Editing Alberta (section)

=== Tertiary sector ===
Alberta's [[service sector]] employs around 80% of Albertans, in various fields like retail, healthcare, education, professional services, tourism, FIRE (finance, investment and real estate), transportation and warehousing, food services, public administration, arts and recreation, and more. Therefore, it unsurprisingly accounts for the majority of Alberta's economic activity. 
[[File:WEM Phase III at Deep Sea Adventure Lake 03-25-2023.jpg|thumb|The [[West Edmonton Mall]] is home to hundreds of retail businesses and was once the biggest mall in the world]]
The [[retail]] and [[Wholesaling|wholesale trade]] sector is a significant employer in Alberta, accounting for approximately 15% of total provincial employment. In 2022, wholesale trade contributed $14.7 billion, and retail trade contributed $14.1 billion to Alberta's GDP, collectively making up about 8% of the province's total GDP.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Canada |first=Employment and Social Development |title=Alberta Sector Profile: Wholesale and Retail Trade - Job Bank |url=https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis/job-market-reports/alberta/sectoral-profile-trade |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=www.jobbank.gc.ca}}</ref> 

Healthcare and social assistance, which includes hospitals, clinics, nursing homes and community health programs, is similarly one of the largest employers in Alberta. In 2020, approximately 247,100 individuals were employed in this sector, representing about 11% of the province's total employment. About 88,800 of these jobs are in the ambulatory health care services sub-sector, while 107,800 are employed in the hospitals sub-sector and 50,500 are employed in nursing and residential care facilities. In terms of economic contribution, the sector added $16.7 billion to Alberta's GDP in 2020, accounting for 5.4% of the provincial total. Employment prospects here are good, due to an aging population and ongoing labor shortages, particularly in nursing and residential care facilities.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Canada |first=Employment and Social Development |title=Alberta Sector Profile: Health Care - Job Bank |url=https://www.on.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis/job-market-reports/alberta/sectoral-profile-health-care |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=www.on.jobbank.gc.ca}}</ref>

Educational services account for 7.1% of total provincial employment in Alberta. In 2022, of the 168,100 people employed here, about 98,400 people (58.5%) worked in primary and secondary education, 36,400 people (21.7%) worked in university education, 17,800 (10.6%) worked in other schools and educational support, and 12,200 (7.3%) worked in post-secondary education. In 2022, the sector contributed $12.4 billion, or 4%, to the provincial GDP.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Canada |first=Employment and Social Development |title=Alberta Sector Profile: Educational Services - Job Bank |url=https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis/job-market-reports/alberta/sectoral-profile-education |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=www.jobbank.gc.ca}}</ref>  

The finance, insurance, real estate and leasing (or FIRE) is a big part of Alberta's economy. In 2023, the finance and insurance sector alone contributed $14.88 billion to the province's GDP, with a five-year average growth rate of 2.8%.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Alberta finance, insurance, real estate and leasing industry profile - Open Government |url=https://open.alberta.ca/publications/alberta-finance-insurance-real-estate-leasing-industry-profile |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=open.alberta.ca}}</ref> In February 2025, activity in this sub-sector declined for the third consecutive month, reflecting a cooling in home resale activity across the country.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2025-04-30 |title=The Daily — Gross domestic product by industry, February 2025 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/250430/dq250430a-eng.htm |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=www150.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref> 

The [[Professional services|professional]], scientific, and technical services sector has experienced rapid growth in recent times, with employment increasing by 28,700 jobs (15.1%) between 2021 and 2022. Since 2018, employment has grown by 47,300 jobs (27.6%), making it one of the fastest-growing sectors in Alberta.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Canada |first=Employment and Social Development |title=Alberta Sector Profile: Professional, Scientific and Technical Services - Job Bank |url=https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis/job-market-reports/alberta/sectoral-profile-professional-services |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=www.jobbank.gc.ca}}</ref>

The transportation and warehousing sector employed 130,900 people in 2021, accounting for 6% of total provincial employment. Employment in this sector increased by 10,600 jobs (8.8%) from 2020 to 2021.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Canada |first=Employment and Social Development |title=Alberta Sector Profile: Transportation and Warehousing - Job Bank |url=https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis/job-market-reports/alberta/sectoral-profile-transportation |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=www.jobbank.gc.ca}}</ref>

In 2022, approximately 108,200 people were employed in Alberta's public administration sector, accounting for 4.6% of provincial employment. Employment in this sector increased by 5,000 jobs (4.8%) from 2021 to 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Canada |first=Employment and Social Development |title=Alberta Sector Profile: Public Administration - Job Bank |url=https://www.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis/job-market-reports/alberta/sectoral-profile-public-administration |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=www.jobbank.gc.ca}}</ref>

The arts, entertainment, and recreation sector contributed $1.61 billion to Alberta's GDP in 2023, with an 8.2% growth. However, over a five-year period, the sector experienced an annualized -3.7% GDP and -3.5% employment decline, despite employing 22,663 people in 2023. This may be due to [[COVID-19 pandemic]]-related disruptions, but lower funding from government, higher difficulty in obtaining and retaining staff, and shifts in consumer behaviour could also be contributing factors.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Canada |first=Employment and Social Development |title=Alberta Sector Profile: Information, Culture and Recreation - Job Bank |url=https://www.nt.jobbank.gc.ca/trend-analysis/job-market-reports/alberta/sectoral-profile-arts |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=www.nt.jobbank.gc.ca}}</ref> 

The accommodation and food services -which encompasses accommodations, food and beverage services, recreation and entertainment, and travel services- is a significant component of Alberta's service economy. 140,400 people were employed here in 2023, which accounts for 6.1% of Alberta's total employment.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-11-21 |title=Key Small Business Statistics 2023 |url=https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/sme-research-statistics/en/key-small-business-statistics/key-small-business-statistics-2023 |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=ised-isde.canada.ca}}</ref> Furthermore, in 2023, the sector contributed approximately $8.1 billion to Alberta's GDP, marking a 7.8% increase from the previous year. This growth indicates a strong recovery from the pandemic's impact, with the sector surpassing pre-pandemic levels for the first time.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Statistics Canada |date=2024-05-01 |title=The Daily — Gross domestic product by industry: Provinces and territories, 2023 |url=https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/240501/dq240501a-eng.htm |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=www150.statcan.gc.ca}}</ref> 

==== Tourism ====
{{Main|Tourism in Alberta}}
[[File:Three Sisters - panoramio (7).jpg|alt=|left|thumb|[[The Three Sisters (Alberta)|The Three Sisters]] at [[Bow Valley Provincial Park]] in [[Canmore, Alberta|Canmore]]]]
Alberta has been a tourist destination from the early days of the 20th century, with attractions including outdoor locales for skiing, hiking, and camping, shopping locales such as [[West Edmonton Mall]], [[Calgary Stampede]], outdoor festivals, professional athletic events, international sporting competitions such as the [[Commonwealth Games]] and Olympic Games, as well as more eclectic attractions. According to Alberta Economic Development, Calgary and Edmonton both host over four million visitors annually. [[Banff, Alberta|Banff]], [[Jasper, Alberta|Jasper]] and the [[Canadian Rockies|Rocky Mountains]] are visited by about three million people per year.<ref name="Geography & Climate:Encourage Canadian Immigration">{{cite web |url=http://www.akcanada.com/lic_alberta.cfm |title=Living in Canada : Alberta |publisher=AKCanada |access-date=November 8, 2009 |archive-date=January 26, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090126123053/http://akcanada.com/lic_alberta.cfm |url-status=live }}</ref> Alberta tourism relies heavily on [[Southern Ontario]] tourists, as well as tourists from other parts of Canada, the United States, and many other countries.

There are also natural attractions like [[Elk Island National Park]], [[Wood Buffalo National Park]], and the [[Columbia Icefield]]. [[Alberta's Rockies]] include well-known tourist destinations [[Banff National Park]] and [[Jasper National Park]]. The two mountain parks are connected by the scenic [[Icefields Parkway]]. Banff is located {{cvt|128|km}} west of Calgary on [[Alberta Highway 1|Highway&nbsp;1]], and Jasper is located {{cvt|366|km}} west of Edmonton on the [[Yellowhead Highway]]. Five of Canada's fourteen [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]]s are located within the province: [[Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks World Heritage Site|Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks]], [[Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park]], Wood Buffalo National Park, [[Dinosaur Provincial Park]] and [[Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump]]. A number of these areas hold ski resorts, most notably [[Banff Sunshine]], [[Lake Louise Ski Resort|Lake Louise]], [[Marmot Basin]], [[Mt Norquay|Norquay]] and [[Nakiska]].
[[File:Bronco stampede01c.jpg|thumb|Bronco riding at the [[Calgary Stampede]]. The event is one of the world's largest [[rodeo]]s.]]
About 1.2&nbsp;million people visit the Calgary Stampede,<ref name="Landmark Stampede Dates">{{cite web |url=http://corporate.calgarystampede.com/about/stampede-history/ |title=History of the Stampede |publisher=Calgary Stampede |access-date=May 19, 2016 |archive-date=May 20, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160520050414/http://corporate.calgarystampede.com/about/stampede-history |url-status=live }}</ref> a celebration of Canada's own Wild West and the cattle ranching industry. About 700,000 people enjoy Edmonton's [[K-Days]] (formerly Klondike Days and Capital EX).<ref name=KDays>{{cite news |url=https://edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/festivals/Capital+named+Days/7002873/story.html |title=Capital Ex to be named K-Days (Poll) |author=Manisha Krishnan |newspaper=[[Edmonton Journal]] |publisher=[[Postmedia Network]] |date=July 29, 2012 |access-date=July 29, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120731233950/http://www.edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/festivals/Capital%2Bnamed%2BDays/7002873/story.html |archive-date=July 31, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://k-days.com/info/ |title=K-Days Edmonton |publisher=Northlands |access-date=May 19, 2016 |archive-date=June 24, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624172114/http://k-days.com/info/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Edmonton was the gateway to the only all-Canadian route to the [[Yukon]] [[Gold mining|gold field]]s, and the only route which did not require gold-seekers to travel the exhausting and dangerous [[Chilkoot Pass]].

Another tourist destination that draws more than 650,000 visitors each year is the Drumheller Valley, located northeast of Calgary. [[Drumheller]], known as the "Dinosaur Capital of The World", offers the [[Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology]]. Drumheller also had a rich mining history being one of Western Canada's largest coal producers during the war years. Another attraction in east-central Alberta is [[Alberta Prairie Railway Excursions]], a popular tourist attraction operated out of [[Stettler, Alberta|Stettler]], that offers train excursions into the prairie and caters to tens of thousands of visitors every year.