Calgary’s tech talent is soaring — and in a city full of Blue Sky thinkers, there’s even more on the horizon.
CBRE's annual Scoring Tech Talent report confirms what we’ve known all along: Calgary is a city where innovation and opportunity converge. With a 78 per cent growth rate to nearly 60,000 positions between 2018 and last year — the addition of more than 26,000 new jobs — Calgary is now the fastest-growing tech talent market in North America, proudly landing among the continent’s top 20 tech hubs.
“The latest CBRE data is a testament to Calgary’s burgeoning innovation ecosystem and the strides we’ve made in becoming a destination of choice for some of the world’s top talent,” said Calgary Economic Development President and CEO Brad Parry.
“Our top-tier livability, combined with a community focused on game-changing work, are now an even bigger draw for our city.”
So, what’s fueling this rapid ascent? It’s part of a broader vision outlined in Calgary’s economic action plan, Uplook. With initiatives driven by civic and community organizations and local businesses, the plan is designed to create a vibrant, resilient and diversified economy — and our tech sector is showcasing the success of those endeavours.
Numbers that speak volumes
With emerging sectors offering opportunities in cleantech, agtech or aerotech, Calgary’s diverse tech ecosystem is attracting innovators who want to build a career and a life in the Blue Sky City.
The numbers shared by CBRE confirm this story. The talent pipeline is flowing faster than ever, with Calgary seeing a 40 per cent jump in student enrollment in tech-tied programs over the five-year period.
Still, jobs are growing faster than Calgary’s institutions can graduate tech students, with around 21,000 more jobs created than tech degrees being awarded. This puts the city in the big leagues alongside Toronto and San Francisco and gives both homegrown talent and out-of-town professionals ample opportunity to build a life in Calgary.
It’s not just the volume of jobs that’s impressive; it’s the people filling them. Calgary is a hotspot for young and diverse talent.
The city is ranked third in North America for tech talent concentration of professionals in their 30s, just behind Austin and Seattle. When it comes to diversity, Calgary is among the top-ranked cities, with the second highest representation of underrepresented races and ethnic groups in large tech markets.
The best part? While Calgary’s tech scene is booming, it’s still relatively affordable — for both companies and talent.
Tech talent is more affordable in Calgary than in Vancouver or Toronto, making it easier for companies to grow. However, Calgary is also ranked the fifth most livable city in the world, and workers enjoy a high quality of life thanks to the city’s lower cost of living compared to other big tech hubs.
It’s a win-win for both businesses and talent looking for a vibrant and cost-effective place to call home.
Calgary offers a supportive ecosystem, access to capital
Calgary startups also get top-tier access to capital, with the city recently claiming the third highest amount of venture capital investment in the country through the first half of 2024, with $346 million invested through 33 deals. According to the Canadian Venture Capital Association, Calgary placed behind only Toronto and Montreal and topped Vancouver on the list for the first time ever.
Additionally, the Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund, launched by the City of Calgary in 2018 to accelerate the growth of Calgary’s tech and innovation ecosystem across sectors, has allocated nearly $84 million to 30 projects. In that time, the fund has created or retained over 3,000 jobs, created or scaled over 800 companies and generated almost $900 million in economic activity — a 10 times return on funds committed.
The intentional approach to build Calgary as a global centre of innovation has been noticed by accelerators and incubators, and the city is now home to over 45 of them, including Plug and Play, SVG | Thrive, Avatar Innovations, Thin Air Labs, CDL-Rockies and more. These organizations, with sectors of focus ranging from agtech and aerospace to life sciences, are preparing Calgary-based startups — and the workforce they employ — to commercialize their solutions and expand to new markets.
Deals and strong supports like those have led to Calgary fostering the development of two tech unicorns — companies valued over USD $1 billion — Neo Financial and Benevity.
While Calgary’s tech scene continues to grow, the city’s workforce is showing promising signs of resilience across the board.
Statistics Canada’s monthly labour force survey for August shows that Calgary continues to lead major Canadian cities in labour force participation, underscoring the city’s strong job market and attractiveness to talent. Calgary was the only major Canadian metro area to see a drop in unemployment in August, dipping to 7.5 per cent from 7.6, and the city’s employment rate ticked up by 0.5 percentage points, maintaining the top spot in the country at 66 per cent.
Calgary isn’t just a place to work — it’s a place to thrive. The city offers a unique blend of career opportunities and an unparalleled quality of life. From a bustling downtown to endless outdoor adventures, Calgary is drawing in talent that’s looking for more than just a paycheck.
With a thriving ecosystem that supports innovation, diversity and quality of life, Calgary is not just keeping up with global tech hubs — it’s leading the way.
Learn more about what it’s like to move to, live and work in Calgary at LifeinCalgary.ca.