A designated place is a type of geographic unit used by Statistics Canada to disseminate census data. It is usually "a small community that does not meet the criteria used to define incorporated municipalities or Statistics Canada population centres (areas with a population of at least 1,000 and no fewer than 400 persons per square kilometre)." Provincial and territorial authorities collaborate with Statistics Canada in the creation of designated places, so that data can be published for sub-areas within municipalities. Starting in 2016, Statistics Canada allowed the overlapping of designated places with population centres.
In the 2021 Census of Population, Saskatchewan had 198 designated places, an increase from 193 in 2016. Designated place types in Saskatchewan include 2 cluster subdivisions, 40 dissolved municipalities, 9 northern settlements, 143 organized hamlets, 2 resort subdivisions, and 2 retired population centre. In 2021, the 198 designated places had a cumulative population of 11,858, and an average population of . Saskatchewan's largest designated place is Gravelbourg with a population of 986.