The Halifax-class frigate design of which Vancouver belongs, was ordered by the Canadian Forces in 1977 as a replacement for the aging St. Laurent, Restigouche, Mackenzie, and Annapolis classes of destroyer escorts, which were all tasked with anti-submarine warfare.

[3] In July 1983, the federal government approved the budget for the design and construction of the first batch of six new frigates of which Vancouver was a part, out of twelve that were eventually built.

[4] To reflect the changing long-term strategy of the Navy during the 1980s and 1990s, the Halifax-class frigates was designed as a general purpose warship with particular focus on anti-submarine capabilities.

[5] As built the Halifax-class vessels deployed the CH-124 Sea King helicopter, which acted in concert with shipboard sensors to seek out and destroy submarines at long distances from the ships.

[5] As built, the anti-shipping role is supported by the RGM-84 Harpoon Block 1C surface-to-surface missile, mounted in two quadruple launch tubes at the main deck level between the funnel and the helicopter hangar.

[4][5] For anti-aircraft self-defence the ships are armed with the Sea Sparrow vertical launch surface-to-air missile in two Mk 48 Mod 0 eight-cell launchers placed to port and starboard of the funnel.

[5] A Raytheon/General Dynamics Phalanx Mark 15 Mod 21 Close-In Weapon System (CIWS) is mounted on top of the helicopter hangar for "last-ditch" defence against targets that evade the Sea Sparrow.

Further improvements, such as modifying the vessel to accommodate the new Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone helicopter and satellite communication links was done separately as part of the FELEX program.

[9] After the 11 September 2001 attacks, Vancouver and her sisters were a primary part of Canada's anti-terrorism naval forces in the Middle East.

For instance, Vancouver was an integrated part of the American carrier battle group led by USS John C. Stennis, arriving at Hong Kong on 29 November 2001 and in the Persian Gulf in 19 December.

On 10 July 2011, Vancouver left her home port of Esquimalt to join the NATO-led air-sea Operation Unified Protector during the 2011 Libyan civil war.

[12] In April 2016, Vancouver was used as the testbed for the launch of the new Harpoon Block II surface-to-surface missile, increasing the land strike capabilities of the frigate class.

However, following an earthquake in New Zealand's South Island, the frigate was re-directed to Kaikōura to aide in humanitarian and disaster relief operations.

[18] In 2022, Vancouver and Winnipeg were deployed to the RIMPAC naval exercise off Hawaii followed by taking part in enforcing UN sanctions against North Korea.

The vessel in the badge is intended to represent HMS Discovery, which, under the command of Captain George Vancouver, mapped much of North America's north-western coast and learned more about the area than had hereto been discovered.