Community guide · Carstairs, Alberta

Living in Carstairs, Alberta: Homes, Schools & Small-Town Life

Carstairs is a friendly town of about 4,900 people on Highway 2A, about 48 km north of Calgary in Mountain View County. With an 18-hole golf course, a busy events calendar and growing neighbourhoods like Scarlett Ranch, it offers small-town living with an easy commute south. Use the map below to explore the places that matter most when you live here.

1903Became a village
4,898Residents (2021 census), up 20.1% from 2016
18 holesCarstairs Golf Club
$498,967Average benchmark price, Mountain View region, 2025 (CREB)
Interactive map

Explore Carstairs

Tap a pin, or a name in the list further down, to see what each place offers.

History & growth

From stopping house to growing town

The Carstairs area sits on trails First Nations peoples used for centuries. Sam Scarlett opened a stopping house here in 1883, and when the Calgary and Edmonton Railway arrived in 1890 the townsite grew around a loading platform a few kilometres west, named after Carstairs, Scotland. It became a village in 1903 and a town in 1966. Carstairs once had seven grain elevators and seven churches, and one of those churches is now a museum.

Services & amenities

What the town offers

Schools: Carstairs Elementary School (K–4) and Hugh Sutherland School (Grades 5–12), Chinook's Edge School Division.

Health care: the nearest hospital is Didsbury District Health Services, about 10 minutes north, with a 24/7 emergency department.

Things to do: Carstairs Golf Club, the Memorial Complex, parks and walking trails, the Bob Clark Library and the Carstairs Heritage Centre, plus the CARA Rodeo, Beef & Barley Days, Bull-A-Rama and the Pumpkin Festival. A commuter bus to Calgary leaves from the curling club.

Getting around

Distances & drive times

Didsburyabout 10 min
Crossfieldabout 15 min
Airdrieabout 30 min
Calgaryabout 48 km · 40 min
Calgary International Airportabout 40 min

Approximate drive times in good conditions.

Market trend

Mountain View region home prices

$0$200K$400K$600K$458,9752024$498,9672025+8.7%

Average annual benchmark price, all home types, for CREB's Mountain View region, which includes Carstairs. Ask me for recent sales and prices for the street or style of home you have in mind.

Around town

Key places in Carstairs

Downtown & neighbourhoods

Schools & library

Recreation

Thinking about Carstairs?

Let's find your home in Carstairs

Whether you want a newer home in Scarlett Ranch or an established street near downtown, I can help you find the right fit with an easy drive to Calgary. Reach out any time. I'm happy to answer questions, no pressure.

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