The majority of new Canadians are choosing Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver as their new hometown, a Statistics Canada report says.

According to 2006 census numbers released Tuesday, 68.9 per cent of recent immigrants chose to settle in those metropolitan areas. That's down from 73 per cent in 2001 and 74 per cent in 1999.

These three cities — Canada's largest — are home to slightly more than one-quarter of Canada's total population.

Toronto: destination of choice

Toronto was the most popular destination, with four out of 10 immigrants choosing to settle in Canada's largest metropolitan area.

About 2.3 million people in the Toronto region were foreign-born in 2006, the highest proportion of any metropolitan area across the nation. Recent immigrants represented 45.7 per cent of the region's population, up from 43.1 per cent in 2001.

Recent immigrants came mainly from Asian countries. In 2006, India surpassed China as the No. 1 source country.

Montreal: drawing francophones

Montreal was the second-leading gateway for new immigrants, according to 2006 census figures.

The Montreal area was home to the third-largest proportion of residents born outside of Canada, with about 740,000 foreign-born residents. Since 2001, Montreal's newcomer population grew nine times faster of the region's Canadian-born population.

The portrait of these new Canadians is similar to that of new immigrants across the nation: they arrive in Canada from Asia and the Middle East. The two most popular source countries were China and Lebanon.

Not surprisingly, the Montreal area is the destination of choice for 60 per cent of newcomers from countries where French is spoken, such as Algeria, Morocco and Romania.

Fewer newcomers choosing Vancouver

Vancouver had the second-highest proportion of foreign-born residents, at 39.6 per cent of the population. About 831,000 people in Metro Vancouver were born outside of Canada, according to the 2006 census. This is up 92,700 from 2001.

The number of newcomers in the Vancouver area grew five times faster than its Canadian-born population.

While the mountain-flanked city has a long history of immigration, this trend appears to be declining.

Between 2001 and 2006, about 151,700 immigrants chose Vancouver as their new home. This is a steep drop from the 169,600 newcomers who settled in Vancouver between 1996 and 2001.

Newcomers eyeing Canada's smaller cities

Canada's smaller municipalities may be drawing immigrants away from the traditional destination cities.

In 2006, 16.6 per cent of recent immigrants had settled in Calgary, Ottawa-Gatineau, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Hamilton and London, Ont., a jump from 14.3 per cent in 2001.