About Alberta
Location
The province of Alberta is located in western Canada between the provinces of British Columbia (B.C.) to the west and Saskatchewan to the east. At our northern border is the Northwest Territories. The state of Montana marks our southern border.Considered one of Canada’s three “Prairie Provinces”—along with Manitoba and Saskatchewan—Alberta differs in that it shares the Canadian Rockies with British Columbia. Our natural border is the imaginary line of the Continental Divide that separates Alberta from B.C.
Geography
Alberta covers 661,185 sq km (255,303 sq mi), making it similar in size to Texas, three times the size of Great Britain or equal to the combined areas of France, Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands.The province has a diversity of natural terrain—parklands, grasslands, primordial badlands, vast tracts of wildlands, boreal forests and plains, ancient glaciers, thousands of lakes and rivers and the oldest mountain ranges of the “backbone” that runs the length of North and South America.
This variety of natural areas and ecosystems supports hundreds of species of wildlife, many of which are endangered or protected. Coupled with the intriguing history of Aboriginal cultures and prehistoric dinosaur remains, it is easy to see why the United Nations crowned Alberta with five of Canada’s 13 designated World Heritage Sites.
Population
The fourth largest—and fastest growing—province in Canada, Alberta’s population of more than three million people live primarily in our international gateway cities of Calgary and Edmonton. Smaller urban centres include Red Deer, Lethbridge and Medicine Hat. Our large rural population reflects our prominent agricultural industry.Alberta in Action
Learn about the Government of Alberta's priorities through the Alberta in action program.
