturgeon County	Nov 20, 1979		1,529	1,488	+2.8%	2.13	717.8
Bonnyville	Bonnyville No. 87, M.D. of	Feb 3, 1948	6,422 (2017)	5,975[12]	6,216	−3.9%	14.18	421.4
Bow Island	Forty Mile No. 8, County of	Feb 1, 1912	2,043 (2017)	1,983	2,025	−2.1%	5.81	341.3
Bowden	Red Deer County	Sep 1, 1981		1,240	1,241	−0.1%	2.8	442.9
Bruderheim	Lamont County	Sep 17, 1980	1,395 (2018)	1,308	1,155	+13.2%	7.12	183.7
Calmar	Leduc County	Jan 19, 1954		2,228	1,970	+13.1%	4.68	476.1
Canmore	Bighorn No. 8, M.D. of Kananaskis Improvement District[13]	Jun 1, 1966		13,992	12,288	+13.9%	69.43	201.5
Cardston	Cardston County	Jul 2, 1901	3,909 (2018)	3,585	3,580	+0.1%	8.59	417.3
Carstairs	Mountain View County	Sep 1, 1966		4,077	3,442	+18.4%	11.92	342.0
Castor	Paintearth No. 18, County of	Jun 27, 1910		929	932	−0.3%	2.63	353.2
Claresholm	Willow Creek No. 26, M.D. of	Aug 31, 1905		3,780	3,758	+0.6%	8.11	466.1
Coaldale	Lethbridge County	Jan 7, 1952	8,691 (2019)[14]	8,215	7,493	+9.6%	7.99	1,028.2
Coalhurst	Lethbridge County	Jun 1, 1995	2,784 (2019)[15]	2,668	1,978	+34.9%	3.11	857.9
Cochrane	Rocky View County	Feb 15, 1971	29,277 (2019)[16]	25,853	17,580	+47.1%	29.83	866.7
Coronation	Paintearth No. 18, County of	Apr 29, 1912		940	947	−0.7%	3.62	259.7
Crossfield	Rocky View County	Aug 1, 1980	3,308 (2018)	2,983	2,853	+4.6%	11.96	249.4
Daysland	Flagstaff County	Apr 2, 1907		824	807	+2.1%	1.75	470.9
Devon	Leduc County	Feb 24, 1950		6,578	6,515	+1.0%	14.3	460.0
Diamond Valley	Foothills County	Jan 1, 2023[17]		5,259	4,540	+15.8%	9.63	546.1
Didsbury	Mountain View County	Sep 27, 1906		5,268	4,957	+6.3%	16.37	321.8
Drayton Valley	Brazeau County	Feb 1, 1957		7,235	7,118	+1.6%	30.72	235.5
Drumheller[N 2]	Kneehill County Special Area No. 2 Starland County Wheatland County[18]	Mar 2, 1916 January 1, 1998		7,982	8,029	−0.6%	108.03	73.9
Eckville	Lacombe County	Jul 1, 1966	1,163 (2018)	1,125	1,125	0.0%	1.6	703.1
Edson	Yellowhead County	Sep 21, 1911		8,414	8,475	−0.7%	29.72	283.1
Elk Point	St. Paul No. 19, County of	Jan 1, 1962		1,452	1,412	+2.8%	4.91	295.7
Fairview	Fairview No. 136, M.D. of	Apr 25, 1949		2,998	3,162	−5.2%	11.36	263.9
Falher	Smoky River No. 130, M.D. of	Jan 1, 1955		1,047	1,075	−2.6%	2.78	376.6
Fort Macleod[N 3]	Willow Creek No. 26, M.D. of	Mar 29, 1912		2,967	3,117	−4.8%	23.41	126.7
Fox Creek	Greenview No. 16, M.D. of	Sep 1, 1983		1,971	1,969	+0.1%	12.36	159.5
Gibbons	Sturgeon County	Apr 1, 1977		3,159	3,030	+4.3%	7.5	421.2
Grimshaw	Peace No. 135, M.D. of	Feb 2, 1953		2,718	2,515	+8.1%	7.09	383.4
Hanna	Special Area No. 2	Apr 14, 1914		2,559	2,673	−4.3%	8.81	290.5
Hardisty	Flagstaff County	Nov 9, 1910		554	639	−13.3%	5.13	108.0
High Level	Mackenzie County	Sep 1, 1983	3,992 (2017)	3,159	3,641	−13.2%	29.2	108.2
High Prairie	Big Lakes County	Jan 10, 1950		2,564	2,600	−1.4%	7.22	355.1
High River	Foothills No. 31, M.D. of	Feb 12, 1906		13,584	12,930	+5.1%	21.39	635.1
Hinton	Yellowhead County	Dec 29, 1958		9,882	9,640	+2.5%	33.52	294.8
Innisfail	Red Deer County	Nov 20, 1903		7,847	7,876	−0.4%	19.4	404.5
Irricana	Rocky View County	Jun 9, 2005		1,216	1,162	+4.6%	3.23	376.5
Killam	Flagstaff County	May 1, 1965		989	981	+0.8%	6.75	146.5
Lamont	Lamont County	May 31, 1968		1,774	1,753	+1.2%	9.2	192.8
Legal	Sturgeon County	Jan 1, 1998		1,345	1,225	+9.8%	3.18	423.0
Magrath	Cardston County	Jul 24, 1907	2,435 (2017)	2,374	2,217	+7.1%	5.99	396.3
Manning	Northern Lights, County of	Jan 1, 1957		1,183	1,164	+1.6%	4.05	292.1
Mayerthorpe	Lac Ste. Anne County	Mar 20, 1961		1,320	1,398	−5.6%	4.37	302.1
McLennan	Smoky River No. 130, M.D. of	Feb 11, 1948	791 (2017)	701	809	−13.3%	3.71	188.9
Milk River	Warner No. 5, County of	Feb 7, 1956		827	811	+2.0%	2.33	354.9
Millet	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	Sep 1, 1983		1,945	2,092	−7.0%	3.72	522.8
Morinville	Sturgeon County	Apr 21, 1911	9,893 (2016)	9,848	8,569	+14.9%	11.15	883.2
Mundare	Lamont County	Jan 4, 1951		852	855	−0.4%	4.21	202.4
Nanton	Willow Creek No. 26, M.D. of	Aug 9, 1907		2,181[12]	2,132	+2.3%	4.87	447.8
Nobleford	Lethbridge County	Feb 28, 2018		1,278	1,000	+27.8%	1.59	803.8
Okotoks	Foothills No. 31, M.D. of	Jun 1, 1904	29,002 (2018)	28,881	24,511	+17.8%	19.63	1,471.3
Olds	Mountain View County	Jul 1, 1905		9,184	8,235	+11.5%	14.93	615.1
Onoway	Lac Ste. Anne County	Sep 1, 2005		1,029	1,039	−1.0%	3.32	309.9
Oyen	Special Area No. 3	Sep 1, 1965	1,022 (2017)	1,001	973	+2.9%	5.28	189.6
Peace River[N 4]	Northern Lights, County of Northern Sunrise County Peace No. 135, M.D. of[19]	Dec 1, 1919		6,842	6,729	+1.7%	26.26	260.5
Penhold	Red Deer County	Sep 1, 1980		3,277	2,375	+38.0%	5.29	619.5
Picture Butte	Lethbridge County	Jan 1, 1960		1,810	1,650	+9.7%	2.85	635.1
Pincher Creek	Pincher Creek No. 9, M.D. of	May 12, 1906		3,642	3,685	−1.2%	10.09	361.0
Ponoka	Ponoka County	Oct 15, 1904		7,229	6,778	+6.7%	17.33	417.1
Provost	Provost No. 52, M.D. of	Dec 29, 1952		1,998	2,041	−2.1%	4.72	423.3
Rainbow Lake	Mackenzie County	Sep 1, 1995		795	870	−8.6%	10.76	73.9
Raymond	Warner No. 5, County of	Jul 1, 1903	4,252 (2018)	3,708	3,743	−0.9%	6.66	556.8
Redcliff	Cypress County	Aug 5, 1912		5,600	5,588	+0.2%	16.25	344.6
Redwater	Sturgeon County	Dec 31, 1950		2,053	1,915	+7.2%	20.03	102.5
Rimbey	Ponoka County	Dec 13, 1948		2,567	2,378	+7.9%	11.4	225.2
Rocky Mountain House	Clearwater County	Aug 31, 1939		6,635	6,933	−4.3%	12.71	522.0
Sedgewick	Flagstaff County	May 1, 1966		811	857	−5.4%	2.72	298.2
Sexsmith	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	Oct 15, 1979		2,620	2,418	+8.4%	13.24	197.9
Slave Lake	Lesser Slave River No. 124, M.D. of	Aug 2, 1965		6,651	6,782	−1.9%	14.44	460.6
Smoky Lake	Smoky Lake County	Feb 1, 1962		964	1,022	−5.7%	4.26	226.3
Spirit River	Spirit River No. 133, M.D. of	Sep 18, 1951		995	1,025	−2.9%	3.14	316.9
St. Paul[N 5]	St. Paul No. 19, County of	Dec 15, 1936	5,963 (2017)	5,827	5,405	+7.8%	8.64	674.4
Stavely	Willow Creek No. 26, M.D. of	May 25, 1912		541	505	+7.1%	1.83	295.6
Stettler	Stettler No. 6, County of	Nov 23, 1906		5,952	5,748	+3.5%	13.14	453.0
Stony Plain	Parkland County	Dec 10, 1908	17,842 (2019)[20]	17,189	15,051	+14.2%	35.72	481.2
Strathmore	Wheatland County	Jul 6, 1911	13,528 (2018)	13,756	12,305	+11.8%	27.4	502.0
Sundre	Mountain View County	Jan 1, 1956		2,729	2,610	+4.6%	11.11	245.6
Swan Hills	Big Lakes County	Jan 1, 1967		1,301	1,465	−11.2%	26.12	49.8
Sylvan Lake	Red Deer County	May 20, 1946		14,816	12,362	+19.9%	23.36	634.2
Taber	Taber, M.D. of	Jul 1, 1907		8,428	8,104	+4.0%	15.67	537.8
Thorsby	Leduc County	Jan 1, 2017[21]	1,015 (2017)	985	951	+3.6%	3.85	255.8
Three Hills	Kneehill County	Jan 1, 1929		3,212	3,198	+0.4%	6.75	475.9
Tofield	Beaver County	Sep 10, 1909		2,081	2,182	−4.6%	8.21	253.5
Trochu	Kneehill County	Aug 1, 1962		1,058	1,072	−1.3%	2.78	380.6
Two Hills	Two Hills No. 21, County of	Jan 1, 1955	1,443 (2017)	1,352	1,379	−2.0%	3.38	400.0
Valleyview	Greenview No. 16, M.D. of	Feb 5, 1957		1,863	1,761	+5.8%	9.32	199.9
Vauxhall	Taber, M.D. of	Jan 1, 1961		1,222	1,288	−5.1%	2.72	449.3
Vegreville	Minburn No. 27, County of	Aug 15, 1906		5,708	5,717	−0.2%	14.08	405.4
Vermilion	Vermilion River, County of	Aug 27, 1906	4,150 (2017)	4,084	3,930	+3.9%	12.93	315.9
Viking	Beaver County	Nov 10, 1952		1,083	1,041	+4.0%	3.7	292.7
Vulcan	Vulcan County	Jun 15, 1921		1,917	1,836	+4.4%	6.34	302.4
Wainwright	Wainwright No. 61, M.D. of	Jul 14, 1910		6,270	5,925	+5.8%	9.1	689.0
Wembley	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	Aug 1, 1980		1,516	1,383	+9.6%	4.75	319.2
Westlock	Westlock County	Jan 7, 1947		5,101	4,823	+5.8%	13.37	381.5
Whitecourt	Woodlands County	Dec 20, 1971		10,204	9,605	+6.2%	26.44	385.9
Total towns	—	—	—	454,181	420,498	+8.0%	1,248.01	363.9

According to Section 80 of the Municipal Government Act (MGA), an area may incorporate as a village if:

• it has a population of 300 people or more; and
• the majority of its buildings are on parcels of land smaller than 1,850 m² (19,900 sq ft).^[1]

Essentially, villages are formed from urban communities with populations of at least 300 people. When a village's population exceeds 1,000 people, its council may apply to change its status to that of a town, but the change in incorporated status is not mandatory.

Communities with shrinking populations are allowed to retain village status even if the number of residents falls below the 300 limit. Some of Alberta's villages have never reached a population of 300 people, but were incorporated as villages before there was a requirement to have a population of 300 or more.

Alberta currently has a total of 81 villages, with a combined population totalling 34,600 as of 2021.^[22]

Name	Rural municipality[8]	Incorporation date (village)[9]	Population (2016)[23]	Population (2011)[23]	Change (%)[23]	Land area (km²)[23]	Population density (per km²)[23]
Acme	Kneehill County	July 7, 1910	653	653	0.0%	2.48	263.3/km2
Alberta Beach	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1999	1,018	865	+17.7%	2.01	506.5/km2
Alix	Lacombe County	June 3, 1907	734	830	−11.6%	3.13	234.5/km2
Alliance	Flagstaff County	August 26, 1918	154	174	−11.5%	0.51	302.0/km2
Amisk	Provost No. 52, MD of	January 1, 1956	204	207	−1.4%	0.76	268.4/km2
Andrew	Lamont County	June 24, 1930	425	379	+12.1%	1.17	363.2/km2
Arrowwood	Vulcan County	May 13, 1926	207	188	+10.1%	0.75	276.0/km2
Barnwell	Taber, MD of	January 1, 1980	947	771	+22.8%	1.51	627.2/km2
Barons	Lethbridge County	May 6, 1910	341	315	+8.3%	0.81	421.0/km2
Bawlf	Camrose County	October 12, 1906	422	403	+4.7%	0.89	474.2/km2
Beiseker	Rocky View County	February 23, 1921	819	785	+4.3%	2.85	287.4/km2
Berwyn	Peace No. 135, MD of	November 28, 1936	538	526	+2.3%	1.58	340.5/km2
Big Valley	Stettler No. 6, County of	March 9, 1942	346	364	−4.9%	1.86	186.0/km2
Bittern Lake[a]	Camrose County	November 2, 1904	220	224	−1.8%	6.57	33.5/km2
Boyle	Athabasca County	December 31, 1953	845	916	−7.8%	7.13	118.5/km2
Breton	Brazeau County	January 1, 1957	574	496	+15.7%	1.72	333.7/km2
Carbon	Kneehill County	November 18, 1912	454	592	−23.3%	1.99	228.1/km2
Carmangay	Vulcan County	March 4, 1936	242	367	−34.1%	1.86	130.1/km2
Caroline	Clearwater County	December 31, 1951	512	501	+2.2%	2.04	251.0/km2
Champion	Vulcan County	May 27, 1911	317	378	−16.1%	0.89	356.2/km2
Chauvin	Wainwright No. 61, MD of	December 30, 1912	335	334	+0.3%	2.24	149.6/km2
Chipman	Lamont County	October 21, 1913	274	284	−3.5%	9.61	28.5/km2
Clive	Lacombe County	January 9, 1912	715	675	+5.9%	2.17	329.5/km2
Clyde	Westlock County	January 28, 1914	430	503	−14.5%	1.31	328.2/km2
Consort	Special Area No. 4	September 23, 1912	729	689	+5.8%	3.05	239.0/km2
Coutts	Warner No. 5, County of	January 1, 1960	245	277	−11.6%	1.24	197.6/km2
Cowley	Pincher Creek No. 9, MD of	August 16, 1906	209	236	−11.4%	1.37	152.6/km2
Cremona	Mountain View County	January 1, 1955	444	457	−2.8%	1.94	228.9/km2
Czar	Provost No. 52, MD of	November 12, 1917	202	167	+21.0%	1.12	180.4/km2
Delburne	Red Deer County	January 17, 1913	892	830	+7.5%	3.98	224.1/km2
Delia[b]	Starland County	July 20, 1914	216	186	+16.1%	1.33	162.4/km2
Donalda	Stettler No. 6, County of	December 30, 1912	219	259	−15.4%	0.99	221.2/km2
Donnelly	Smoky River No. 130, MD of	January 1, 1956	342	305	+12.1%	1.31	261.1/km2
Duchess	Newell, County of	May 12, 1921	1,085	992	+9.4%	1.96	553.6/km2
Edberg	Camrose County	February 4, 1930	151	168	−10.1%	0.35	431.4/km2
Edgerton	Wainwright No. 61, MD of	September 11, 1917	384	317	+21.1%	2.04	188.2/km2
Elnora	Red Deer County	July 22, 1929	298	313	−4.8%	1.47	202.7/km2
Empress	Special Area No. 2	February 5, 1914	135	188	−28.2%	1.58	85.4/km2
Foremost	Forty Mile No. 8, County of	December 31, 1950	541	526	+2.9%	2.16	250.5/km2
Forestburg	Flagstaff County	August 21, 1919	875	831	+5.3%	2.73	320.5/km2
Girouxville	Smoky River No. 130, MD of	December 31, 1951	219	266	−17.7%	0.67	326.9/km2
Glendon	Bonnyville No. 87, MD of	January 1, 1956	493	486	+1.4%	1.99	247.7/km2
Glenwood	Cardston County	January 1, 1961	316	287	+10.1%	1.37	230.7/km2
Halkirk	Paintearth No. 18, County of	February 10, 1912	112	121	−7.4%	0.61	183.6/km2
Hay Lakes[c]	Camrose County	April 17, 1928	495	425	+16.5%	0.59	839.0/km2
Heisler	Flagstaff County	January 1, 1961	160	151	+6.0%	0.64	250.0/km2
Hill Spring	Cardston County	January 1, 1961	162	186	−12.9%	0.96	168.8/km2
Hines Creek	Clear Hills County	December 31, 1951	346	380	−8.9%	5.33	64.9/km2
Holden	Beaver County	April 14, 1909	350	381	−8.1%	1.74	201.1/km2
Hughenden	Provost No. 52, MD of	December 27, 1917	243	230	+5.7%	0.78	311.5/km2
Hussar	Wheatland County	April 20, 1928	190	176	+8.0%	0.75	253.3/km2
Innisfree	Minburn No. 27, County of	March 11, 1911	193	220	−12.3%	1.01	191.1/km2
Irma	Wainwright No. 61, MD of	May 30, 1912	521	457	+14.0%	1.34	388.8/km2
Kitscoty	Vermilion River, County of	March 22, 1911	925	846	+9.3%	1.51	612.6/km2
Linden	Kneehill County	January 1, 1964	828	725	+14.2%	2.58	320.9/km2
Lomond	Vulcan County	February 16, 1916	166	173	−4.0%	1.21	137.2/km2
Longview	Foothills County	January 1, 1964	307	307	0.0%	1.1	279.1/km2
Lougheed	Flagstaff County	November 7, 1911	256	233	+9.9%	2.1	121.9/km2
Mannville	Minburn No. 27, County of	December 29, 1906	828	803	+3.1%	1.64	504.9/km2
Marwayne	Vermilion River, County of	December 31, 1952	564	612	−7.8%	1.6	352.5/km2
Milo	Vulcan County	May 7, 1931	91	122	−25.4%	0.98	92.9/km2
Morrin	Starland County	April 16, 1920	240	245	−2.0%	0.67	358.2/km2
Munson	Starland County	May 5, 1911	192	204	−5.9%	2.53	75.9/km2
Myrnam	Two Hills No. 21, County of	August 22, 1930	339	370	−8.4%	2.79	121.5/km2
Nampa	Northern Sunrise County	January 1, 1958	364	362	+0.6%	1.71	212.9/km2
Paradise Valley	Vermilion River, County of	January 1, 1964	179	174	+2.9%	0.63	284.1/km2
Rockyford	Wheatland County	March 28, 1919	316	325	−2.8%	1.08	292.6/km2
Rosalind	Camrose County	January 1, 1966	188	190	−1.1%	0.62	303.2/km2
Rosemary	Newell, County of	December 31, 1951	396	342	+15.8%	0.59	671.2/km2
Rycroft	Spirit River No. 133, MD of	March 15, 1944	612	628	−2.5%	1.92	318.8/km2
Ryley[d]	Beaver County	April 2, 1910	483	497	−2.8%	2.61	185.1/km2
Spring Lake[e]	Parkland County	January 1, 1999	699	533	+31.1%	2.33	300.0/km2
Standard	Wheatland County	April 29, 1922	353	379	−6.9%	2.35	150.2/km2
Stirling	Warner No. 5, County of	September 3, 1901	978	1,090	−10.3%	2.71	360.9/km2
Veteran	Special Area No. 4	June 30, 1914	207	249	−16.9%	0.84	246.4/km2
Vilna	Smoky Lake County	June 23, 1923	290	249	+16.5%	0.96	302.1/km2
Warburg	Leduc County	December 31, 1953	766	789	−2.9%	2.68	285.8/km2
Warner	Warner No. 5, County of	November 12, 1908	373	331	+12.7%	1.16	321.6/km2
Waskatenau	Smoky Lake County	May 19, 1932	186	255	−27.1%	0.6	310.0/km2
Youngstown	Special Area No. 3	December 31, 1936	154	178	−13.5%	1.11	138.7/km2
Total villages	—	—	33,773	33,448	+1.0%	146.85	230.0/km2

According to former Section 79 of the Municipal Government Act (MGA), a summer village is an area that:

• has at least 60 parcels of land developed with dwelling buildings; and
• has a population of less than 300 persons where the majority of the persons who would be electors do not permanently reside in that area.

As a result of Section 79 being repealed,^[1] summer villages can no longer be formed in Alberta.^[5]

Essentially, summer villages were once formed from urban communities with populations of less than 300 people and significant non-permanent populations. When a summer village's population exceeds 300 people, its council may apply to change its status to that of a village, but the change in incorporated status is not mandatory.

Alberta currently has a total of 51 summer villages, with a combined population totalling 5,200 as of 2019.^[4]

Summer villages of Alberta

Name	Rural municipality[8]	Incorporation date (summer village)[29]	Population (2016)[30]	Population (2011)[30]	Change (%)[30]	Land area (km²)[30]	Population density (per km²)[30]
Argentia Beach	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	January 1, 1967	27	15	+80.0%	0.73	37.0/km2
Betula Beach	Parkland County	January 1, 1960	16	10	+60.0%	0.25	64.0/km2
Birch Cove	Lac Ste. Anne County	December 31, 1988	45	45	0.0%	0.3	150.0/km2
Birchcliff	Lacombe County	January 1, 1972	117	112	+4.5%	1.03	113.6/km2
Bondiss	Athabasca County	January 1, 1983	110	106	+3.8%	1.23	89.4/km2
Bonnyville Beach	Bonnyville No. 87, M.D. of	January 1, 1958	84	95	−11.6%	0.17	494.1/km2
Burnstick Lake	Clearwater County	December 31, 1991	15[31]	16	−6.2%	0.18	83.3/km2
Castle Island	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1955	10	19	−47.4%	0.05	200.0/km2
Crystal Springs	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	January 1, 1957	51	90	−43.3%	0.57	89.5/km2
Ghost Lake	Bighorn No. 8, M.D. of	December 31, 1953	82	81	+1.2%	0.67	122.4/km2
Golden Days	Leduc County	January 1, 1965	160	141	+13.5%	2.28	70.2/km2
Grandview	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	January 1, 1967	114	108	+5.6%	0.79	144.3/km2
Gull Lake	Lacombe County	September 1, 1993	176	122	+44.3%	0.7	251.4/km2
Half Moon Bay	Lacombe County	January 1, 1978	42	38	+10.5%	0.11	381.8/km2
Horseshoe Bay	St. Paul No. 19, County of	January 1, 1985	49[f]	37	+32.4%	1.14	43.0/km2
Island Lake	Athabasca County	January 1, 1958	228	243	−6.2%	1.85	123.2/km2
Island Lake South	Athabasca County	January 1, 1983	61	72	−15.3%	0.67	91.0/km2
Itaska Beach	Leduc County	June 30, 1953	23	20	+15.0%	0.29	79.3/km2
Jarvis Bay	Red Deer County	January 1, 1986	213	203	+4.9%	0.53	401.9/km2
Kapasiwin	Parkland County	September 1, 1993	10	10	0.0%	0.3	33.3/km2
Lakeview	Parkland County	October 25, 1913	30	26	+15.4%	0.35	85.7/km2
Larkspur	Westlock County	January 1, 1985	44	38	+15.8%	0.26	169.2/km2
Ma-Me-O Beach	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	December 31, 1948	110	113	−2.7%	0.52	211.5/km2
Mewatha Beach	Athabasca County	January 1, 1978	90	79	+13.9%	0.8	112.5/km2
Nakamun Park	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1966	96	36	+166.7%	0.45	213.3/km2
Norglenwold	Red Deer County	January 1, 1965	273	232	+17.7%	0.62	440.3/km2
Norris Beach	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	December 31, 1988	38	46	−17.4%	0.2	190.0/km2
Parkland Beach	Ponoka County	January 1, 1984	153	124	+23.4%	0.95	161.1/km2
Pelican Narrows	Bonnyville No. 87, M.D. of	July 1, 1979	151	162	−6.8%	0.72	209.7/km2
Point Alison	Parkland County	December 31, 1950	10	15	−33.3%	0.16	62.5/km2
Poplar Bay	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	January 1, 1967	103	80	+28.8%	0.67	153.7/km2
Rochon Sands	Stettler No. 6, County of	May 17, 1929	86	65	+32.3%	2.16	39.8/km2
Ross Haven	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1962	160	137	+16.8%	0.71	225.4/km2
Sandy Beach	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1956	278	223	+24.7%	2.4	115.8/km2
Seba Beach	Parkland County	August 20, 1920	169	143	+18.2%	0.86	196.5/km2
Silver Beach	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	December 31, 1953	65	52	+25.0%	0.64	101.6/km2
Silver Sands	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1969	160	85	+88.2%	2.41	66.4/km2
South Baptiste	Athabasca County	January 1, 1983	66	52	+26.9%	0.93	71.0/km2
South View	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1970	67	35	+91.4%	0.41	163.4/km2
Sunbreaker Cove	Lacombe County	December 31, 1990	81	69	+17.4%	0.5	162.0/km2
Sundance Beach	Leduc County	January 1, 1970	73	82	−11.0%	0.44	165.9/km2
Sunrise Beach	Lac Ste. Anne County	December 31, 1988	135	149	−9.4%	1.66	81.3/km2
Sunset Beach	Athabasca County	May 1, 1977	49	44	+11.4%	0.74	66.2/km2
Sunset Point	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1959	169	221	−23.5%	1.15	147.0/km2
Val Quentin	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1966	252	157	+60.5%	0.31	812.9/km2
Waiparous	Bighorn No. 8, M.D. of	January 1, 1986	49	42	+16.7%	0.41	119.5/km2
West Baptiste	Athabasca County	January 1, 1983	38	52	−26.9%	0.65	58.5/km2
West Cove	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1963	149	121	+23.1%	1.33	112.0/km2
Whispering Hills	Athabasca County	January 1, 1983	142	108	+31.5%	1.68	84.5/km2
White Sands	Stettler No. 6, County of	January 1, 1980	120	91	+31.9%	1.58	75.9/km2
Yellowstone	Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1965	137	124	+10.5%	0.28	489.3/km2
Total summer villages	—	—	5,176	4,586	+12.9%	40.79	126.9/km2

According to Section 83 of the Municipal Government Act (MGA), a municipality may incorporate as a specialized municipality under one of the following three scenarios:

• where the Minister of Alberta Municipal Affairs (AMA) is satisfied that the other incorporated statuses under the MGA do not meet the needs of the municipality's residents;
• to form a local government that, in the opinion of the Minister of AMA, will provide for the orderly development of the municipality in a similar fashion to the other incorporated statuses within the MGA; or
• for any other circumstances that are deemed appropriate by the Minister of AMA.^[1]

Essentially, specialized municipalities are municipalities that are unconventional in nature compared to other municipalities in Alberta, and they are incorporated under the authority of the existing MGA instead of relying on the creation of their own separate acts (i.e., the Special Areas Act^[2] allowed the incorporation of Alberta's three special areas and the Metis Settlements Act^[3] allowed the incorporation of Alberta's eight Métis settlements).^[5]

Alberta's six specialized municipalities have a combined population totalling 242,395 as of 2019.^[4]

List of specialized municipalities in Alberta

Name	Region	Incorporation date (specialized municipality)[33]	Council size[33]	Municipal census population (year)[34]	2021 Census of Population[35]
					Population (2021)	Population (2016)	Change (%)	Land area (km2)	Population density (/km2)
Crowsnest Pass, Municipality of	Southern Alberta	January 16, 2008	7		5,695	5,589	+1.9%	370.15	15.4
Jasper, Municipality of	Alberta's Rockies	July 20, 2001	7	4,584[g] (2011)	4,738	4,590	+3.2%	921.90	5.1
Lac La Biche County[h]	Northern Alberta	January 1, 2018	9	8,544 (2016)	7,673	8,330	−7.9%	12,527.48	0.6
Mackenzie County	Northern Alberta	June 23, 1999	10	11,750 (2015)	12,804	11,171	+14.6%	79,629.26	0.2
Strathcona County	Edmonton Metro	January 1, 1996	9	95,597 (2015)	99,225	98,044	+1.2%	1,170.65	84.8
Wood Buffalo, Regional Municipality of	Northern Alberta	April 1, 1995	11	81,948[i] (2015)	72,326	71,589	+1.0%	60,843.88	1.2
Total specialized municipalities		—	53	—	202,461	199,298	+1.6%	155,463.32	1.3
Province of Alberta		—	—	—|	4,262,635	4,067,175	+4.8%	634,658.27	6.7

According to Section 78 of the Municipal Government Act (MGA), a municipal district is an area in which:

• the majority of the buildings used as dwellings are on parcels of land with an area of at least 1,850 m² (19,900 sq ft); and
• there is a population of 1,000 or more.^[1]

Essentially, municipal districts are large rural areas in which their citizens reside on farms, country residential subdivisions or unincorporated communities (i.e., hamlets, localities and other settlements).^[5]

In Alberta, the term county is synonymous with the term municipal district – it is not its own incorporated municipal status that is different from that of a municipal district. As such, Alberta Municipal Affairs provides municipal districts with the opportunity to brand themselves either as municipal districts or counties in their official names.

Of Alberta's 63 municipal districts, 46 of them brand themselves as counties. Over the past 30 years, Alberta has observed a trend of numerous municipal districts rebranding themselves as counties through official name changes. Some of the reasons why a municipal district would rebrand itself as a county include that the term county is: more recognizable by the general public; has a more traditional appeal; and is more marketable from an economic development perspective.

The last municipal district (MD) to rebrand itself as a county was the MD of Foothills No. 31, which was renamed as Foothills County on January 1, 2019.^[36]

Alberta's 63 municipal districts have a combined population totalling 471,852 as of 2019.^[4]

Municipal districts of Alberta

Municipal district (MD)	Incorporation date[37]	Census division	Council size[37]	Municipal census population (year)[38]	Population (2016)[39]	Population (2011)[39]	Change (%)[39]	Land area (km2)[39]	Population density (per km2)[39]
AcadiaMD of Acadia No. 34	December 9, 1913	4	5		493	495	−0.4	1,082.60	0.5
Athabasca County	January 1, 1947	13	9		7,869	7,662	2.7	6,124.43	1.3
Barrhead County of Barrhead No. 11	January 1, 1955	13	7		6,288	6,096	3.1	2,406.25	2.6
Beaver County	February 1, 1943	10	5		5,905	5,689	3.8	3,317.57	1.8
Big Lakes Big Lakes County	January 1, 1995	17	9	3,861 (2013)	5,672	5,912	−4.1	13,942.43	0.4
Bighorn MD of Bighorn No. 8	January 1, 1988	15	5		1,334	1,341	−0.5	2,761.18	0.5
Birch Hills County	January 1, 1995	19	7		1,553	1,582	−1.8	2,859.60	0.5
Bonnyville MD of Bonnyville No. 87	January 1, 1955	12	7	11,836 (2014)	13,575	11,191	21.3	6,064.73	2.2
Brazeau County	July 1, 1988	11	7		7,771	7,132	9.0	3,005.35	2.6
Camrose County	January 1, 1944	10	7		8,458	8,004	5.7	3,324.21	2.5
Cardston County	January 1, 1954	3	7		4,481	4,167	7.5	3,429.82	1.3
Clear Hills County	January 1, 1995	17	7	2,829 (2012)	3,023	2,801	7.9	15,125.49	0.2
Clearwater County	January 1, 1985	9	7		11,947	12,278	−2.7	18,682.45	0.6
Cypress County	January 1, 1985	1	9		7,662	7,214	6.2	13,173.25	0.6
Fairview MD of Fairview No. 136	December 9, 1914	19	5		1,604	1,673	−4.1	1,387.58	1.2
Flagstaff County	January 1, 1944	7	7		3,738	3,591	4.1	4,067.58	0.9
Foothills County	January 1, 1954	6	7		22,766	21,248	7.1	3,636.8	6.3
Forty Mile County of Forty Mile No. 8	January 1, 1954	1	7		3,581	3,336	7.3	7,249.31	0.5
Grande Prairie County of Grande Prairie No. 1	December 21, 1943	19	9		22,303	19,724	13.1	5,802.21	3.8
Greenview MD of Greenview No. 16	January 1, 1994	18	8		5,583	5,299	5.4	32,984.24	0.2
Kneehill County	January 1, 1944	5	7		5,001	4,921	1.6	3,381.02	1.5
Lac Ste. Anne County	January 1, 1944	13	7		10,899	10,260	6.2	2,850.38	3.8
Lacombe County	January 1, 1944	8	7		10,343	10,307	0.3	2,765.16	3.7
Lamont County	January 1, 1944	10	5		3,899	3,872	0.7	2,385.09	1.6
Leduc County	January 1, 1944	11	7		13,780	13,494	2.1	2,601.49	5.3
Lesser Slave River MD of Lesser Slave River No. 124	January 1, 1995	17	7		2,803	2,929	−4.3	10,074.39	0.3
Lethbridge County	January 1, 1954	2	7		10,353	10,046	3.1	2,836.64	3.6
Minburn County of Minburn No. 27	January 30, 1942	10	7		3,188	3,383	−5.8	2,913.02	1.1
Mountain View County	January 1, 1944	6	7		13,074	12,359	5.8	3,782.64	3.5
Newell County of Newell	January 1, 1953	2	10		7,524	7,138	5.4	5,904.67	1.3
Northern Lights County of Northern Lights	January 1, 1995	17	7		4,200	4,117	2.0	20,755.37	0.2
Northern Sunrise County	April 1, 1994	17	6	1,933 (2013)	1,891	1,791	5.6	21,150.97	0.1
Opportunity MD of Opportunity No. 17	August 1, 1995	17	11	2,639 (2016)	3,181	3,074	3.5	29,142.10	0.1
Paintearth County of Paintearth No. 18	January 1, 1944	7	7		2,102	2,029	3.6	3,283.36	0.6
Parkland County	January 1, 1969	11	7		32,097	30,568	5.0	2,390.23	13.4
Peace MD of Peace No. 135	December 11, 1916	19	5		1,747	1,446	20.8	847.47	2.1
Pincher Creek MD of Pincher Creek No. 9	January 1, 1944	3	5		2,965	3,158	−6.1	3,482.05	0.9
Ponoka County	January 1, 1952	8	5		9,806	8,856	10.7	2,814.26	3.5
Provost MD of Provost No. 52	March 1, 1943	7	7		2,205	2,288	−3.6	3,628.39	0.6
Ranchland MD of Ranchland No. 66	January 1, 1995	15	3	104 (2013)	92	79	16.5	2,638.70	0
Red Deer County	January 1, 1944	8	7		19,541	18,316	6.7	3,961.85	4.9
Rocky View County	January 1, 1955	6	9	38,055[40] (2013)	39,407	35,754	10.2	3,836.33	10.3
Saddle Hills County	January 1, 1995	19	7		2,225	2,288	−2.8	5,838.15	0.4
Smoky Lake County	March 1, 1943	12	5		4,107	3,910	5.0	3,412.92	1.2
Smoky River MD of Smoky River No. 130	January 1, 1952	19	6		2,023	2,126	−4.8	2,840.14	0.7
Spirit River MD of Spirit River No. 133	December 11, 1916	19	4		700	713	−1.8	683.60	1
St. Paul County of St. Paul No. 19	January 30, 1942	12	7	6,168 (2012)	5,827	5,405	7.8	3,309.44	1.8
Starland County	February 1, 1943	5	5	2,071 (2013)	2,066	2,057	0.4	2,559.95	0.8
Stettler County of Stettler No. 6	March 1, 1943	7	7		5,322	5,103	4.3	4,018.84	1.3
Sturgeon County	January 1, 1955	11	7		20,495	19,578	4.7	2,090.13	9.8
Taber MD of Taber	January 1, 1954	2	7	7,173 (2016)	7,098	6,851	3.6	4,201.65	1.7
Thorhild County	January 1, 1955	13	5		3,254	3,417	−4.8	2,001.74	1.6
Two Hills County of Two Hills No. 21	January 1, 1944	10	5		3,322	3,160	5.1	2,637.18	1.3
Vermilion River County of Vermilion River	January 1, 1944	10	7	8,116 (2015)	8,267	7,905	4.6	5,519.75	1.5
Vulcan County	January 1, 1951	5	7	3,839 (2012)	3,984	3,875	2.8	5,433.43	0.7
Wainwright MD of Wainwright No. 61	January 30, 1942	7	7		4,479	4,138	8.2	4,156.56	1.1
Warner County of Warner No. 5	January 1, 1954	2	7		3,847	3,841	0.2	4,531.55	0.8
Westlock County	February 1, 1943	13	7		7,220	7,644	−5.5	3,171.83	2.3
Wetaskiwin County of Wetaskiwin No. 10	February 1, 1943	11	7		11,181	10,866	2.9	3,132.06	3.6
Wheatland County	January 1, 1955	5	7		8,788	8,285	6.1	4,545.92	1.9
Willow Creek MD of Willow Creek No. 26	January 1, 1954	3	7		5,179	5,107	1.4	4,558.14	1.1
Woodlands County	January 1, 1994	13	7	4,612 (2014)	4,754	4,306	10.4	7,669.13	0.6
Yellowhead County	January 1, 1994	14	9		10,995	10,469	5.0	22,293.16	0.5
Total municipal districts	—	—	437	—	479,167	4,560,664	5.1	399,087.25	1.2

According to Section 581 of the Municipal Government Act (MGA), Alberta's Lieutenant Governor in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Municipal Affairs, may form an improvement district. Section 582 of the MGA requires that the order to form an improvement district must describe its boundaries and give it an official name.

Alberta currently has seven improvement districts, which have a combined population totaling 2,146.^[41] With some exceptions, their boundaries are coterminous with that of a national or provincial park. Five of them are located within national parks, and two are within provincial parks.

Improvement districts of Alberta

Name	Incorporation date (improvement district)[42]	Population (2011)[41]	Population (2006)[41]	Change (%)[41]	Land area (km2)[41]	Population density (per km2)[41]	Remarks
004Improvement District No. 4 (Waterton)	January 1, 1944	88	160	−45.0	480.58	0.18	Coincident with Waterton Lakes National Park
009Improvement District No. 9 (Banff)	April 1, 1945	1,175	938	25.3	6,782.23	0.17	Coincident with Banff National Park excluding the Town of Banff
012Improvement District No. 12 (Jasper National Park)	April 1, 1945	34	24	41.7	10,181.58	0.003	Coincident with Jasper National Park excluding the Municipality of Jasper
013Improvement District No. 13 (Elk Island)	April 1, 1958	10	21	−52.4	165.28	0.06	Coincident with Elk Island National Park
024Improvement District No. 24 (Wood Buffalo)	January 1, 1967	590	422	39.8	33,412.25	0.02	Coincident with the Alberta portion of Wood Buffalo National Park excluding Peace Point 222
025Improvement District No. 25 (Willmore Wilderness)	January 2, 1994	0	0	—	4,604.97	0.0	Coincident with Willmore Wilderness Park
KananaskisKananaskis Improvement District	January 1, 1983	249	429	−42.0	4,210.72	0.06	Consists mostly of Kananaskis Country
Total improvement districts	—	2,463	1,994	7.6	65,642.17	0.03	—

Special areas are rural municipalities created in 1938 under the authority of the Special Areas Act.^[2][5] A special area is not to be confused with a specialized municipality, which is a completely different municipal status.

Alberta's three special areas had a combined population totalling 4,184 in 2016.^[4]

Special areas of Alberta

Special area	Incorporation date (special area)[43]	Population (2016)[44]	Population (2011)[44]	Change (%)[44]	Area (km2)[44]	Population density (/km2)[44]
Special Area No. 2	April 7, 1959	1,905	2,025	−5.9	9,347.57	0.20
Special Area No. 3	April 7, 1959	1,042	1,122	−7.1	6,625.58	0.16
Special Area No. 4	January 1, 1969	1,237	1,352	−8.5	4,402.64	0.28
Total special areas	—	4,184	4,499	−7.0	20,375.79	0.21

An urban service area is a type of hamlet that is not officially defined under the Municipal Government Act (MGA). However, the province of Alberta recognizes it as equivalent to a city for the purposes of program delivery and grant eligibility according to the Orders in Council that established the Regional Municipality (RM) of Wood Buffalo and Strathcona County as specialized municipalities.^[45][46]

These Orders in Council (see Schedule 1, Section 7^[45] and Schedule 1, Section 3^[46] respectively) also state that:

• the specialized municipalities shall provide to the province of Alberta any information required to administer programs or to determine the amount of grants which would have been paid if the urban service areas were incorporated cities; and
• for the purposes of enactments affecting roads, culverts, ditches, drains, and highways, the urban service areas are deemed to be cities.

Essentially, urban services areas meet the eligibility requirements of the MGA to incorporate as a city. As such, they are Alberta's largest hamlets.

There are currently two urban services areas in Alberta:

• Fort McMurray; and
• Sherwood Park.

Fort McMurray, within the jurisdiction of the RM of Wood Buffalo, was formerly a city prior its amalgamation with Improvement District No. 143 on April 1, 1995. It was designated an urban service area at the time of the amalgamation.^[45]

Sherwood Park has always been an unincorporated community under the jurisdiction of Strathcona County. It became an urban service area when Strathcona County changed its status from a municipal district to a specialized municipality on January 1, 1996.^[46]

According to Section 59 of the Municipal Government Act (MGA), hamlets are unincorporated communities that:

• consist of five or more buildings used as dwellings, a majority of which are on parcels of land smaller than 1,850 m² (19,900 sq ft);
• have a generally accepted boundary and name; and
• contain parcels of land that are used for non‑residential purposes.^[1]

Further, Section 59 of the MGA provides the councils of municipal districts (or counties) and specialized municipalities the authority to designate unincorporated communities within its boundaries as hamlets.^[1][5] Hamlets may also be designated within improvement districts and special areas by the Minister of Municipal Affairs pursuant to Section 590 of the MGA and Section 10 of the Special Areas Act respectively.^[1][2]

When a hamlet's population reaches 300, it becomes eligible to incorporated as a village under Section 80 of the MGA, so long as the majority of the buildings are still on parcels of land smaller than 1,850 m² (19,900 sq ft).^[1] However, it is a modern-day rarity for a hamlet to incorporate as a village – Barnwell and Wabamun were the last two to do so both on January 1, 1980. It is much more common these days for villages to revert to hamlet status through the dissolution process instead.

There are currently 403 hamlets in Alberta, two of which are the urban services areas presented above.^[47]

Hamlets of Alberta

Name[48]	Specialized or rural municipality[49]	Latest population	Census year
Abee	Thorhild County	27	2009[50]
Acadia Valley	Acadia No. 34, MD of	143	2021[51]
Aetna	Cardston County	109
Alcomdale	Sturgeon County	65
Alder Flats	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	137
Aldersyde	Foothills County	64	2003[52]
Alhambra	Clearwater County	64	1991[53]
Altario	Special Area No. 4	26
Antler Lake	Strathcona County	439	2024[54]
Anzac	Wood Buffalo, RM of	506	2021[51]
Ardenode	Wheatland County	0	2016[55]
Ardley	Red Deer County	17	1991[53]
Ardmore	Bonnyville No. 87, MD of	317	2021[56]
Ardrossan	Strathcona County	1,238	2024[54]
Armena	Camrose County	37	2021[51]
Ashmont	St. Paul No. 19, County of	125
Atmore	Athabasca County	10
Balzac	Rocky View County	1	2006[52]
Beauvallon	Two Hills No. 21, County of	7	1991[53]
Beaver Crossing	Bonnyville No. 87, MD of	18
Beaver Lake	Lac La Biche County	467	2021[51]
Beaver Mines	Pincher Creek No. 9, MD of	85
Beaverdam	Bonnyville No. 87, MD of	18	2014[57]
Beazer	Cardston County	11	2008[52]
Bellis[N 6]	Smoky Lake County	60	2021[51]
Benalto	Red Deer County	198
Benchlands	Bighorn No. 8, MD of	59
Benton	Special Area No. 3
Bezanson	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	133	2021[51]
Bindloss	Special Area No. 2	14	1991[53]
Bircham	Kneehill County	5	2021[51]
Blackfoot	Vermilion River, County of	386
Blackie[N 7]	Foothills County	360
Blue Ridge	Woodlands County	211
Bluesky	Fairview No. 136, MD of	113
Bluffton	Ponoka County	140
Bodo	Provost No. 52, MD of	30
Botha	Stettler No. 6, County of	180
Bottrel	Rocky View County	5	2018[58]
Bow City	Newell, County of	16	2020[59]
Bragg Creek	Rocky View County	432	2021[51]
Brant	Vulcan County	78	2007[52]
Breynat	Athabasca County	22	1991[53]
Brosseau	Two Hills No. 21, County of	13	1981[60]
Brownfield	Paintearth No. 18, County of	27	1991[53]
Brownvale	Peace No. 135, MD of	114	2021[51]
Bruce	Beaver County	65
Brule	Yellowhead County	127
Buck Creek	Brazeau County	107	2005[61]
Buck Lake	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	60	2021[51]
Buffalo	Special Area No. 2
Buffalo Lakes	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of
Buford	Leduc County	33	2021[51]
Burdett[N 8]	Forty Mile No. 8, County of	331
Busby	Westlock County	135
Byemoor	Stettler No. 6, County of	30
Cadogan[N 9]	Provost No. 52, MD of	108
Cadomin	Yellowhead County	54
Cadotte Lake	Northern Sunrise County	23
Calahoo	Sturgeon County	143
Calling Lake	Opportunity No. 17, MD of	375
Campsie	Barrhead No. 11, County of
Canyon Creek	Lesser Slave River No. 124, MD of	318	2021[51]
Carbondale	Sturgeon County	78
Cardiff	Sturgeon County	1,033
Carolside	Special Area No. 2
Carseland	Wheatland County	542	2021[51]
Carvel	Parkland County	19	2009[62]
Carway	Cardston County	2	2008[52]
Caslan	Athabasca County	23	1991[53]
Cassils	Newell, County of	22	2020[59]
Cavendish	Special Area No. 2	26	1986[63]
Cayley[N 10]	Foothills County	414	2021[51]
Cereal	Special Area No. 3	111	2021[64]
Cessford	Special Area No. 2	31	1991[53]
Chancellor	Wheatland County	5	2021[51]
Cheadle	Wheatland County	83
Cherhill	Lac Ste. Anne County	60	2008[52]
Cherry Grove	Bonnyville No. 87, MD of	405	2014[57]
Chin	Lethbridge County	83	2021[51]
Chinook[N 11]	Special Area No. 3	38	1991[53]
Chisholm	Lesser Slave River No. 124, MD of	15	2021[51]
Clairmont[N 12]	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	5,135	2021[65]
Clandonald	Vermilion River, County of	117	2021[51]
Cleardale	Clear Hills County	19	2008[52]
Cluny[N 13]	Wheatland County	50	2021[51]
Cochrane Lake	Rocky View County	767
Colinton	Athabasca County	169
Collingwood Cove	Strathcona County	371	2024[54]
Compeer[N 14]	Special Area No. 4	21	1991[53]
Condor	Clearwater County	99
Conklin	Wood Buffalo, RM of	154	2021[51]
Conrich	Rocky View County	15
Craigmyle[N 15]	Starland County	79	2013[66]
Cynthia[N 16]	Brazeau County	50	2005[61]
Dalemead	Rocky View County	25	2021[51]
Dalroy	Rocky View County	39
Dalum	Wheatland County
Dapp	Westlock County	30	2021[51]
Darwell	Lac Ste. Anne County	30	1981[60]
De Winton	Foothills County	98	2003[52]
Dead Man's Flats	Bighorn No. 8, MD of	377	2021[51]
Deadwood	Northern Lights, County of	22	1991[53]
DeBolt	Greenview No. 16, MD of	132	2021[51]
Del Bonita	Cardston County	6	2008[52]
Delacour	Rocky View County	5	2021[51]
Demmitt	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of
Derwent[N 17]	Two Hills No. 21, County of	96	2021[51]
Desert Blume	Cypress County	835
Dewberry	Vermilion River, County of	161	2021[68]
Diamond City[N 18]	Lethbridge County	204	2021[51]
Dickson	Red Deer County	50
Dimsdale	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	25	1981[60]
Dixonville	Northern Lights, County of	96	2021[51]
Donatville	Athabasca County	0	2016[55]
Dorothy	Special Area No. 2	14	1991[53]
Duffield	Parkland County	60	2021[51]
Duhamel	Camrose County	46
Dunmore[N 19]	Cypress County	1,088
Duvernay	Two Hills No. 21, County of	26	1991[53]
Eaglesham[N 20]	Birch Hills County	76	2021[51]
Edwand	Smoky Lake County	2	1986[63]
Egremont	Thorhild County	46	2021[51]
Ellscott	Athabasca County	5
Elmworth	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	8	1981[60]
Enchant[N 21]	Taber, MD of	259	2016[69]
Endiang	Stettler No. 6, County of	15	2021[51]
Enilda	Big Lakes County	145
Ensign	Vulcan County	26	2007[52]
Entwistle[N 22]	Parkland County	429	2021[51]
Erskine[N 23]	Stettler No. 6, County of	319
Esther	Special Area No. 3
Etzikom	Forty Mile No. 8, County of	54	1991[53]
Evansburg[N 24]	Yellowhead County	717	2021[51]
Excel	Special Area No. 3
Exshaw	Bighorn No. 8, MD of	449	2021[51]
Fabyan	Wainwright No. 61, MD of	100	2007[52]
Fairview	Lethbridge County	165	2021[51]
Fallis	Parkland County	54	2009[62]
Falun	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	25	1991[53]
Faust	Big Lakes County	282	2021[51]
Fawcett	Westlock County	60
Federal	Paintearth No. 18, County of	19	1991[53]
Ferintosh[N 25]	Camrose County	180	2021[51]
Flatbush	Lesser Slave River No. 124, MD of	30
Fleet	Paintearth No. 18, County of	28	1991[53]
Fort Assiniboine[N 26]	Woodlands County	158	2021[51]
Fort Chipewyan	Wood Buffalo, RM of	798
Fort Kent	Bonnyville No. 87, MD of	254
Fort McKay	Wood Buffalo, RM of	57[N 27]	2021[70]
Fort McMurray[N 28]	Wood Buffalo, RM of	68,002[N 29]	2021[71]
Fort Vermilion	Mackenzie County	753	2021[51]
Gadsby	Stettler No. 6, County of	36
Gainford	Parkland County	118
Galahad[N 30]	Flagstaff County	125
Gasoline Alley	Red Deer County[73]
Gem	Newell, County of	29	2020[59]
Gleichen[N 31]	Wheatland County	314	2021[51]
Glenevis	Lac Ste. Anne County	49	2008[52]
Goodfare	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	11	1986[63]
Goose Lake[N 32]	Woodlands County	11	unpublished[74]
Grande Cache[N 33]	Greenview No. 16, MD of	3,276	2021[51]
Granum	Willow Creek No. 26, MD of	557
Grassland	Athabasca County	46
Grassy Lake[N 34]	Taber, MD of	856
Green Court	Lac Ste. Anne County	51	2008[52]
Greenshields	Wainwright No. 61, MD of	80	2007[52]
Gregoire Lake Estates	Wood Buffalo, RM of	138	2021[51]
Grouard[N 35]	Big Lakes County	166
Grovedale	Greenview No. 16, MD of	138	unpublished[74]
Gunn	Lac Ste. Anne County	26	2021[51]
Guy	Smoky River No. 130, MD of	57	1991[53]
Gwynne	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	93	2021[51]
Hairy Hill[N 36]	Two Hills No. 21, County of	30[N 37]	2001[76]
Half Moon Lake[N 38]	Strathcona County	206	2024[54]
Halcourt	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of
Harmony[77]	Rocky View County	757	2021[51]
Hartell	Foothills County	13	1991[53]
Harvie Heights	Bighorn No. 8, MD of	163	2021[51]
Hastings Lake	Strathcona County	110	2024[54]
Haynes	Lacombe County	15	2021[51]
Hays	Taber, MD of	196
Hayter	Provost No. 52, MD of	84
Heinsburg	St. Paul No. 19, County of	60	1991[53]
Hemaruka	Special Area No. 4
Heritage Pointe	Foothills County	1,974[N 39]	2021[71]
Herronton	Vulcan County	10	2007[52]
Hesketh	Kneehill County	10	2021[51]
Hilda	Cypress County	40
Hilliard	Lamont County	35	1991[53]
Hoadley	Ponoka County	9
Huallen	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	28
Huxley	Kneehill County	75	2021[51]
Hylo	Lac La Biche County	33	2016[78]
Hythe	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	854	2021[79]
Iddesleigh	Special Area No. 2	14	1991[53]
Indus	Rocky View County	36	2021[51]
Iron River	Bonnyville No. 87, MD of
Iron Springs	Lethbridge County	84	2021[51]
Irvine[N 40]	Cypress County	321	2021[80]
Islay[N 41]	Vermilion River, County of	177	2021[51]
Janet	Rocky View County	1	2006[52]
Janvier South[N 42]	Wood Buffalo, RM of	61	2021[51]
Jarvie	Westlock County	103
Jean Cote	Smoky River No. 130, MD of	65	1991[53]
Jenner[N 43]	Special Area No. 2	35	1986[63]
Joffre	Lacombe County	128	2021[51]
Johnson's Addition	Taber, MD of	126
Josephburg	Strathcona County	122	2024[54]
Joussard	Big Lakes County	334	2021[51]
Kathyrn	Rocky View County	21
Kavanagh	Leduc County	39
Keephills	Parkland County	57
Kelsey	Camrose County	15
Keoma	Rocky View County	95
Kimball	Cardston County	26	2008[52]
Kingman	Camrose County	78	2021[51]
Kinsella	Beaver County	40	2009[81]
Kinuso[N 44]	Big Lakes County	150	2021[51]
Kipp	Lethbridge County	12	1981[60]
Kirkcaldy	Vulcan County	12	2007[52]
Kirriemuir	Special Area No. 4	28	1991[53]
La Corey	Bonnyville No. 87, MD of	59	2014[57]
La Crete	Mackenzie County	3,856	2021[51]
La Glace	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	179
Lac des Arcs	Bighorn No. 8, MD of	146
Lac La Biche[N 45]	Lac La Biche County	3,215	2021[56]
Lafond	St. Paul No. 19, County of	35	1991[53]
Lake Louise	I.D. No. 9 (Banff)	691	2011[83]
Lake Newell Resort	Newell, County of	457	2021[51]
Lamoureux	Sturgeon County	60	2008[52]
Landry Heights	Greenview No. 16, MD of	114	1991[53]
Lanfine	Special Area No. 3
Langdon[N 46]	Rocky View County	5,497	2021[51]
Lavoy[N 47]	Minburn No. 27, County of	108	2001[84]
Leavitt	Cardston County	59	2008[52]
Leedale	Ponoka County	11	1991[53]
Leslieville	Clearwater County	134	2021[51]
Lindbergh	St. Paul No. 19, County of	50	1991[53]
Linn Valley	Red Deer County	218	2021[51]
Little Buffalo	Northern Sunrise County	441	2021[79]
Little Smoky	Greenview No. 16, MD of	28	1991[53]
Lodgepole[N 48]	Brazeau County	117	2021[51]
Long Lake	Thorhild County	81
Looma	Leduc County	33
Lottie Lake	St. Paul No. 19, County of	94[N 49]	1991[53]
Lousana	Red Deer County	42	2021[51]
Lowland Heights	Pincher Creek No. 9, MD of	43
Loyalist	Special Area No. 4	8	1986[63]
Lundbreck	Pincher Creek No. 9, MD of	289	2021[51]
Lyalta	Wheatland County	480
Lymburn	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of
Madden	Rocky View County	10	2021[51]
Mallaig	St. Paul No. 19, County of	210
Manola	Barrhead No. 11, County of	29	1991[53]
Manyberries	Forty Mile No. 8, County of	96
Marie Reine	Northern Sunrise County	67	2010[85]
Markerville	Red Deer County	38	2021[51]
Marlboro	Yellowhead County	97
Marten Beach	Lesser Slave River No. 124, MD of	38	1991[53]
Maskwacis (formerly Hobbema)[86]	Ponoka County	64	2021[51]
McLaughlin	Vermilion River, County of	41	2015[87]
Meanook	Athabasca County	35	2021[51]
Mearns	Sturgeon County	10	2008[52]
Meeting Creek	Camrose County	0	2021[51]
Metiskow	Provost No. 52, MD of	65[N 50]	1991[53]
Michichi	Starland County	34	2013[66]
Millarville	Foothills County	58	2003[52]
Minburn[N 51]	Minburn No. 27, County of	78	2021[51]
Mirror[N 52]	Lacombe County	481
Mitsue Lake Industrial	Lesser Slave River No. 124, MD of	68	1986[63]
Monarch[N 53]	Lethbridge County	217	2021[51]
Monitor[N 54]	Special Area No. 4	60	1991[53]
Moon River Estates	Willow Creek No. 26, MD of	145	2021[51]
Morecambe	Two Hills No. 21, County of	23	1981[60]
Morningside	Lacombe County	85	2021[51]
Mossleigh	Vulcan County	53	2007[52]
Mountain View[N 55]	Cardston County	87	2021[51]
Mulhurst Bay[N 56]	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	447
Musidora	Two Hills No. 21, County of	13	1991[53]
Namaka	Wheatland County	72	2021[51]
Namao	Sturgeon County	10	2010[89]
Naphtha	Foothills County	27	1991[53]
Neerlandia	Barrhead No. 11, County of	101	1991[53]
Nestow	Westlock County	5	2021[51]
Nevis	Stettler No. 6, County of	30
New Brigden	Special Area No. 3	24	1991[53]
New Dayton	Warner No. 5, County of	47
New Norway[N 57]	Camrose County	307	2021[51]
New Sarepta[N 58]	Leduc County	495
Newbrook	Thorhild County	63
Nightingale	Wheatland County	37
Nisku	Leduc County	30	2005[92]
Niton Junction	Yellowhead County	88	2021[51]
Nordegg	Clearwater County	53	1986[63]
North Cooking Lake	Strathcona County	53	2024[54]
North Star	Northern Lights, County of	49	1991[53]
Notikewin	Northern Lights, County of	17
Ohaton[N 59]	Camrose County	133	2021[51]
Opal	Thorhild County	24	2009[50]
Orion	Forty Mile No. 8, County of	11	1991[53]
Orton	Willow Creek No. 26, MD of	180	2021[51]
Parkland	Willow Creek No. 26, MD of	50	1991[53]
Patricia	Newell, County of	78	2021[51]
Peers	Yellowhead County	91
Pelican Point	Camrose County	117
Peoria	Birch Hills County	12	1986[63]
Perryvale	Athabasca County	10	2021[51]
Pibroch	Westlock County	35
Pickardville	Westlock County	303
Pincher Station	Pincher Creek No. 9, MD of	26
Pine Sands	Sturgeon County	30	2008[52]
Plamondon[N 60]	Lac La Biche County	501	2021[56]
Poplar Ridge	Brazeau County	604	2005[61]
Priddis	Foothills County	79	2003[52]
Priddis Greens	Foothills County	267
Purple Springs	Taber, MD of	101	2021[51]
Queenstown	Vulcan County	8	2007[52]
Radway[N 61]	Thorhild County	231	2021[51]
Rainier	Newell, County of	22	2020[59]
Ranfurly[N 62]	Minburn No. 27, County of	71	2021[51]
Red Earth Creek	Opportunity No. 17, MD of	315
Red Willow	Stettler No. 6, County of	63
Redland	Wheatland County	20
Reno	Northern Sunrise County	20
Rich Valley	Lac Ste. Anne County	32	2008[52]
Richdale[N 63]	Special Area No. 2	14	1991[53]
Ridgevalley	Greenview No. 16, MD of	46
Rivercourse	Vermilion River, County of	16	2015[93]
Riverview	St. Paul No. 19, County of	49	1991[53]
Rivière Qui Barre	Sturgeon County	91	2021[51]
Robb	Yellowhead County	144
Rochester	Athabasca County	72
Rochfort Bridge	Lac Ste. Anne County	71	2008[52]
Rocky Rapids	Brazeau County	317	2005[61]
Rolling Hills	Newell, County of	273	2021[51]
Rolly View	Leduc County	71
Rosebud[N 64]	Wheatland County	112
Roselynn	Special Area No. 2
Round Hill	Camrose County	125	2021[51]
Rowley	Starland County	8	2013[66]
Rumsey[N 65]	Starland County	64
Sandy Lake[N 66]	Opportunity No. 17, MD of	163	2021[51]
Sangudo[N 67]	Lac Ste. Anne County	298
Saprae Creek	Wood Buffalo, RM of	658	2021[70]
Scandia	Newell, County of	169	2021[51]
Scapa	Special Area No. 2
Schuler	Cypress County	86	2021[51]
Scotfield	Special Area No. 2
Sedalia	Special Area No. 3	15	1991[53]
Seven Persons	Cypress County	277	2021[51]
Shaughnessy	Lethbridge County	388
Sheerness	Special Area No. 2	25	1986[63]
Sherwood Park[N 68]	Strathcona County	75,575	2024[54]
Shouldice	Vulcan County	7	2007[52]
Sibbald	Special Area No. 3	33	1991[53]
Skiff	Forty Mile No. 8, County of	10
Smith	Lesser Slave River No. 124, MD of	227	2021[51]
South Cooking Lake	Strathcona County	291	2024[54]
Spedden	Smoky Lake County	56	1991[53]
Spring Coulee	Cardston County	43	2008[52]
Springbrook	Red Deer County	1,534	2021[51]
Spruce View	Red Deer County	138
St. Edouard	St. Paul No. 19, County of	33	1991[53]
St. Francis	Leduc County	15	1991[53]
St. Isidore	Northern Sunrise County	236	2021[51]
St. Lina	St. Paul No. 19, County of	24	1991[53]
St. Michael	Lamont County	39
St. Vincent	St. Paul No. 19, County of	43
Stanmore	Special Area No. 2
Star	Lamont County	32	1991[53]
Streamstown	Vermilion River, County of	20	2015[94]
Strome[N 69]	Flagstaff County	232	2021[51]
Suffield[N 70]	Cypress County	190
Sunnybrook	Leduc County	50
Sunnynook	Special Area No. 2	13	1991[53]
Sunnyslope	Kneehill County	28	2021[51]
Swalwell[N 71]	Kneehill County	93
Tangent	Birch Hills County	39	1991[53]
Tawatinaw	Westlock County	15	2021[51]
Teepee Creek	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	25	1981[60]
Tees	Lacombe County	73	2021[51]
Telfordville	Leduc County	35
Therien	Bonnyville No. 87, MD of	71	2014[57]
Thorhild[N 72]	Thorhild County	391	2021[51]
Throne	Paintearth No. 18, County of
Thunder Lake	Barrhead No. 11, County of	34	1991[53]
Tilley[N 73]	Newell, County of	318	2021[51]
Tillicum Beach	Camrose County	130
Tomahawk	Parkland County	113
Torrington[N 74]	Kneehill County	239	2021[56]
Travers	Vulcan County	0	2007[52]
Tulliby Lake	Vermilion River, County of	22	2015[97]
Turin	Lethbridge County	72	2021[51]
Twin Butte	Pincher Creek No. 9, MD of	10
Valhalla Centre	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	40
Veinerville	Cypress County	70
Venice	Lac La Biche County	22	2016[78]
Village at Pigeon Lake	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	77	2006[52]
Villeneuve	Sturgeon County	260	2021[51]
Vimy	Westlock County	183
Violet Grove	Brazeau County	141	2005[61]
Wabamun	Parkland County	644	2021[98]
Wabasca[N 75]	Opportunity No. 17, MD of	1,594	2021[51]
Wagner	Lesser Slave River No. 124, MD of	171[N 76]	1991[53]
Walsh[N 77]	Cypress County	50	2021[51]
Wandering River	Athabasca County	63	1991[53]
Wanham[N 78]	Birch Hills County	141	2021[51]
Wardlow	Special Area No. 2	28	1991[53]
Warspite[N 79]	Smoky Lake County	70	2021[51]
Waterton Park	I.D. No. 4 (Waterton)	132	2021[56]
Watino	Birch Hills County	22	1991[53]
Watts	Special Area No. 2
Wedgewood	Grande Prairie No. 1, County of	752	2021[51]
Welling	Cardston County	30	2008[52]
Welling Station	Cardston County	18
Westerose	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	63	1991[53]
Whitelaw	Fairview No. 136, MD of	110	2021[51]
Whitford	Lamont County	6	1981[60]
Whitla	Forty Mile No. 8, County of
Widewater	Lesser Slave River No. 124, MD of	405	2021[51]
Wildwood[N 80]	Yellowhead County	257
Willingdon	Two Hills No. 21, County of	249
Wimborne	Kneehill County	15
Winfield	Wetaskiwin No. 10, County of	193
Winnifred	Forty Mile No. 8, County of	52	1956[99]
Withrow	Clearwater County	50	1991[53]
Woking	Saddle Hills County	62	2021[51]
Woodhouse	Willow Creek No. 26, MD of	15	1991[53]
Woolford	Cardston County	13	1986[63]
Worsley	Clear Hills County	28	2008[52]
Wostok	Lamont County	15	1991[53]
Wrentham	Warner No. 5, County of	58
Zama City	Mackenzie County	52	2021[51]

A townsite is a type of unincorporated community that is not officially defined under the Municipal Government Act (MGA), but it is generally regarded as an independent urban area within an Indian reserve that is comparable in population, land area, services, and built form, to that of Alberta's incorporated towns. Essentially, townsites would meet the eligibility requirements of the MGA to incorporate as a town if they were not on Indian reserve lands under federal jurisdiction.

Redwood Meadows is Alberta's only townsite at this time and is located within the Tsuutʼina Nation.

Métis settlements are rural areas inhabited by the indigenous Métis in Alberta and were established and recognized in 1936 under the Métis Population Betterment Act. The settlements provide an autonomous land base, allow better access to education, health and other social services, and provide economic development opportunities for the only recognized Métis land-base in Canada.^[3] Métis settlements now operate under the authority of the Métis Settlements Act.^[5] These eight Métis settlements are governed by a unique Métis government known as the Métis Settlements General Council (MSGC).

Alberta currently has eight Métis settlements, all of which are in the northern half of the province. The official names of the eight settlements, and the municipal districts they are within, are as follows:

Métis settlements of Alberta

List of Metis settlements in Alberta

Name	Municipal district or specialized municipality[100]	2021 Census of Population[35]
		Population (2021)	Population (2016)	Change (%)	Land area (km2)	Population density (/km2)
Buffalo Lake	Smoky Lake County	379	712	−46.8%	335.68	1.1
East Prairie	Big Lakes County	310	304	+2.0%	328.42	0.9
Elizabeth	BonnyvilleMD of Bonnyville No. 87	594	653	−9.0%	246.45	2.4
Fishing Lake	BonnyvilleMD of Bonnyville No. 87	414	446	−7.2%	348.64	1.2
Gift Lake[j]	Big Lakes County Northern Sunrise County	625	658	−5.0%	803.29	0.8
Kikino[k]	Smoky Lake County Lac La Biche County	978	934	+4.7%	441.69	2.2
Paddle Prairie	Northern LightsCounty of Northern Lights	551	544	+1.3%	1,726.45	0.3
Peavine	Big Lakes County	387	607	−36.2%	798.95	0.5
Total Metis settlements		4,238	4,858	−12.8%	5,029.57	0.8
Province of Alberta		4,262,635	4,067,175	+4.8%	634,658.27	6.7

*Areas generated from provincial Métis settlement boundary data.

Very small portions of the Gift Lake Métis Settlement and the Kikino Métis Settlement are also located within Northern Sunrise County and Lac La Biche County respectively.

Alberta's eight Métis settlements have a combined population totalling 5,632 as of 2018.^[4]

Indian reserves in Alberta cover a total area of 656,660 ha (1,622,630 acres) and range in size from 441 ha (1,089 acres) to 143,529 ha (354,667 acres).^[5] Under the Constitution Act, 1982, legislative authority over Indian reserves is allocated to the Parliament of Canada. The Government of Canada exercises executive authority over Indian reserves through