PHOENIX, Ariz. and SARNIA, Ont. (Jan. 13, 2025) — Sarnia is the No. 21 Canadian growth city of 2024, according to U-Haul® Growth Index data analyzing for one-way customer transactions during the past year.
U-Haul customers coming to Sarnia accounted for 52% of all one-way traffic in and out of the market (48% departures) in 2024 to make it a top destination.
Analyzing year-over-year changes, U-Haul arrivals into Sarnia rose 8% while departures rose 7%. Sarnia was also 21st among growth cities for 2023 and has been ranked on the U-Haul top 25 list for six years in a row.
“Sarnia continues to be a top city to live in because of the job opportunities within the oil industry,” stated David Anstett, U-Haul Company of Western Ontario president. “There are many oil refineries here because the oil pipeline that comes in from western Canada gets refined in Sarnia. There are a lot of big companies that have plants here and help bring in job opportunities. Some of those are Imperial Oil®, NOVA® Chemicals and Shell® … just to name a few.”
U-Haul ranks growth cities by each city’s net gain or loss of one-way equipment from customer transactions in a calendar year. The U-Haul Growth Index is compiled from more than 2.5 million one-way U-Haul truck, trailer and U-Box® portable moving container transactions that occur annually across Canada and the U.S.
Alberta is the top U-Haul growth province for the second year in a row, followed by BC. Ontario ranks last with the largest net loss of one-way U-Haul movers. Provincial migration trends were very similar to 2023 — the biggest change was Newfoundland & Labrador’s climb up the rankings from seventh to third.
2024 Top 25 Canadian Growth Cities
| 1. | CALGARY, AB (1) |
| 2. | EDMONTON, AB (3) |
| 3. | BELLEVILLE, ON (20) |
| 4. | TRENTON, ON (14) |
| 5. | PEMBROKE, ON |
| 6. | BRANTFORD, ON (10) |
| 7. | MEDICINE HAT-REDCLIFF, AB |
| 8. | COLLINGWOOD, ON (11) |
| 9. | PARRY SOUND, ON |
| 10. | CHATHAM-KENT, ON (7) |
| 11. | INNISFIL, ON |
| 12. | SAINT THOMAS, ON |
| 13. | BARRIE, ON |
| 14. | WOODSTOCK, ON |
| 15. | LINDSAY, ON |
| 16. | CHILLIWACK, BC (23) |
| 17. | OWEN SOUND-MEAFORD, ON |
| 18. | PETERBOROUGH, ON |
| 19. | SYDNEY, NS |
| 20. | SIDNEY, BC |
| 21. | SARNIA, ON (21) |
| 22. | TRAIL, BC |
| 23. | KELOWNA, BC (4) |
| 24. | ORILLIA, ON (12) |
| 25. | NANAIMO, BC (17) |
2023 growth rankings in parentheses
2024 Canadian Growth Provinces
| 1. | ALBERTA (1) |
| 2. | BRITISH COLUMBIA (2) |
| 3. | NEWFOUNDLAND & LABRADOR (7) |
| 4. | NEW BRUNSWICK (3) |
| 5. | SASKATCHEWAN (4) |
| 6. | PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND (6) |
| 7. | QUEBEC (5) |
| 8. | MANITOBA (8) |
| 9. | NOVA SCOTIA (9) |
| 10. | ONTARIO (10) |
2023 growth rankings in parentheses
While U-Haul migration trends do not correlate directly to population or economic growth, the U-Haul Growth Index is an effective gauge of how well cities and provinces are attracting and maintaining residents.
U-Haul is the authority on migration trends thanks to its expansive network that blankets all 10 Canadian provinces and 50 American states. The geographical coverage from 23,000 U-Haul truck- and trailer-sharing locations provides a broad overview of where people are moving like no one else in the industry.
U-Haul continues to benefit the environment through its shared-use business model. Truck and trailer sharing enables communities to share moving equipment so that families and individuals don’t need to own large-capacity vehicles to transfer belongings. Sustainability initiatives like U-Haul Adaptive Reuse (the preserving and repurposing of existing buildings for new stores), truck modifications to improve fuel economy, and plastic Ready-To-Go Boxes® that are shared hundreds of times before being recycled are among the ways U-Haul promotes green business. U-Box Load Share, the Company’s latest sustainability program, continues to receive awards for providing environmentally friendly solutions to today’s gig economy.
About U-HAUL
Founded in 1945, U-Haul is the No. 1 choice of do-it-yourself movers with more than 23,000 rental locations across all 50 states and 10 Canadian provinces. The U-Haul app makes it easy for customers to use U-Haul Truck Share 24/7 to access trucks anytime through the self-dispatch and -return options on their smartphones with our patented Live Verify technology. Our customers’ patronage has enabled the U-Haul fleet to grow to 192,000 trucks, 138,700 trailers and 39,500 towing devices. U-Haul is the third largest self-storage operator in North America with 1,024,000 rentable units and 88.5 million square feet of self-storage space at Company-owned and -managed facilities. U-Haul is the top retailer of propane in the U.S. and the largest installer of permanent trailer hitches in the automotive aftermarket industry. Get the U-Haul app from the App Store or Google Play.
Contact:
Sydney Ellis
Jeff Lockridge
E-mail: publicrelations@uhaul.com
Phone: 602-263-6194
Website: uhaul.com
This media release was originally issued by U-Haul® and is shared here for informational purposes. All content, including statistics and statements, is attributed to U-Haul®. For further details, please visit uhaul.com