The Canadian population of American Wigeon is at least moderately well monitored by three programs. The Waterfowl Breeding Population and Habitat Survey (WBPHS) is considered to be the most representative, as it specifically targets waterfowl, provides fairly good coverage of the Canadian population, and has high precision in its trends. The Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) also has high reliability and samples more broadly across the Canadian range, although it is somewhat less optimal for detecting waterfowl. The continental Christmas Bird Count results also provide high coverage and have high precision, but sampling is less standardized, so reliability is only medium. The BBS and WBPHS agree that there has been a moderate decrease of -36 to -44% relative to 1970. The CBC trend shows little change, but because of its lower reliability it does not diminish confidence in the status. Similarly, the Eastern Waterfowl Survey (EWS) shows a moderate increase since 1990, but its temporal and spatial coverage is not large enough to influence status or confidence assessments.

The goal for American Wigeon is to maintain a population of at least 1.8 million individuals within the area sampled by the Waterfowl Breeding Population and Habitat Survey. This is based on the North American Waterfowl Management Plan's goal of 2,596,000 individuals across the survey's full range, but adjusted to reflect the average proportion of the breeding population in Canada (68%). Data from the Canadian portion of the range indicate that American Wigeon is currently below its goal range.