The Canadian population of Gray Catbird is monitored best by the Breeding Bird Survey (BBS), which samples most of the breeding range, is well-suited to detecting the species, and has high precision. Although overall there has been little change between the early 1970s and now, there was a decline of approximately 30% from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s, followed by a steady increase back to 1970 levels. At a regional scale, the rebound was largely absent in central Ontario and Quebec and in the Maritimes, resulting in moderate to large long-term declines in those regions. On the contrary, there has been a large increase over the same period in interior British Columbia. Other regions have shown little change overall.

The goal for Gray Catbird is to maintain its population at or above the level it was at in the early 1970s, based on the Breeding Bird Survey. Recent data show that the population is within its goal range.