The Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) provides the best available monitoring information for LeConte's Sparrow in Canada. It samples most of the the breeding range, is effective at detecting the species, and has trends with high precision. The BBS data show periodic fluctuations, with peaks around 1973, 1991, 2007, and 2018, but with an overall declining trend that has accelerated over the past decade, amounting to a cumulative long-term loss of 76% of the population. There is some regional variation, from a moderate decrease of 25% in central Ontario and Quebec to large declines of over 70% throughout its core range in the Prairie provinces. Coverage in northern Ontario and Quebec is insufficient to estimate trends reliably for those regions. The continental Christmas Bird Count (CBC) results should also reflect trends in the Canadian population, given that 90% of the population breeds in Canada. That trend shows little change relative to 1970, which slightly reduces confidence in the BBS trend, but on the whole the BBS is considered more reliable, given that the species is relatively poorly detected on the CBC because of its secretive nature.

The goal for LeConte's Sparrow is to increase the population to the level it was at in the early 1970s, based on the Breeding Bird Survey. Trend data show that LeConte's Sparrow is far below its goal range and its population decline is ongoing at a rapid rate. The trend will need to stabilize before the population can begin to rebound, and it is not realistic for the goal to be met by 2050. Based on analysis of the historical population loss and potential growth rates, the interim target is to reach 30% of the goal by that year. Achieving this target, and ultimately reaching the national goal for this species, will require ambitious and long-term conservation action.