U.S. Data

More than 43 million people living in the United States—whether as naturalized citizen, legal permanent resident, temporary resident, or unauthorized immigrant—were born in another country, representing 13 percent of the U.S. population. Immigration has ebbed and flowed throughout U.S. history, peaking at nearly 15 percent of the population in 1890 and plummeting to 5 percent in 1970. The data-rich research offered here traces the U.S. immigrant population by size, educational and workforce characteristics, English language proficiency, and more.

For information on U.S. immigrants by state, check out the State Immigration Data Profiles tool. And for detailed profiles on unauthorized immigrants nationally and by state, visit this tool.

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Articles February 11, 2021 Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States By Jeanne Batalova, Mary Hanna, and Christopher Levesque	Reports February 2021 Back on the Table: U.S. Legalization and the Unauthorized Immigrant Groups that Could Factor in the Debate By Jessica Bolter, Muzaffar Chishti and Doris Meissner
Articles January 14, 2021 International Students in the United States By Emma Israel and Jeanne Batalova	Commentaries January 2021 Nearly 3 Million U.S. Citizens and Legal Immigrants Initially Excluded under the CARES Act Are Covered under the December 2020 COVID-19 Stimulus By Julia Gelatt, Randy Capps and Michael Fix
Commentaries December 2020 Anticipated “Chilling Effects” of the Public-Charge Rule Are Real: Census Data Reflect Steep Decline in Benefits Use by Immigrant Families By Randy Capps, Michael Fix and Jeanne Batalova	Fact Sheets December 2020 Unauthorized Immigrants in the United States: Stable Numbers, Changing Origins By Randy Capps, Julia Gelatt, Ariel G. Ruiz Soto and Jennifer Van Hook
Articles November 5, 2020 Mexican Immigrants in the United States By Emma Israel and Jeanne Batalova	Reports October 2020 Navigating the Future of Work: The Role of Immigrant-Origin Workers in the Changing U.S. Economy By Julia Gelatt, Jeanne Batalova and Randy Capps

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Reports February 2015 Through an Immigrant Lens: PIAAC Assessment of the Competencies of Adults in the United States By Jeanne Batalova and Michael Fix	Reports October 2014 Deportation and Discretion: Reviewing the Record and Options for Change By Marc R. Rosenblum and Kristen McCabe
Reports September 2014 Diploma, Please: Promoting Educational Attainment for DACA- and Potential DREAM Act-Eligible Youth By Margie McHugh	Policy Briefs September 2014 Executive Action for Unauthorized Immigrants: Estimates of the Populations that Could Receive Relief By Randy Capps and Marc R. Rosenblum
Reports August 2014 DACA at the Two-Year Mark: A National and State Profile of Youth Eligible and Applying for Deferred Action By Jeanne Batalova, Sarah Hooker and Randy Capps	Fact Sheets July 2014 Select Diaspora Populations in the United States
Reports June 2014 Critical Choices in Post-Recession California: Investing in the Educational and Career Success of Immigrant Youth By Sarah Hooker, Margie McHugh and Michael Fix	Reports June 2014 Immigrant Parents and Early Childhood Programs: Addressing Barriers of Literacy, Culture, and Systems Knowledge By Maki Park and Margie McHugh

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Policy Beat

May 26, 2021

Slowing U.S. Population Growth Could Prompt New Pressure for Immigration Reform

Results from the 2020 census show that the U.S. population has been growing at its slowest rate since the Great Depression. Reduced immigration has been one component of this sluggish population growth, which could pose a problem for the United States as people age and strain public retirement systems. This U.S. Policy Beat article examines how immigration fits into the country's demographic puzzle.

Rohingya families from Myanmar arrive in Bangladesh

Spotlight

May 13, 2021

Refugees and Asylees in the United States

The United States historically led the world in refugee resettlement, but was surpassed by Canada in 2018—and U.S. refugee admissions fell to a record low 12,000 in 2020. With the country now on course to rebuild resettlement capacity, this article examines the U.S. refugee and asylee populations and how they have changed over time, including key demographic characteristics.

People carry the flag of the Dominican Republic at a parade in Washington, DC.

Spotlight

April 15, 2021

Immigrants from the Dominican Republic in the United States

Immigrants from the Dominican Republic are the fourth-largest Hispanic immigrant group in the United States, and number nearly 1.2 million people. This population has increased almost tenfold since 1960, but remains mostly concentrated in just a few metro areas. This article provides an overview of Dominican immigrants in the United States.

Spotlight

March 10, 2021

Immigrants from Asia in the United States

Nearly one-third of all immigrants in the United States come from Asia, and Asian countries such as India, China, and the Philippines are the origin for a growing number of foreign-born U.S. residents. Compared to overall immigrants and the U.S. born, the foreign born from Asia tend to earn higher incomes, work in management jobs, and have higher levels of education, as this article explores.

statistics us immigration immigrants data

Spotlight

February 11, 2021

Frequently Requested Statistics on Immigrants and Immigration in the United States

Have a question about U.S. immigration trends and the country's immigrant population? This article collects in one place the most sought-after information about the world's largest immigrant population and how it has changed over time. Drawing from a wide array of authoritative data sources, this article provides an up-to-date snapshot of the immigrant population, visa and enforcement statistics, and information on emerging trends, including slowing immigration and changing origins.

Recent Activity

Articles

October 13, 2022

Mexican Immigrants in the United States

Mexicans are by far the largest immigrant group in the United States, accounting for nearly one-fourth of all immigrants. However their numbers have been declining and in 2021 there were 1 million fewer than a decade ago. At the same time, despite years in which more new migrants came from China and India, Mexicans once again count as the largest group of new arrivals. This article outlines the changing shape and composition of this immigrant population.

Fact Sheets

October 2022

Dual Language Learners: Key Characteristics and Considerations for Early Childhood Programs

How many Dual Language Learner (DLL) children live in your state, and what share do they comprise of all children under age 5? What languages are most commonly spoken in their households? Answers to these and other questions that are critical to the design and implementation of early childhood programs that reach all children equitably are presented in a series of state-level data fact sheets.

Policy Briefs

October 2022

Diverging Pathways: Immigrants’ Legal Status and Access to Postsecondary Credentials

As the United States seeks to adapt to trends such as technological change and aging that are reshaping the labor market, increasing productivity and the number of high-skilled workers will be critical. This issue brief explores the characteristics of the 115 million adults without postsecondary credentials, 21 percent of them immigrant, as well as the prospects for credential acquisition for foreign-born subgroups.

Articles

September 15, 2022

Temporary Visa Holders in the United States

COVID-19 and restrictive policies from the Trump administration led to the most dramatic slowdown of temporary immigration to the United States in years, as fewer tourists, temporary workers, and international students arrived. This article reviews the trends in issuance of nonimmigrant visas and arrivals of temporary visitors, including the numbers issued annually over the past five years and the top countries of origin.

Articles

August 4, 2022

Brazilian Immigrants in the United States

Persistent economic turmoil and civil and political insecurity have been drivers of emigration from Brazil, including to the United States. Although the number of Brazilian immigrants in the United States has been on the rise since the 1980s, the magnitude of these flows has made the past decade unique. Read a useful profile of Brazilians immigrants, including U.S. destinations, modes of entry, and educational and work characteristics.

Articles

July 7, 2022

Caribbean Immigrants in the United States

Immigrants from the Caribbean living in the United States come from a diverse set of countries and territories, with Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Haiti, and Trinidad and Tobago the top origins. This article offers a sociodemographic profile of Caribbean immigrants, who represent 10 percent of the U.S. foreign-born population and nearly half of all Black immigrants in the United States.

Policy Briefs

June 2022

Immigrant Children’s Medicaid and CHIP Access and Participation: A Data Profile

Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program help many children in low-income families access health care. But under federal rules, hundreds of thousands of children are ineligible due to immigration status. This brief presents U.S. and state-level estimates of immigrant children who are eligible for and participate in these programs and considers the impact of state policies that expand access to public health insurance.

Articles

June 22, 2022

Ukrainian Immigrants in the United States

Before Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 displaced millions, the United States was home to nearly 355,000 Ukrainians. While most displaced Ukrainians have remained in neighboring countries, small numbers have come to the United States. This article examines the pre-invasion Ukrainian immigrant population in the United States—its history, sociodemographic characteristics, modes of arrival, and more.

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