Demographics of the United States

Demographics of the United States
USA Population Pyramid.svg
Population pyramid of the United States as of July 1, 2021
PopulationIncrease 332,403,650 (2022 projection)
Density86.16/sq mi (33.27/km2)
Growth rateIncrease 0.13% (2021)
Birth rateIncrease 11.0 births/1,000 population (2021)
Death rate10.4 deaths/1,000 population (2021)
Life expectancyDecrease 76.1 years (2021)
 • maleDecrease 73.2 years (2021)
 • femaleDecrease 79.1 years (2021)
Fertility rateIncrease 1.664 children born/woman (2021)
Infant mortality rate5.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2020)
Net migration rate3 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2020)
Age structure
Under 18 years22.2% (2021)
18–44 years35.9% (2021)
45–64 years25.2% (2021)
65 and over16.8% (2021)
Language
OfficialNo official language at national level. English is designated official in 32 of 50 states (and in all 5 U.S. territories). Hawaiian is official in Hawaii, 20 Native languages are official in Alaska, and Sioux is official in South Dakota. Samoan is an official language in American Samoa, Chamorro is an official language in Guam, Chamorro and Carolinian are official languages in the Northern Mariana Islands, and Spanish is an official language in Puerto Rico.
Spoken
Source: The World Factbook

The United States had an official estimated resident population of 331,893,745 on July 1, 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This figure includes the 50 states and the District of Columbia but excludes the population of five unincorporated U.S. territories (Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands) as well as several minor island possessions. The United States is the third most populous country in the world. The Census Bureau showed a population increase of 0.12% for the twelve-month period ending in July 2021, below the world average annual rate of 0.9%. The total fertility rate in the United States estimated for 2021 is 1.664 children per woman, which is below the replacement fertility rate of approximately 2.1.

The U.S. population almost quadrupled during the 20th century – at a growth rate of about 1.3% a year – from about 76 million in 1900 to 281 million in 2000. It is estimated to have reached the 200 million mark in 1967, and the 300 million mark on October 17, 2006. Foreign-born immigration caused the U.S. population to continue its rapid increase, with the foreign-born population doubling from almost 20 million in 1990 to over 45 million in 2015, representing one-third of the population increase. The U.S. population grew by 1.6 million from 2018 to 2019, with 38% of growth from immigration. Population growth is fastest among minorities as a whole, and according to the Census Bureau's estimation for 2020, 50% of U.S. children under the age of 18 are members of ethnic minority groups.

As of 2020, White people (including Hispanic whites) numbered 204,277,273 or 61.6% of the population and Non-Latino whites make up 57.8% of the country's population.

Latino Americans accounted for 51.1% of the total national population growth between 2010 and 2020, increasing from 50.5 million in 2010 to 62.1 million in 2020. The Hispanic or Latino population increased by 23% between 2010 and 2020, an increase of more than 11.6 million. Immigrants and their U.S.-born descendants are expected to provide most of the U.S. population gains in the decades ahead.

In 2020, it was reported that 51.0% of births were to non-Hispanic white mothers. In 2021, the percentage increased to 51.5%.

The 12 month ending general fertility rate increased from 56.6 to 57.0 in 2022 Q1 compared to 2021 Q4.

Population

On April 1, 2020, the United States had a population of 331,449,281.

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook estimated as of 2018, unless otherwise indicated.


Note: Population estimate of United States excluding oversea armed forces.

Population pyramid of the United States over time from 1950 to 2020

Age and sex distribution

Proportion of Americans under the age of 18 in each county of the fifty states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico as of the 2020 United States Census
Age and sex distribution as of 2021
age (years) total (in thousands) % of US pop. males (in thousands) females (in thousands) % male % female sex ratio: male/female
0 3,564 1.1% 1,822 1,743 51.1% 48.9% 1.05
< 5 18,827 5.7% 9,624 9,203 51.1% 48.9% 1.05
< 15 60,467 18.2% 30,989 29,578 51.2% 48.8% 1.05
15-24 43,089 13.0% 21,996 21,092 51.0% 49.0% 1.04
25-34 45,495 13.7% 23,053 22,442 50.7% 49.3% 1.03
35-44 43,404 13.1% 21,858 21,546 50.4% 49.6% 1.01
45-54 40,688 12.3% 20,312 20,376 49.9% 50.1% 0.99
55-64 42,803 12.9% 20,963 21,840 49.0% 51.0% 0.96
65+ 55,848 16.8% 25,214 30,634 45.1% 54.9% 0.82
75+ 22,182 6.7% 9,344 12,837 42.1% 57.9% 0.73
85+ 5,976 1.8% 2,176 3,800 36.4% 63.6% 0.57
100+ 98 0.03% 25 73 25.5% 74.5% 0.34
all 331,894 100% 164,385 167,509 49.5% 50.5% 0.98

Age distribution by selected age groups.

  • 0 - 14 years: 18.2%
  • 15 - 24 years: 13.0%
  • 25 - 54 years: 39.0%
  • 55 - 64 years: 12.9%
  • 65 years and over: 16.8%

The median age of the total population as of 2021 is 38.8 years; the male median age is 37.7 years; the female median age is 39.8 years.

Birth rate

  • 11.0 births/1,000 population (2021) Country comparison to the world: 151th

Death rate

  • 10.45 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.) Country comparison to the world: 78th
  • 8.81 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est)* *age-adjusted death rate

Total fertility rate

TFR of the United States overtime from 1820 to 2016

In 1800 the average U.S. woman had 7.04 children; by the first decade of the 1900s, this number had already decreased to 3.56. Since the early 1970s the birth rate has been below the replacement rate of 2.1 with 1.72 children per woman in 2018.

The drop in the U.S. fertility rate from 2.08 per woman in 2007 to 1.76 in 2017 was mostly due to the declining birth rate of Hispanics, teenagers, and young women, although the birth rate for older women rose.

  • 1.664 children born/woman (2021).

Mother's mean age at first birth

  • 27.1 years (2020 est.)

Dependency ratio

The dependency ratio is the age-population ratio of people who are normally not in the labor force (the dependent population, which includes those aged 0 to 14 and 65 and older) to those who are (the productive part ages 15 to 64). It is used to gauge the strain on the populace that is productive.

  • Total dependency ratio: 54.03 (2021) Country comparison to the world*: 110th
  • Child dependency ratio: 28.11 (2021) Country comparison to the world*: 138th
  • Aged dependency ratio: 25.92 (2021) Country comparison to the world*: 42nd
  • Potential support ratio: 3.86 (2021) Country comparison to the world*: 160th

*Ratios are ranked from highest to lowest by country

Life expectancy

Historical development of life expectancy
  • Total population: 76.1 years for a child born in 2021, decreasing from 77.0 years in 2020.
  • Male: 73.2 years (2021), 74.2 years (2020)
  • Female: 79.9 years (2021), 79.9 years (2020)

The average life expectancy in the United States has been on a decline since 2014. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cites three main reasons: a 72% increase in overdoses in the last decade (including a 30% increase in opioid overdoses from July 2016 to September 2017, but did not differentiate between accidental overdose with a legal prescription and overdose with opioids obtained illegally and/or combined with illegal drugs i.e., heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, etc.), a ten-year increase in liver disease (the rate for men age 25 to 34 increased by 8% per year; for women, by 11% per year), and a 33% increase in suicide rates since 1999.

From 2019 to 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to approximately 61% of the decrease in life expectancy in the United States. While increases in mortality from unintentional injuries, heart disease, homicide, and diabetes contributed to 11.7%, 5.8%, 2.9%, and 2.8% of the decrease in life expectancy from 2019 to 2020, respectively. Life expectancy has also varied by racial and ethnic group, with Non-Hispanic Asians having the highest life expectancy and Non-Hispanic American Indians having the lowest. In 2021, life expectancy at birth in the United States fell for the second year in a row, the first two-year drop since 1961-1963.

Life expectancy by Hispanic origin and race, and sex: United States, 2019, 2020 & 2021
Race Male LEB

in 2021

Female LEB

in 2021

Total LEB

in 2021*

Total LEB

in 2020

Total LEB

in 2019

2019 - 2021

Increase
Decrease

NH White 73.7 79.2 76.4 77.4 78.8 Decrease 2.4
NH Black 66.7 74.8 70.8 71.5 74.8 Decrease 4.0
NH Asian 81.2 85.6 83.5 83.6 85.6 Decrease 2.1
NH American Indian or Alaska Native 61.5 69.2 65.2 67.1 71.8 Decrease 6.6
Hispanic 74.4 81.0 77.7 77.9 81.9 Decrease 4.2
All origins and races 73.2 79.1 76.1 77.0 78.8 Decrease 2.7

NOTE: Life expectancy at birth data for 2021 are provisional.*

  • NH = Non-hispanic.
  • LEB = Life expectancy at birth
  • Growth arrows (Increase/Decrease) indicate an increase or decrease in total life expectancy compared to years before.
Counties in the United States by population per square mile of land area according to the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2013–2017 5-Year Estimates and 2010 United States Census. Counties more densely populated than the United States as a whole are in full blue.
States and territories in the United States by population per square mile, according to the 2020 United States census.
Counties in the United States by population growth since 2010 according to the U.S. Census Bureau 2018 Annual Estimate of the Resident Population. Counties with population growth greater than the United States as a whole are in dark green, counties with population growth slower than the United States in light green, and counties with declining populations in light red.
States in the United States by population growth since 2010 according to the U.S. Census Bureau 2018 Annual Estimate of the Resident Population. States with population growth greater than the United States as a whole are in dark green, states with population growth slower than the United States in light green, and states with declining populations in light red.

Life Tables

Life Table of the United States, 2020
Females Males Total
Age Cohort Life expectancy Cohort Life expectancy Cohort Life expectancy
0 100,000 79.9 100,000 74.2 100,000 77.0
1 99,508 79.3 99,415 73.6 99,461 76.4
5 99,429 75.3 99,313 69.7 99,377 72.5
10 99,381 70.4 99,254 64.7 99,323 67.5
15 99,317 65.4 99,155 59.8 99,242 62.6
20 99,157 60.5 98,741 55.0 98,952 57.7
25 98,876 55.7 97,961 50.5 98,415 53.0
30 98,479 50.9 96,994 45.9 97,725 48.4
35 97,933 46.2 95,815 41.5 96,856 43.8
40 97,215 41.5 94,420 37.0 95,794 39.3
45 96,266 36.9 92,731 32.7 94,471 34.8
50 94,928 32.4 90,497 28.4 92,680 30.4
55 92,979 28.0 87,332 24.3 90,115 26.2
60 90,111 23.8 82,736 20.5 86,376 22.2
65 86,039 19.8 76,439 17.0 81,181 18.5
70 80,547 15.9 68,491 13.7 74,466 14.9
75 72,737 12.4 58,588 10.6 65,565 11.6
80 61,298 9.2 45,661 7.8 53,346 8.6
85 45,424 6.5 30,276 5.5 37,700 6.1
90 26,271 4.4 14,824 3.7 20,477 4.2
95 9,599 2.9 4,216 2.5 6,889 2.8
100 1,727 2.0 549 1.8 1,142 2.0

Density

The most densely populated state is New Jersey (1,263/mi2 or 488/km2).

The population is highly urbanized, with 82.3% of the population residing in cities and suburbs. Large urban clusters are spread throughout the eastern half of the United States (particularly the Great Lakes area, northeast, east, and southeast) and the western tier states; mountainous areas, principally the Rocky Mountains and Appalachian chain, deserts in the southwest, the dense boreal forests in the extreme north, and the central prairie states are less densely populated; Alaska's population is concentrated along its southern coast – with particular emphasis on the city of Anchorage – and Hawaii's is centered on the island of Oahu. California and Texas are the most populous states, as the mean center of U.S. population has consistently shifted westward and southward. New York City is the most populous city in the United States and has been since at least 1790.

In the U.S. territories, population centers include the San Juan metro area in Puerto Rico, Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, and the island of Tutuila in American Samoa.

Growth rate

  • Population growth rate: 0.12%. Country comparison to the world: 130th

Births and fertility by race

U.S.-born people

Note: Hispanics are counted both by their ethnicity and by their race, giving a higher overall number. Also note that growth arrows indicate an increase or decrease in the number of births, not in the fertility rate.

Race of mother Number of births
in 2016
% of all
born
TFR
(2016)
Number of births
in 2017
% of all
born
TFR
(2017)
Number of births
in 2018
% of all
born
TFR
(2018)
Number of births
in 2019
% of all
born
TFR
(2019)
Number of births
in 2020
% of all
born
TFR
(2020)
2020-2016

Increase
Decrease

White 2,900,933 73.5% 1.77 2,812,267 72.9% 1.76 2,788,439 73.5% 1.75
> NH White 2,056,332 52.1% 1.719 1,992,461 51.7% 1.666 1,956,413 51.6% 1.640 1,915,912 51.1% 1.611 1,843,432 51.0% 1.552 Decrease10.35%
Black 623,886 15.8% 1.90 626,027 16.2% 1.92 600,933 15.8% 1.87
> NH Black 558,622 14.2% 1.832 560,715 14.5% 1.824 552,029 14.6% 1.792 548,075 14.6% 1.776 529,811 14.7% 1.714 Decrease5.16%
NH Asian 254,471 6.5% 1.690 249,250 6.5% 1.597 240,798 6.4% 1.525 238,769 6.4% 1.511 219,068 6.1% 1.385 Decrease13.9%
NH American Indian or Alaska native 31,452 0.8% 1.794 29,957 0.8% 1.702 29,092 0.8% 1.651 28,450 0.76% 1.612 26,813 0.74% 1.517 Decrease14.75%
NH Hawaiian (incl. other Pacific Islander) 9,342 0.2% 2.076 9,426 0.2% 2.085 9,476 0.3% 2.106 9,770 0.26% 2.178 9,626 0.26% 2.142 Increase3.04%
Total 3,945,875 100% 1.820 3,855,500 100% 1.765 3,791,712 100% 1.729 3,747,540 100% 1.706 3,613,647 100% 1.641 Decrease9.84%

NOTE:

  • NH = Non-hispanic.
  • TFR = Total fertility rate (number of children born per woman).
  • Growth arrows (Increase/Decrease) indicate an increase or decrease in the number of births, not in the fertility rate, comparing to the previous year.
Ethnicity of mother Number of births
in 2016
TFR
(2016)
Number of births
in 2017
TFR
(2017)
Number of births
in 2018
TFR
(2018)
Number of births
in 2019
TFR
(2019)
Number of births
in 2020
TFR
(2020)
2020-2016

Increase
Decrease

Non-Hispanic (of any race) 3,027,428 2,956,736 2,905,502 2,861,073 2,746,933 Decrease
Hispanic (of any race) 918,447 2.093 898,764 2.007 886,210 1.959 886,467 1.940 866,714 1.876 Decrease5.63%
Foreign-born total fertility rate by race
and those of Hispanic origin
Race 2008 2011 2013
White 2.29 2.01 1.94
Black 2.51 2.57 2.35
Asian 2.25 2.02 1.93
Other 1.80 2.04 2.06
Hispanic (of any race) 3.15 2.77 2.46
Total 2.75 2.45 2.22

Immigration

In 2017, out of the U.S. foreign-born population, some 45% (20.7 million) were naturalized citizens, 27% (12.3 million) were lawful permanent residents (including many eligible to become citizens), 6% (2.2 million) were temporary lawful residents, and 23% (10.5 million) were unauthorized immigrants. Among current living immigrants to the U.S., the top five countries of birth are Mexico (25% of immigrants), China (6%), India (6%), the Philippines (5%) and El Salvador (3%). Some 13% of current living immigrants come from Europe and Canada, and 10% from the Caribbean. Among new arrivals, Asian immigrants have been more numerous than Hispanic immigrants since 2010; in 2017, 37.4% of immigrant arrivals were Asian, and 26.6% were Hispanic. Until 2017 and 2018, the United States led the world in refugee resettlement for decades, admitting more refugees than the rest of the world combined. From fiscal year 1980 until 2017, 55% of refugees came from Asia, 27% from Europe, 13% from Africa, and 4% from Latin America, fleeing war and persecution.

  • Net migration rate (2022): 3.02 migrants/1,000 population. Country comparison to the world: 35th
  • Net migration rate* (2020-2021): 0.73 migrants/1,000 population.

*(mid-year estimates)

As of 2017, 13.6% (44.4 million) of the population was foreign born – an increase from 4.7% in 1970 but less than the 1890 record of 14.8%. 45% of the foreign born population were naturalized US citizens. 23% (10.3 million) of the foreign born community is undocumented, accounting for 3.2% of the total population. According to the 2010 census, Latin America and the Caribbean is the largest region-of-birth group, accounting for 53% of the foreign born population. As of 2018 this region is still the largest source of immigrants to the United States In 2018, there were almost 90 million immigrants and U.S. born children of immigrants (second-generation Americans) in the United States, accounting for 28% of the overall U.S. population. In 2018, 1,096,611 immigrants were granted either permanent or temporary legal residence in the United States

Inflow of New Legal Permanent Residents, Top Ten Sending Countries, 2020
Country 2020
Mexico 100,325
India 46,363
China 41,483
Dominican Republic 30,005
Vietnam 29,995
Philippines 25,491
El Salvador 17,907
Brazil 16,746
Cuba 16,367
South Korea 16,244
Inflow of New Legal Permanent Residents by Region, 2020
Region 2020
Asia 272,597
Americas 284,491
Africa 76,649
Europe 68,994
Oceania 3,998
Not Specified 633
Total 707,362
Persons Obtaining Lawful Permanent Resident Status by Type and Major Class of Admission
Class of Admission (Adjustments of Status and New Arrivals) 2020
Immediate relatives of U.S. citizens 321,148
Family-sponsored preferences 121,560
Employment-based preferences 148,959
Diversity 25,028
Refugees 44,404
Asylees 19,471
Parolees 13
Children born abroad to alien residents 30
Certain Iraqis and Afghans employed by U.S. Government and their spouses and children 9,727
Cancellation of removal 3,685
Victims of human trafficking 866
Victims of crimes and their spouses and children 11,937
Other 534

Vital statistics

U.S. demographic table, 1935–2021

Average population Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate (per 1,000) Crude death rate (per 1,000) Natural change (per 1,000) Total fertility rate
1935 127,250,000 2,377,000 1,392,752 984,248 18.7 10.9 7.7 2.19
1936 128,053,000 2,355,000 1,479,228 875,772 18.4 11.5 6.8 2.15
1937 128,825,000 2,413,000 1,450,427 962,573 18.7 11.2 7.5 2.17
1938 129,825,000 2,496,000 1,381,391 1,114,609 19.2 10.6 8.6 2.22
1939 130,880,000 2,466,000 1,387,897 1,078,103 18.8 10.6 8.2 2.17
1940 131,930,000 2,559,000 1,417,269 1,142,000 19.4 10.8 8.7 2.301
1941 133,058,000 2,703,000 1,397,642 1,305,358 20.3 10.5 9.8 2.399
1942 133,752,000 2,989,000 1,385,187 1,603,813 22.2 10.3 12 2.628
1943 133,971,000 3,104,000 1,459,544 1,644,306 22.8 10.7 12.3 2.718
1944 132,622,000 2,939,000 1,411,338 1,644,456 21.2 10.2 12.4 2.568
1945 132,137,000 2,858,000 1,401,719 1,456,281 20.4 11 11 2.491
1946 139,893,000 3,411,000 1,395,617 2,015,383 24.1 10.0 14.4 2.943
1947 143,375,000 3,817,000 1,445,370 2,371,630 26.6 10.0 16.5 3.274
1948 146,045,000 3,637,000 1,444,337 2,192,663 24.9 9.8 15 3.109
1949 148,558,000 3,649,000 1,443,607 2,205,393 24.5 9.7 14.8 3.110
1950 151,240,000 3,632,000 1,452,454 2,180,000 24.1 9.6 14.4 3.091
1951 153,384,000 3,823,000 1,482,099 2,340,901 24.8 9.6 15.3 3.269
1952 155,761,000 3,913,000 1,496,838 2,416,162 25.0 9.6 15.5 3.358
1953 158,313,000 3,965,000 1,447,459 2,517,541 25.2 9.1 15.9 3.424
1954 161,191,000 4,078,000 1,481,091 2,596,909 24.8 9.3 16.1 3.543
1955 164,302,000 4,097,000 1,528,717 2,568,283 25.0 9.3 15.6 3.580
1956 167,261,000 4,218,000 1,564,476 2,653,524 25.1 9.3 15.9 3.689
1957 170,295,000 4,308,000 1,633,128 2,666,872 25.3 9.5 15.7 3.767
1958 173,239,000 4,255,000 1,647,886 2,607,114 24.4 9.5 15 3.701
1959 176,511,000 4,244,796 1,656,814 2,587,982 24.0 9.4 14.7 3.670
1960 179,977,000 4,257,850 1,711,982 2,545,868 23.7 9.5 14.1 3.654
1961 182,953,000 4,268,326 1,701,522 2,566,804 23.3 9.3 14.0 3.629
1962 185,771,000 4,167,362 1,756,720 2,410,642 22.4 9.5 13 3.474
1963 188,483,000 4,098,020 1,813,549 2,284,471 21.7 9.6 12.1 3.333
1964 191,141,000 4,027,490 1,798,051 2,229,439 21.1 9.4 11.7 3.208
1965 193,526,000 3,760,358 1,828,136 1,932,222 19.4 9.5 9.9 2.928
1966 195,576,000 3,606,274 1,863,149 1,743,125 18.4 9.5 8.9 2.736
1967 197,457,000 3,520,959 1,851,323 1,669,636 17.8 9.4 8.4 2.578
1968 199,399,000 3,501,564 1,930,082 1,571,482 17.6 9.7 7.9 2.477
1969 201,385,000 3,600,206 1,921,990 1,678,216 17.9 9.5 8.4 2.465
1970 203,984,000 3,731,386 1,921,031 1,810,355 18.4 9.4 9.0 2.480
1971 206,827,000 3,555,970 1,927,542 1,628,428 17.2 9.3 7.9 2.266
1972 209,284,000 3,258,411 1,963,944 1,294,467 15.6 9.4 6.2 2.010
1973 211,357,000 3,136,965 1,973,003 1,163,962 14.8 9.5 5.3 1.879
1974 213,342,000 3,159,958 1,934,388 1,225,570 14.8 9.1 5.7 1.835
1975 215,465,000 3,144,198 1,892,879 1,251,319 14.6 8.8 5.8 1.774
1976 217,563,000 3,167,788 1,909,440 1,258,348 14.6 8.8 5.8 1.738
1977 219,760,000 3,326,632 1,899,597 1,427,035 15.1 8.6 6.5 1.789
1978 222,095,000 3,333,279 1,927,788 1,405,491 15.0 8.7 6.3 1.760
1979 224,567,000 3,494,398 1,913,841 1,580,557 15.6 8.5 7.1 1.808
1980 227,225,000 3,612,258 1,989,841 1,622,417 15.9 8.8 7.1 1.839
1981 229,466,000 3,629,238 1,977,981 1,651,257 15.8 8.6 7.2 1.812
1982 231,664,000 3,680,537 1,974,797 1,705,740 15.9 8.5 7.4 1.827
1983 233,792,000 3,638,933 2,019,201 1,619,732 15.6 8.6 6.9 1.799
1984 235,825,000 3,669,141 2,039,369 1,629,772 15.6 8.6 6.9 1.806
1985 237,924,000 3,760,561 2,086,440 1,674,121 15.8 8.8 7.0 1.844
1986 240,133,000 3,756,547 2,105,361 1,651,186 15.6 8.8 6.9 1.837
1987 242,289,000 3,809,394 2,123,323 1,686,071 15.7 8.8 7.0 1.872
1988 244,499,000 3,909,510 2,167,999 1,741,511 16.0 8.9 7.1 1.934
1989 246,819,000 4,040,958 2,150,466 1,890,492 16.4 8.7 7.7 2.014
1990 249,623,000 4,158,212 2,148,463 2,009,749 16.7 8.6 8.1 2.081
1991 252,981,000 4,110,907 2,169,518 1,941,389 16.2 8.6 7.7 2.062
1992 256,514,000 4,065,014 2,175,613 1,889,401 15.8 8.5 7.4 2.046
1993 259,919,000 4,000,240 2,268,553 1,731,687 15.4 8.7 6.7 2.019
1994 263,126,000 3,952,767 2,278,994 1,673,773 15.0 8.7 6.4 2.001
1995 266,278,000 3,899,589 2,312,132 1,587,457 14.6 8.7 6.0 1.978
1996 269,394,000 3,891,494 2,314,690 1,576,804 14.4 8.6 5.9 1.976
1997 272,647,000 3,880,894 2,314,245 1,566,649 14.2 8.5 5.7 1.971
1998 275,854,000 3,941,553 2,337,256 1,604,297 14.3 8.5 5.8 1.999
1999 279,040,000 3,959,417 2,391,399 1,568,018 14.2 8.6 5.6 2.007
2000 282,162,411 4,058,814 2,403,351 1,655,463 14.4 8.5 5.9 2.056
2001 284,968,955 4,025,933 2,416,425 1,609,508 14.1 8.5 5.6 2.030
2002 287,625,193 4,021,726 2,443,387 1,578,339 14.0 8.5 5.5 2.020
2003 290,107,933 4,089,950 2,448,288 1,641,662 14.1 8.4 5.6 2.047
2004 292,805,298 4,112,052 2,397,615 1,714,437 14.0 8.2 5.9 2.051
2005 295,516,599 4,138,349 2,448,017 1,690,332 14.0 8.3 5.7 2.057
2006 298,379,912 4,265,555 2,426,264 1,839,291 14.3 8.1 6.2 2.108
2007 301,231,207 4,316,234 2,423,712 1,892,522 14.3 8.0 6.3 2.120
2008 304,093,966 4,247,694 2,471,984 1,775,710 14.0 8.1 5.9 2.072
2009 306,771,529 4,130,665 2,437,163 1,693,502 13.5 7.9 5.6 2.002
2010 309,327,143 3,999,386 2,468,435 1,530,951 13.0 8.0 5.0 1.931
2011 311,583,481 3,953,590 2,515,458 1,438,412 12.7 8.1 4.6 1.894
2012 313,877,862 3,952,841 2,543,279 1,409,562 12.6 8.1 4.5 1.880
2013 316,059,947 3,932,181 2,596,993 1,336,183 12.4 8.2 4.2 1.857
2014 318,386,329 3,988,076 2,626,418 1,361,658 12.5 8.2 4.3 1.862
2015 320,738,994 3,978,497 2,712,630 1,265,867 12.4 8.4 4.0 1.843
2016 323,071,755 3,945,875 2,744,248 1,201,627 12.2 8.5 3.7 1.820
2017 325,122,128 3,855,500 2,813,503 1,041,997 11.8 8.7 3.1 1.765
2018 326,838,199 3,791,712 2,839,205 952,507 11.6 8.7 2.9 1.729
2019 328,329,953 3,747,540 2,854,858 892,682 11.4 8.7 2.7 1.706
2020 331,501,080 3,613,647 3,383,729 229,918 10.9 10.2 0.7 1.641
2021 331,893,745 3,659,289 3,458,697 200,592 11.0 10.5 0.5 1.664

Current vital statistics

Period Live births Deaths Natural increase
January - June 2021 1 752 000 1 684 000 +68 000
January - June 2022 1 765 000 1 671 000 +94 000
Difference Increase +13 000 (+0.74%) Decrease -13 000 (-0.77%) Increase +26 000

U.S. projected population table, 2017–2060

The United States Census Bureau's 2017 projections were produced using the cohort-component method. In the cohort-component method, the components of population change (fertility, mortality, and net migration) are projected separately for each birth cohort (persons born in a given year). The base population is advanced each year by using projected survival rates and net international migration. Each year, a new birth cohort is added to the population by applying the projected fertility rates to the female population.

US Population Projections (Resident population as of July 1 & numbers in thousands)
Year Population
2017 325,511
2018 327,892
2019 330,269
2020 332,639
2021 334,998
2022 337,342
2023 339,665
2024 341,963
2025 344,234
2026 346,481
2027 348,695
2028 350,872
2029 353,008
2030 355,101
2031 357,147
2032 359,147
2033 361,099
2034 363,003
2035 364,862
2036 366,676
2037 368,448
2038 370,179
2039 371,871
2040 373,528
2041 375,152
2042 376,746
2043 378,314
2044 379,861
2045 381,390
2046 382,907
2047 384,415
2048 385,918
2049 387,419
2050 388,922
2051 390,431
2052 391,947
2053 393,473
2054 395,009
2055 396,557
2056 398,118
2057 399,691
2058 401,277
2059 402,874
2060 404,483

Since 1790

Historical population
Census Pop.
17903,929,214
18005,236,63133.3%
18107,239,88138.3%
18209,638,45333.1%
183012,866,02033.5%
184017,069,45332.7%
185023,191,87635.9%
186031,443,32135.6%
187038,558,37122.6%
188049,371,34028.0%
189062,979,76627.6%
190076,212,16821.0%
191092,228,53121.0%
1920106,021,56815.0%
1930123,202,66016.2%
1940132,165,1297.3%
1950151,325,79814.5%
1960179,323,17518.5%
1970203,211,92613.3%
1980226,545,80511.5%
1990248,709,8739.8%
2000281,421,90613.2%
2010308,745,5389.7%
2020331,449,2817.4%
Sources: United States Census Bureau
2020 data (as of population clock)
Note that the census numbers do not
include American natives before 1860.

In 1900, when the U.S. population was 76 million, there were 66.8 million White Americans in the United States, representing 88% of the total population, 8.8 million Black Americans, with about 90% of them still living in Southern states, and slightly more than 500,000 Hispanics.

Under the law, the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965, the number of first-generation immigrants living in the United States has increased, from 9.6 million in 1970 to about 38 million in 2007. Around a million people legally immigrated to the United States per year in the 1990s, up from 250,000 per year in the 1950s.

In 1900, non-Hispanic whites comprised almost 97% of the population of the 10 largest U.S. cities. The Census Bureau reported that minorities (including Hispanic whites) made up 50.4% of the children born in the U.S. between July 2010 and July 2011, compared to 37% in 1990.

In 2014, the state with the lowest fertility rate was Rhode Island, with a rate of 1.56, while Utah had the greatest rate with a rate of 2.33. This correlates with the ages of the states' populations: Rhode Island has the ninth-oldest median age in the US – 39.2 – while Utah has the youngest – 29.0.

In 2017, the U.S. birth rate remains well below the replacement level needed – at least 2.1 children per woman so as not to experience population decreases – as white American births fell in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Among non-Hispanic white women, no states had a fertility rate above the replacement level. Among non-Hispanic Black women, 12 states reached above the replacement level needed. Among Hispanic women, 29 states did. For non-Hispanic white women, the highest total fertility rate was in Utah, at 2.099, and the lowest in the District of Columbia, at 1.012. Among non-Hispanic Black women, the highest total fertility rate was in Maine, at 4.003, and the lowest in Wyoming, at 1.146. For Hispanic women, the highest total fertility rate was in Alabama, at 3.085, and the lowest in Vermont, at 1.200, and Maine, at 1.281. Due to the aging and low birth rates among white people, deaths now outnumber births among white people (non-Hispanic) in more than half the states in the country.

In 2018, U.S. births fell to the lowest level in 32 years.

Median age of the population

Median age of the U.S. population through history. Source: U.S. Department of Commerce. Bureau of Census, United States Census Bureau and The World Factbook.

Years 1820 1830 1840 1850 1860 1870 1880 1890 1900
Median age of the total population 16.7 17.2 17.8 18.9 19.4 20.2 20.9 22.0 22.9
Median age of males 16.6 17.2 17.9 19.2 19.8 20.2 21.2 22.3 23.3
Median age of females 16.8 17.3 17.8 18.6 19.1 20.1 20.7 21.6 22.4
Years 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2018 2021
Median age of the total population 24.1 25.3 26.5 29.0 30.2 29.6 28.1 30.0 32.9 35.3 37.2 38.2 38.8
Median age of males 24.6 25.8 26.7 29.1 29.9 28.7 26.8 28.8 31.7 34.0 35.8 36.9 37.7
Median age of females 23.5 24.7 25.2 29.0 30.5 30.4 29.8 31.2 34.1 36.5 38.5 39.5 39.8

Vital statistics

States in the US shown with population change 2010 to 2020 census
 -2.00% or less
 -0.01% to -1.99%
 0% to 0.99%
 1% to 2.49%
 2.5% to 4.99%
 5% to 8.99%
 9% to 11.99%
 12% or more

The U.S. total fertility rate as of 2020 is 1.641

Other:

(Note that ≈95% of Hispanics are included as "white Hispanics" by CDC, which does not recognize the Census's "Some other race" category and counts people in that category as white.)

Source: National Vital statistics report based on 2010 US Census data

Total Fertility Rates from 1800 to 2010

The total fertility rate is the number of children born per woman. Sources: Ansley J. Coale, Zelnik and National Center for Health Statistics.

Years 1800 1810 1820 1830 1840 1850 1860 1870 1880 1890 1900
Total Fertility Rate in the United States 7.0 6.9 6.7 6.6 6.1 5.4 5.2 4.6 4.2 3.9 3.6
Years 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010
Total Fertility Rate in the United States 3.4 3.2 2.5 2.2 3.0 3.5 2.5 1.8 2.08 2.06 1.93

Life expectancy at birth from 1901 to 2015

Life expectancy in the United States from 1901 to 2015. Source: Our World In Data and the United Nations.

1901–1950

Years 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910
Life expectancy in the United States 49.3 50.5 50.6 49.6 50.3 50.2 50.1 51.9 52.8 51.8
Years 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920
Life expectancy in the United States 53.4 54.1 53.5 54.6 55.1 54.2 54.0 47.0 55.3 55.4
Years 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930
Life expectancy in the United States 58.2 58.1 57.5 58.5 58.5 57.9 59.4 58.3 58.5 59.6
Years 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940
Life expectancy in the United States 60.3 61.0 60.9 60.2 60.9 60.4 61.1 62.4 63.1 63.2
Years 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950
Life expectancy in the United States 63.8 64.6 64.3 65.1 65.6 66.3 66.7 67.3 67.6 68.1

1901–2015

Period Life expectancy
in Years
1901–1909 49.3 – 52.8
1910–1919 53.5 – 55.3
1920–1929 55.4 – 59.4
1930–1939 60.2 – 63.1
1940–1949 63.8 – 67.6
1950–1955 68.7
1955–1960 69.7
1960–1965 70.1
1965–1970 70.4
1970–1975 71.4
1975–1980 73.3
1980–1985 74.4
1985–1990 74.9
1990–1995 75.7
1995–2000 76.5
2000–2005 77.2
2005–2010 78.2
2010–2015 78.9
2015–2020 78.8

Source: UN World Population Prospects

Percent distribution of the total population by age: 1900 to 2015

Population pyramid of United States in 1950

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Commerce, United Nations medium variant projections.

Ages 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2015
0–14 years 34.5 32.1 31.8 29.4 25.0 26.9 31.1 28.5 22.6 21.5 21.4 20.2 19.8
15–24 years 19.6 19.7 17.7 18.3 18.2 14.7 13.4 17.4 18.8 14.8 13.9
25–44 years 28.1 29.2 29.6 29.5 30.1 30.0 26.2 23.6 27.7 32.5 30.2
45–64 years 13.7 14.6 16.1 17.5 19.8 20.3 20.1 20.6 19.6 18.6 22.0
65 years and over 4.1 4.3 4.7 5.4 6.8 8.1 9.2 9.9 11.3 12.6 12.4 13.0 14.3
Total (%) 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 33.2 34.1

Population centers

The United States has dozens of major cities, including 31 "global cities" of all types, with 10 in the "alpha" group of global cities: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Boston, San Francisco, Miami, Philadelphia, Dallas, and Atlanta. As of 2011, the United States had 51 metropolitan areas with a population of over 1,000,000 people each. (See Table of United States Metropolitan Statistical Areas.)

As of 2011, about 250 million Americans live in or around urban areas. That means more than three-quarters of the U.S. population shares just about three percent of the U.S. land area.

The following table shows the populations of the top twenty metropolitan areas. Note Denver and Baltimore have over 2.5 million residents in their metro areas, and the San Juan (Puerto Rico) metro area has more than 2 million residents.

 
Largest metropolitan areas in United States
Rank Region Pop. Rank Region Pop.
New York
New York
Los Angeles
Los Angeles
1 New York Northeast 19,768,458 11 Boston Northeast 4,899,932
2 Los Angeles West 12,997,353 12 Riverside–San Bernardino West 4,653,105
3 Chicago Midwest 9,509,934 13 San Francisco West 4,623,264
4 Dallas–Fort Worth South 7,759,615 14 Detroit Midwest 4,365,205
5 Houston South 7,206,841 15 Seattle West 4,011,553
6 Washington, D.C. South 6,356,434 16 Minneapolis–Saint Paul Midwest 3,690,512
7 Philadelphia Northeast 6,228,601 17 San Diego West 3,286,069
8 Atlanta South 6,144,050 18 Tampa–St. Petersburg South 3,219,514
9 Miami South 6,091,747 19 Denver West 2,972,566
10 Phoenix West 4,946,145 20 Baltimore South 2,838,327

Race and ethnicity

Racial and ethnic groups in the United States (2020 Census)

 Non-Hispanic or Latino Black Americans (12.1%)
 Non-Hispanic or Latino Asian Americans (5.9%)
 Non-Hispanic or Latino Two or more races (4.1%)
 Non-Hispanic or Latino Native Americans (0.7%)
 Non-Hispanic or Latino Some other race (0.5%)
 Non-Hispanic or Latino Pacific Islander Americans (0.2%)

Racial groups in the United States (2020 Census) including racial identification of Latinos

 White Americans (61.6%)
 Black Americans (12.4%)
Counties in the United States by percentage of the population which is non-Hispanic or Latino and/or non-white according to the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2013–2017 5-Year Estimates. Counties with larger populations of Hispanic/Latino and/or non-white than the United States as a whole are in full purple.
States in the United States by Hispanic/Latino and/or non-white population according to the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2013–2017 5-Year Estimates. States with larger Hispanic/Latino and/or non-white populations than the United States as a whole are in full purple.

Race

Population pyramid by race

The United States Census Bureau collects racial data in accordance with guidelines provided by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and these data are based on self-identification. Many other countries count multiple races based on origin while America compiles multiple dozens of ethnicity groups into skin color grouping them together.[citation needed][relevant?] The racial classifications and definitions used by the U.S. Census Bureau are:

  • White: a person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa. It includes people who indicate their race as "White" or report entries such as Afghan, Iranian, Irish, German, Italian, Lebanese, Arab, Moroccan, or Caucasian.
  • Black or African American: a person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa. It includes people who indicate their race as "Black, African Am." or report entries such as African American, Kenyan, Nigerian, or Haitian.
  • American Indian or Alaska Native: a person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) and who maintains tribal affiliation or community attachment. This category includes people who indicate their race as "American Indian or Alaska Native" or report entries such as Navajo, Blackfeet, Inupiat, Yup'ik, Central American Indian groups, or South American Indian groups.
  • Asian: a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent including, for example: Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.
  • Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander: a person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
  • Some other race: includes all other responses not included in the "White," "Black or African American," "American Indian or Alaska Native," "Asian," and "Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander" racial categories described above includes Asians from Western Asia or Russia (non European Russia) and White Africans
  • Two or more races: people may choose to provide two or more races either by checking two or more race response check boxes, providing multiple responses, or some combination of check boxes and other responses.

Data about race and ethnicity are self-reported to the Census Bureau. Since the 2000 census, Congress has authorized people to identify themselves according to more than one racial classification by selecting more than one category. Only one ethnicity may be selected, however, because the U.S. Census recognizes only two ethnicities – Hispanic and Non-Hispanic – which are mutually exclusive since you can be one or the other, but not both. The Census Bureau defines "Hispanic" as any person who has an ancestral connection to Latin America.

According to the 2013–2017 American Community Survey, the racial composition of the United States in 2017 was:

Race Population (2017 est.) Share of total
population
Total 321,004,407 100%
One race 310,923,363 96.9%
  White 234,370,202 73.0%
  Black or African American 40,610,815 12.7%
  American Indian and Alaska Native 2,632,102 0.8%
  Asian 17,186,320 5.4%
  Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 570,116 0.2%
  Other races 15,553,808 4.8%
Two or more races 10,081,044 3.1%
  White and Black or African American 2,657,560 0.8%
  White and American Indian and Alaska Native 1,905,946 0.6%
  White and Asian 2,057,321 0.6%
  Black or African American and American Indian and Alaska Native 319,097 0.1%
  Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 56,510,571 17.6%
  Mexican 35,709,528 11.1%
  Puerto Rican 5,418,521 1.7%
  Cuban 2,158,962 0.7%
  Other Hispanic or Latino 13,223,560 4.1%
  Not Hispanic or Latino 264,493,836 82.4%
  White (non-Hispanic) 197,277,789 61.5%
  Black or African American (non-Hispanic) 39,445,495 12.3%
  American Indian and Alaska Native (non-Hispanic) 2,098,763 0.7%
  Asian (non-Hispanic) 16,989,540 5.3%
  Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander (non-Hispanic) 515,522 0.2%
  Some other race (non-Hispanic) 715,432 0.2%
  Two or more races 7,451,295 2.3%
Distribution of Total Population by Race, 1900 to 2020 (in %)

Hispanic are shown like part of the races. Source: U.S. Census Bureau.

Years 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000* 2010* 2020*
White 87.9 88.9 89.7 89.8 89.8 89.5 88.6 87.5 83.0 80.3 75.1 72.4 61.6
Black or African American 11.6 10.7 9.9 9.7 9.8 10.0 10.5 11.1 11.7 12.1 12.3 12.6 12.4
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.8 0.8 0.9 0.9 1.1
Asian and Native Hawaiian
and other Pacific Islander
1.5 2.9 3.8 5.0 6.2
Some other race 3.0 3.9 5.5 6.2 8.4
Two or more races 2.4 2.9 10.2
Sum (%) 99.5 99.6 99.6 99.5 99.6 99.5 99.1 98.6 100 100 100 100 100

*Data are shown for the White, Black or African American, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian and Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and Some other race alone populations.

Median age by each race alone & ethnicity, 2021

Source: United States Census Bureau.

Race Median age (both sexes) (years) Median age (male) (years) Median age (female) (years)
Total Population 38.8 37.7 39.8
White (Non-Hispanic) 43.8 42.6 45.0
Black or African American 34.5 32.9 36.1
American Indian and Alaska Native 32.1 31.8 32.5
Asian 37.7 36.5 38.9
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 32.7 32.5 32.9
Two or More Races 21.1 20.4 21.8
Hispanic alone 30.5 30.2 30.8
Not Hispanic 41.0 39.8 42.1
Median age by race alone or in combination & ethnicity, 2021

Source: United States Census Bureau.

Race Median age (both sexes) (years) Median age (male) (years) Median age (female) (years)
White 39.8 38.9 40.8
Black or African American 32.7 31.2 34.2
American Indian and Alaska Native 31.6 30.9 32.2
Asian 35.4 34.1 36.6
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 29.8 29.3 30.3
White (Non-Hispanic) 42.8 41.7 44.0
Most common age by race/ethnicity, 2018
Race/ethnicity White Black or
African American
Hispanic Asian American Indian and
Alaska Native
Native Hawaiian and
Pacific Islander
Multiracial
Most common age 58 yo 27 yo 11 yo 29 yo 26 yo 28 yo 3 yo
Racial breakdown of population by state (plus D.C. and Puerto Rico), 2015
State or territory Population
(2015 est.)
White Black or
African American
American Indian
and Alaska Native
Asian Native Hawaiian and
Other Pacific Islander
Some other race Two or more races
Alabama 4,830,620 68.8% 26.4% 0.5% 1.2% 0.1% 1.3% 1.7%
Alaska 733,375 66.0% 3.4% 13.8% 5.9% 1.2% 1.3% 8.4%
Arizona 6,641,928 78.4% 4.2% 4.4% 3.0% 0.2% 6.5% 3.2%
Arkansas 2,958,208 78.0% 15.5% 0.6% 1.4% 0.2% 2.1% 2.1%
California 38,421,464 61.8% 5.9% 0.7% 13.7% 0.4% 12.9% 4.5%
Colorado 5,278,906 84.2% 4.0% 0.9% 2.9% 0.1% 4.3% 3.5%
Connecticut 3,593,222 77.3% 10.3% 0.2% 4.2% 0.0% 5.1% 2.8%
Delaware 926,454 69.4% 21.6% 0.3% 3.6% 0.0% 2.3% 2.7%
District of Columbia 647,484 40.2% 48.9% 0.3% 3.7% 0.0% 4.2% 2.7%
Florida 19,645,772 76.0% 16.1% 0.3% 2.6% 0.1% 2.5% 2.4%
Georgia 10,006,693 60.2% 30.9% 0.3% 3.6% 0.0% 2.8% 2.1%
Hawaii 1,406,299 25.4% 2.0% 0.2% 37.7% 9.9% 1.1% 23.7%
Idaho 1,616,547 91.7% 0.6% 1.3% 1.3% 0.1% 2.4% 2.6%
Illinois 12,873,761 72.3% 14.3% 0.2% 5.0% 0.0% 5.8% 2.2%
Indiana 6,568,645 84.2% 9.2% 0.2% 1.9% 0.0% 2.3% 2.2%
Iowa 3,093,526 91.2% 3.2% 0.3% 2.0% 0.1% 1.3% 2.0%
Kansas 2,892,987 85.2% 5.8% 0.8% 2.6% 0.1% 2.2% 3.3%
Kentucky 4,397,353 87.6% 7.9% 0.2% 1.3% 0.0% 0.9% 2.1%
Louisiana 4,625,253 62.8% 32.1% 0.6% 1.7% 0.0% 1.0% 1.8%
Maine 1,329,100 95.0% 1.1% 0.6% 1.1% 0.0% 0.2% 2.0%
Maryland 5,930,538 57.6% 29.5% 0.3% 6.0% 0.0% 3.6% 3.0%
Massachusetts 6,705,586 79.6% 7.1% 0.2% 6.0% 0.0% 4.2% 2.9%
Michigan 9,900,571 79.0% 14.0% 0.5% 2.7% 0.0% 1.1% 2.6%
Minnesota 5,419,171 84.8% 5.5% 1.0% 4.4% 0.0% 1.5% 2.7%
Mississippi 2,988,081 59.2% 37.4% 0.4% 1.0% 0.0% 0.9% 1.2%
Missouri 6,045,448 82.6% 11.5% 0.4% 1.8% 0.1% 1.1% 2.4%
Montana 1,014,699 89.2% 0.5% 6.5% 0.7% 0.1% 0.5% 2.5%
Nebraska 1,869,365 88.1% 4.7% 0.9% 2.0% 0.1% 1.9% 2.2%
Nevada 2,798,636 69.0% 8.4% 1.1% 7.7% 0.6% 8.8% 4.4%
New Hampshire 1,324,201 93.7% 1.3% 0.2% 2.4% 0.0% 0.5% 1.8%
New Jersey 8,904,413 68.3% 13.5% 0.2% 9.0% 0.0% 6.4% 2.5%
New Mexico 2,084,117 73.2% 2.1% 9.1% 1.4% 0.1% 10.9% 3.3%
New York 19,673,174 64.6% 15.6% 0.4% 8.0% 0.0% 8.6% 2.9%
North Carolina 9,845,333 69.5% 21.5% 1.2% 2.5% 0.1% 3.0% 2.4%
North Dakota 721,640 88.7% 1.6% 5.3% 1.2% 0.0% 0.8% 2.2%
Ohio 11,575,977 82.4% 12.2% 0.2% 1.9% 0.0% 0.8% 2.5%
Oklahoma 3,849,733 73.1% 7.2% 7.3% 1.9% 0.1% 2.6% 7.8%
Oregon 3,939,233 85.1% 1.8% 1.2% 4.0% 0.4% 3.4% 4.1%
Pennsylvania 12,779,559 81.6% 11.0% 0.2% 3.1% 0.0% 2.0% 2.1%
Puerto Rico 3,583,073 69.7% 8.4% 0.3% 0.3% 0.0% 12.0% 9.3%
Rhode Island 1,053,661 81.1% 6.5% 0.5% 3.2% 0.0% 5.8% 2.8%
South Carolina 4,777,576 67.2% 27.5% 0.3% 1.4% 0.1% 1.5% 2.0%
South Dakota 843,190 85.0% 1.6% 8.6% 1.2% 0.0% 0.9% 2.6%
Tennessee 6,499,615 77.8% 16.8% 0.3% 1.6% 0.1% 1.5% 2.0%
Texas 26,538,614 74.9% 11.9% 0.5% 4.2% 0.1% 6.0% 2.5%
Utah 2,903,379 87.6% 1.1% 1.1% 2.2% 0.9% 4.5% 2.6%
Vermont 626,604 94.9% 1.1% 0.3% 1.4% 0.0% 0.3% 1.9%
Virginia 8,256,630 69.0% 19.2% 0.3% 6.0% 0.1% 2.2% 3.2%
Washington 6,985,464 77.8% 3.6% 1.3% 7.7% 0.6% 3.8% 5.2%
West Virginia 1,851,420 93.6% 3.3% 0.2% 0.7% 0.0% 0.2% 2.0%
Wisconsin 5,742,117 86.5% 6.3% 0.9% 2.5% 0.0% 1.7% 2.1%
Wyoming 579,679 91.0% 1.1% 2.2% 0.9% 0.1% 2.1% 2.7%
Racial breakdown of population in the Insular Areas, 2010
Territory Population
(2010 est.)
White Black or
African American
American Indian
and Alaska Native
Asian Native Hawaiian and
Other Pacific Islander
Some other race Two or more races
American Samoa 55,519 0.9% 0.0% 3.6% 92.6% 0.1% 2.7%
Guam 159,358 7.1% 1.0% 32.2% 49.3% 0.3% 9.4%
Northern Mariana Islands 53,883 2.1% 0.1% 49.9% 34.9% 0.2% 12.7%
U.S. Virgin Islands 106,405 15.6% 76.0% 1.4% 0.0% 4.9% 2.1%
U.S. Births by race/ethnicity in 2018
Year White Alone Black Alone Hispanic Native American Alone Asian Alone Pacific Islander Alone
2018 51.6% 14.6% 23.4% 0.8% 6.4% 0.3%
Percentage distribution of the U.S. resident population 5 to 17 years old, by race/ethnicity: 2000 and 2017
Year White Black or
African American
Hispanic Asian Pacific Islander American Indian
Alaska Native
Two or more races
2000 60% 15% 16% 3% 1% 2%
2017 51% 14% 25% 5% 1% 4%
Percentage distribution of the U.S. resident population 18 to 24 years old, by race/ethnicity: 2000 and 2017
Year White Black or
African American
Hispanic Asian Pacific Islander American Indian
Alaska Native
Two or more races
2000 62% 14% 18% 4% 1% 1%
2017 54% 14% 22% 6% 1% 3%
Percentage of population between non-Hispanic whites and Minority by age group, 2013
Age group 85+ 80–84 75–79 70–74 65–69 60–64 55–59 50–54 45–49 40–44 35–39 30–34 25–29 20–24 15–19 10–14 5–9 <5
non-Hispanic white 83% 81% 79% 78% 77% 74% 72% 69% 65% 61% 58% 57% 57% 56% 55% 54% 52% 50%
Minority 17% 19% 21% 22% 23% 26% 28% 31% 35% 39% 42% 43% 43% 44% 45% 46% 48% 50%

Hispanic or Latino origin

CensusViewer US 2010 Census Latino Population as a heatmap by census tract.

The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) defines "Hispanic or Latino" as a person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Dominican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin regardless of race. People who identify with the terms "Hispanic" or "Latino" are those who classify themselves in one of the specific Hispanic or Latino categories listed on the decennial census questionnaire and various Census Bureau survey questionnaires – "Mexican, Mexican Am., Chicano" or "Puerto Rican" or "Cuban" – as well as those who indicate that they are "another Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin." People who identify their origin as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race.

Hispanic or Latino and Race Population (2015 est.) Percentage of total
population
United States population 316,515,021 100%
Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 54,232,205 17.1%
  White 35,684,777 11.3%
  Black or African American 1,122,369 0.3%
  American Indian and Alaska Native 490,557 0.1%
  Asian 181,231 0.0%
  Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 46,724 0.0%
  Some other race 14,226,829 4.5%
  Two or more races 2,479,718 0.8%
Not Hispanic or Latino 262,282,816 82.9%
Population distribution by Hispanic origin 1970–2020 (in %)

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, decennial census of population, 1970 (5-percent sample), 1980 to 2020.

Years 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
Not Hispanic or Latino 95.5 93.6 91.0 87.5 83.7 81.3
Hispanic or Latino 4.5 6.4 9.0 12.5 16.3 18.7
Total (%) 100 100 100 100 100 100
Median age of each race alone, 2021 (Hispanic)

Source: United States Census Bureau.

Race Median age (both sex) (years) Median age (male) (years) Median age (female) (years)
Total (Hispanic) 30.5 30.2 30.8
White 31.2 30.9 31.5
Black or African American 27.1 26.1 28.2
American Indian and Alaska Native 28.4 29.0 27.8
Asian 26.9 26.2 27.7
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 27.8 28.3 27.2
Two or More Races 21.5 21.1 22.0
Median age of each race alone or in combination, 2021 (Hispanic)

Source: United States Census Bureau.

Race Median age (both sex) (years) Median age (male) (years) Median age (female) (years)
White 30.9 30.6 31.1
Black or African American 25.3 24.3 26.3
American Indian and Alaska Native 27.6 27.8 27.3
Asian 23.0 22.3 23.7
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 24.8 24.9 24.7

Note: Hispanic origin is considered an ethnicity, not a race. Hispanics may be of any race.

Indigenous peoples

As of 2017, there are 2,098,763 American Indian and Alaska Native people in the United States, representing 0.7% of the U.S. population. There are 573 federally recognized tribal governments in the United States. As of 2000, the largest groups in the United States by population were Navajo, Cherokee, Choctaw, Sioux, Chippewa, Apache, Blackfeet, Iroquois, and Pueblo.

Other groups

There were 22.1 million veterans in 2009, meaning that less than 10% of Americans served in the Armed Forces.

In 2010, The Washington Post estimated that there were 11 million undocumented immigrants in the country. As of 2017, Pew Research reported that there an estimated 10.5 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S.

There were about 2 million people in prison in 2010.

Projections

U.S. Census Population projections (2012)
2015 2050
White Americans1 77.4% 70.8%
> Non-Hispanic Whites 61.8% 46.6%
Black Americans1 13.2% 14.4%
Asian Americans1 5.3% 7.7%
Multiracial Americans1 2.6% 5.4%
Hispanics/Latinos (of any race) 17.8% 28.0%
1 Including Hispanics

A report by the U.S. Census Bureau projects a decrease in the ratio of Whites between 2010 and 2050, from 79.5% to 74.0%. At the same time, Non-Hispanic Whites are projected to no longer make up a majority of the population by 2045, but will remain the largest single ethnic group. In 2050 they will compose 46.3% of the population. Non-Hispanic whites made up 85% of the population in 1960. However, White Americans overall are still projected to make up over 70% of the population in 2050.

The report foresees the Hispanic or Latino population rising from 16% today to 30% by 2050, the Black percentage barely rising from 13.2% to 14.4%, and Asian Americans upping their 4.6% share to 7.8%. The United States had a population of 310 million people in October 2010, and is projected to reach 400 million by 2039 and 439 million in 2050. It is further projected that 82% of the increase in population from 2005 to 2050 will be due to immigrants and their children.

Of the nation's children in 2050, 62% are expected to be of a minority ethnicity, up from 44% today. Approximately 39% are projected to be Hispanic or Latino (up from 22% in 2008), and 38% are projected to be single-race, non-Hispanic Whites (down from 56% in 2008). Racial and ethnic minorities surpassed non-Hispanic whites as the largest group of U.S. children under 5 years old in 2015.

Pew Research Center projections

The United Nations projects a population of just over 400 million in 2060.

Pew Research Center projections (2008)
1960 2005 2050
White Americans 85% 67% 47%
Hispanic Americans 3.5% 14% 29%
Black Americans 11% 13% 14%
Asian Americans 0.6% 5% 9%
Note: All races modified and not Hispanic; American Indian/Alaska Native not shown.

The country's racial profile will be vastly different, and although whites will remain the single largest ethnic group in the U.S., they will no longer be a majority excluding White Hispanics by 2055 according to Pew Research Center. Growth in the Hispanic and Asian populations is predicted to almost triple over the next 40 years. By 2055, the breakdown is estimated to be 48% non-Hispanic white, 24% Hispanic, 16% Black, and 14% Asian.

As of 2015, 14% of the United States' population is foreign born, compared to just 5% in 1965. Nearly 39 million immigrants have come to the U.S. since 1965, with most coming from Asia and Latin America. The 2015 Census Report predicts that the percentage of the U.S. population that is foreign-born will continue to increase, reaching 19% by 2060. This increase in the foreign-born population will account for a large share of the overall population growth.

The average person in the U.S. of 2060 is likely to be older than the average person of 2018 today, and almost one in four people will be 65 or older.

U.S. Census Census Bureau projections

Percent minority 1970–2042 (2008 projections)
Years 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 2030 2040 2042
Percent minority (%) 16.5 20.4 24.4 30.9 36.3 39.9 44.5 49.2 50.1

Note: "Minority" refers to people who reported their ethnicity and race as something other than non-Hispanic White alone in the decennial census.

Total US population
Year Projection (Census Bureau)

(thousands)

Projection (UN)

(thousands)

Actual result
2010 310,233 309,011 308,745,538
2020 332,639 331,003 331,449,281
2030 373,504 349,642
2040 405,655 366,572
2050 439,010 379,419

LGBT population

The 2000 U.S. Census counted same-sex couples in an oblique way; asking the sex and the relationship to the "main householder", whose sex was also asked. Community Marketing & Insights, an organization specializing in analyzing gay demographic data, reported, based on this count in the 2000 census and in the 2000 supplementary survey, that same-sex couples comprised between 1.0% and 1.1% of U.S. couples in 2000. A 2006 report issued by The Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation concluded that the number of same-sex couples in the U.S. grew from 2000 to 2005, from nearly 600,000 couples in 2000 to almost 777,000 in 2005.[citation needed] A 2006 UCLA study reported that 4.1% of Americans aged 18–45 identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual.

A 2011 report by the Williams Institute estimated that 9 million adults identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual, representing 3.5% of the population over 18. A spokesperson said that, until recently, few studies have tried to distinguish people who had occasionally undertaken homosexual behavior or entertained homosexual thoughts, from people who identified as lesbian or gay. (Older estimates have varied depending on methodology and timing; see Demographics of sexual orientation for a list of studies.)

Foreign-born population

As of 2017, an estimated 44,525,458 residents of the United States were foreign-born, 13.5% of the country's total population. This demographic includes recent as well as longstanding immigrants; statistically Europeans have resided in the US longer than those from other regions with approximately 66% having arrived prior to 2000.

Place of birth of the foreign-born population in the United States, 2017
Place of birth Estimate Percentage of total foreign-born people
Americas 23,241,959 52.2%
Caribbean 4,414,943 9.9%
> Cuba 1,311,803 3.0%
> Dominican Republic 1,162,568 2.6%
Central America (including Mexico) 14,796,926 33.2%
> Mexico 11,269,913 25.3%
> El Salvador 1,401,832 3.2%
South America 3,213,187 7.2%
> Canada 809,267 1.8%
Europe 4,818,662 10.8%
Northern Europe 941,796 2.1%
Western Europe 949,591 2.1%
Southern Europe 761,390 1.7%
Eastern Europe 2,153,855 4.8%
Asia 13,907,844 31.2%
Eastern Asia 4,267,303 9.6%
> China 2,639,365 5.9%
> Korea 1,064,960 2.4%
South Central Asia 4,113,013 9.2%
> India 2,348,687 5.3%
South Eastern Asia 4,318,647 6.7%
> Philippines 1,945,345 4.4%
> Vietnam 1,314,927 3.0%
Western Asia 1,159,835 2.6%
Africa 2,293,028 5.2%
Eastern Africa 693,784 1.6%
Middle Africa 163,364 0.4%
Northern Africa 359,559 0.8%
Southern Africa 116,297 0.2%
Western Africa 837,290 1.9%
Oceania 263,965 0.6%
Australia and New Zealand Subregion 123,080 0.3%

Citizens living abroad

As of April 2015, the U.S. State Department estimated that 8.7 million American citizens live overseas. Americans living abroad are not counted in the U.S. Census unless they are a federal government employees or dependents of a federal employee. A 2010 paper estimated the number of civilian Americans living abroad to be around 4 million. So-called "accidental Americans" are citizens of a country other than the United States who may also be considered U.S. citizens or be eligible for U.S. citizenship under specific laws but are not aware of having such status (or became aware of it only recently).

Religion

Religious affiliations

Religion in the United States (2021)

 Catholicism (21%)
 Mormonism (1%)
 Unaffiliated (29%)
 Judaism (1%)
 Islam (1%)
 Hinduism (1%)
 Buddhism (1%)
 Other religions (3%)
 Unanswered (2%)

The table below is based mainly on selected data as reported to the United States Census Bureau. It only includes the voluntary self-reported membership of religious bodies with 750,000 or more. The definition of a member is determined by each religious body. In 2004, the US census bureau reported that about 13% of the population did not identify themselves as a member of any religion.[clarification needed]

In a Pew Research Survey performed in 2012, Americans without a religion (atheists, agnostics, nothing in particular, etc.) approached the numbers of Evangelical Protestant Americans with almost 20% of Americans being nonreligious (compared to just over 26% being Evangelical Protestant). If this current growth rate continues, by 2050, around 51% of Americans will not have a religion.

Surveys conducted in 2014 and 2019 by Pew indicated that the percentage of Americans unaffiliated with a religion increased from 16% in 2007 to 23% in 2014 and 26% of the population in 2019.

According to statistical data made by the Pew Research Center in 2021 about 63% of the US population is Christian, 28% is Unaffiliated, 2% is Jewish, 1% is Buddhist, 1% follows Islam and 3% follow other religions such as Hinduism, traditional religions and others. Currently, the United States has the largest Christian population in the world (approximately 230-250 million) and the largest Protestant Christian population (approximately 150-160 million). The country also has the second largest Jewish community in the world (after Israel) and the largest Buddhist and Hindu communities in the West, as well as the largest number of followers of Islam in North America. The country has about 64 million non-affiliates (only China and Japan have more).[citation needed]

Religious body Year
reported
Places of
worship
Membership
(thousands)
Clergy
!a 0000 −9999 −9999 −9999
African Methodist Episcopal Church 1999 no data 2,500 7,741
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church 2002 3,226 1,431 3,252
American Baptist Association 2009 1,600 100 1,740
Amish, Old Order 1993 898 227 3,592
American Baptist Churches USA 2017 5,057 1,146 4,145
Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America 1998 220 65 263
Armenian Apostolic Church 2010 153 1,000 200
Armenian Catholic Church 2010 36
Assemblies of God 2018 13,017 1,857 38,199
Baptist Bible Fellowship International 2010 4,000 1,100 4,190
Baptist General Conference 1998 876 141 no data
Baptist Missionary Association of America 2010 1,272 138 1,525
Buddhism 2001 no data 1,082 no data
Christian and Missionary Alliance, The 1998 1,964 346 1,629
Christian Brethren (Plymouth Brethren) 1997 1,150 100 no data
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) 2018 3,624 382 2,066
Christian churches and churches of Christ 1998 5,579 1,072 5,525
Christian Congregation, Inc., The 1998 1,438 117 1,436
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church 1983 2,340 719 no data
Christian Reformed Church in North America 1998 733 199 655
Church of God in Christ 1991 15,300 5,500 28,988
Church of God of Prophecy 1997 1,908 77 2,000
Church of God (Anderson, IN) 1998 2,353 234 3,034
Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) 1995 6,060 753 3,121
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 2014 14,018 6,466 38,259
Church of the Brethren 2019 978 99 827
Church of the Nazarene 1998 5,101 627 4,598
Churches of Christ 2019 11,989 1,116 14,500
Conservative Baptist Association of America 1998 1,200 200 no data
Community of Christ 1998 1,236 140 19,319
Coptic Orthodox Church 2003 200 1,000 200
Covenant Order of Evangelical Presbyterians 2012 383 130 500
Cumberland Presbyterian Church 1998 774 87 630
Episcopal Church 2018 6,423 1,676 8,131
Evangelical Covenant Church, The 1998 628 97 607
Evangelical Free Church of America, The 1995 1,224 243 1,936
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America 2018 9,091 3,363 9,646
Evangelical Presbyterian Church 1998 187 145 262
Free Methodist Church of North America 1998 990 73 no data
Full Gospel Fellowship 1999 896 275 2,070
General Association of General Baptists 1997 790 72 1,085
General Association of Regular Baptist Churches 1998 1,415 102 no data
U.S. Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches 1996 368 82 590
Grace Gospel Fellowship 1992 128 60 160
Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America 2006 560 1,500 840
Hinduism 2001 no data 766 no data
Independent Fundamental Churches of America 1999 659 62 no data
International Church of the Foursquare Gospel 1998 1,851 238 4,900
International Council of Community Churches 1998 150 250 182
International Pentecostal Holiness Church 1998 1,716 177 1507
Islam 2011 no data 2,600 no data
Jainism no data no data 50 no data
Jehovah's Witnesses 2014 13,871 1,243 no data
Judaism 2006 3,727 6,588 no data
Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, The 2017 6,046 1,969 6,055
Macedonian Orthodox Church – Ohrid Archbishopric 2010 19 50 no data
Mennonite Church USA 2005 943 114 no data
National Association of Congregational Christian Churches 1998 416 67 534
National Association of Free Will Baptists 2007 2,369 186 3,915
National Baptist Convention of America, Inc. 1987 2,500 3,500 8,000
National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc. 1992 33,000 8,200 32,832
National Missionary Baptist Convention of America 2004 300 400 no data
Orthodox Church in America 2010 750 131 970
Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Inc. 1998 1,750 1,500 4,500
Pentecostal Church of God 1998 1,237 104 no data
Pentecostal Church International, United 2008 28,351 4,037 22,881
Presbyterian Church in America 1997 1,340 385 1,642
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) 2018 9,161 1,245 19,243
Progressive National Baptist Convention, Inc. 2017 1,200 1,500 no data
Reformed Church in America 2018 902 200 915
Religious Society of Friends 1994 1,200 104 no data
Roman Catholic Church 2002 19,484 66,404 50,017 (1997)
Romanian Orthodox Episcopate 1996 37 65 37
Salvation Army, The 1998 1,388 471 2,920
Scientology 2005 1,300 55 1
Serbian Orthodox Church 1986 68 67 60
Seventh-day Adventist Church 1998 4,405 840 2,454
Sikhism 1999 244 80 no data
Southern Baptist Convention 2019 47,530 14,525 71,520
Unitarian Universalism 2001 no data 629 no data
United Church of Christ 2016 5,000 880 5,868
United House of Prayer for All People no data 100 25 no data
United Methodist Church, The 2018 36,170 6,672 no data
Wesleyan Church, The 1998 1,590 120 1,806
Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod 2018 1,281 359 1,222
Zoroastrianism 2006 no data 11 no data
~z 9999 99999999 99999999 99999999

According to Pew Research Center study released in 2018, by 2040, Islam will surpass Judaism to become the second largest religion in the US due to higher immigration and birth rates.

Religions of U.S. adults

The United States government does not collect religious data in its census. The survey below, the American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS) 2008, was a random digit-dialed telephone survey of 54,461 American residential households in the contiguous United States. The 1990 sample size was 113,723; 2001 sample size was 50,281.

Adult respondents were asked the open-ended question, "What is your religion, if any?". Interviewers did not prompt or offer a suggested list of potential answers. The religion of the spouse or partner was also asked. If the initial answer was "Protestant" or "Christian" further questions were asked to probe which particular denomination. About one-third of the sample was asked more detailed demographic questions.

Religious Self-Identification of the U.S. Adult Population: 1990, 2001, 2008
Figures are not adjusted for refusals to reply; investigators suspect refusals are possibly more representative of "no religion" than any other group.

Source:ARIS 2008
Group 1990
adults
× 1,000
2001
adults
× 1,000
2008
adults
× 1,000

Numerical
Change
1990–
2008
as %
of 1990
1990
% of
adults
2001
% of
adults
2008
% of
adults
change
in % of
total
adults
1990–
2008
Adult population, total 175,440 207,983 228,182 30.1%
Adult population, Responded 171,409 196,683 216,367 26.2% 97.7% 94.6% 94.8% −2.9%
Total Christian 151,225 159,514 173,402 14.7% 86.2% 76.7% 76.0% −10.2%
Catholic 46,004 50,873 57,199 24.3% 26.2% 24.5% 25.1% −1.2%
Non-Catholic Christian 105,221 108,641 116,203 10.4% 60.0% 52.2% 50.9% −9.0%
Baptist 33,964 33,820 36,148 6.4% 19.4% 16.3% 15.8% −3.5%
Mainline Protestant 32,784 35,788 29,375 −10.4% 18.7% 17.2% 12.9% −5.8%
Methodist 14,174 14,039 11,366 −19.8% 8.1% 6.8% 5.0% −3.1%
Lutheran 9,110 9,580 8,674 −4.8% 5.2% 4.6% 3.8% −1.4%
Presbyterian 4,985 5,596 4,723 −5.3% 2.8% 2.7% 2.1% −0.8%
Episcopalian/Anglican 3,043 3,451 2,405 −21.0% 1.7% 1.7% 1.1% −0.7%
United Church of Christ 438 1,378 736 68.0% 0.2% 0.7% 0.3% 0.1%
Christian Generic 25,980 22,546 32,441 24.9% 14.8% 10.8% 14.2% −0.6%
Jehovah's Witness 1,381 1,331 1,914 38.6% 0.8% 0.6% 0.8% 0.1%
Christian Unspecified 8,073 14,190 16,384 102.9% 4.6% 6.8% 7.2% 2.6%
Non-denominational Christian 194 2,489 8,032 4040.2% 0.1% 1.2% 3.5% 3.4%
Protestant – Unspecified 17,214 4,647 5,187 −69.9% 9.8% 2.2% 2.3% −7.5%
Evangelical/Born Again 546 1,088 2,154 294.5% 0.3% 0.5% 0.9% 0.6%
Pentecostal/Charismatic 5,647 7,831 7,948 40.7% 3.2% 3.8% 3.5% 0.3%
Pentecostal – Unspecified 3,116 4,407 5,416 73.8% 1.8% 2.1% 2.4% 0.6%
Assemblies of God 617 1,105 810 31.3% 0.4% 0.5% 0.4% 0.0%
Church of God 590 943 663 12.4% 0.3% 0.5% 0.3% 0.0%
Other Protestant Denomination 4,630 5,949 7,131 54.0% 2.6% 2.9% 3.1% 0.5%
Seventh-Day Adventist 668 724 938 40.4% 0.4% 0.3% 0.4% 0.0%
Churches of Christ 1,769 2,593 1,921 8.6% 1.0% 1.2% 0.8% −0.2%
Mormon/Latter-Day Saints 2,487 2,697 3,158 27.0% 1.4% 1.3% 1.4% 0.0%
Total non-Christian religions 5,853 7,740 8,796 50.3% 3.3% 3.7% 3.9% 0.5%
Jewish 3,137 2,837 2,680 −14.6% 1.8% 1.4% 1.2% −0.6%
Eastern Religions 687 2,020 1,961 185.4% 0.4% 1.0% 0.9% 0.5%
Buddhist 404 1,082 1,189 194.3% 0.2% 0.5% 0.5% 0.3%
Muslim 527 1,104 1,349 156.0% 0.3% 0.5% 0.6% 0.3%
New Religious Movements & Others 1,296 1,770 2,804 116.4% 0.7% 0.9% 1.2% 0.5%
None/ No religion, total 14,331 29,481 34,169 138.4% 8.2% 14.2% 15.0% 6.8%
Agnostic+Atheist 1,186 1,893 3,606 204.0% 0.7% 0.9% 1.6% 0.9%
Did Not Know/ Refused to reply 4,031 11,300 11,815 193.1% 2.3% 5.4% 5.2% 2.9%

Income

In 2020, the median household income in the United States was around $67,521, 2.9 percent less than the 2019 median of $69,560 Household and personal income depends on variables such as race, number of income earners, educational attainment and marital status.

Median household income by selected characteristics
Type of household Race and Hispanic origin Region
All households Family
households
Nonfamily
households
Asian Non-Hispanic White Hispanic
(of any race)
Black Northeast Midwest South West
$70,784 $91,162 $41,797 $101,418 $77,999 $57,981 $48,297 $77,422 $71,129 $63,368 $79,430
Median household income by selected characteristics cont.
Age of Householder Nativity of Householder Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) Status Educational Attainment of Householder*
Under 65 years 65 years and older Native-born Foreign-born Inside MSA Outside MSA No high school diploma High school, no college Some college Bachelor's degree or higher
$80,734 $47,620 $71,522 $66,043 $73,823 $53,750 $30,378 $50,401 $64,378 $115,456
*Householders aged 25 and older. In 2021, the median household income for this group was $72,046.
Median earnings by work status and sex (Persons, aged 15 years and older with earnings)
Total workers Full-Time, year-round workers
Both sexes Male Female Both sexes Male Female
$45,470 $50,983 $39,201 $56,473 $61,180 $51,226
2020 Median earnings & household income by educational attainment
Measure Overall Less than 9th grade Some High School High school graduate Some college Associate's degree Bachelor's degree or higher Bachelor's degree Master's degree Professional degree Doctorate degree
Persons, age 25+ w/ earnings* $46,985 $25,162 $26,092 $34,540 $39,362 $42,391 $66,423 $60,705 $71,851 $102,741 $101,526
Male, age 25+ w/ earnings* $52,298 $30,089 $31,097 $40,852 $47,706 $52,450 $80,192 $71,666 $91,141 $126,584 $121,956
Female, age 25+ w/ earnings* $40,392 $18,588 $19,504 $27,320 $31,837 $36,298 $57,355 $51,154 $62,522 $92,780 $85,551
Persons, age 25+, employed full-time $59,371 $33,945 $34,897 $42,417 $50,640 $52,285 $77,105 $71,283 $82,183 $130,466 $119,552
Household $69,228 $29,609 $29,520 $47,405 $60,392 $68,769 $106,936 $100,128 $114,900 $151,560 $142,493
*Total work experience
Household income distribution
10th percentile 20th percentile 30th percentile 40th percentile 50th percentile 60th percentile 70th percentile 80th percentile 90th percentile 95th percentile
≤ $15,700 ≤ $28,000 ≤ $40,500 ≤ $55,000 $70,800 ≤ $89,700 ≤ $113,200 ≤ $149,100 ≤ $212,100 ≤ $286,300
Source: US Census Bureau, 2021; income statistics for the year 2021

Economic class

Social classes in the United States lack distinct boundaries and may overlap. Even their existence (when distinguished from economic strata) is controversial. The following table provides a summary of some prominent academic theories on the stratification of American society:

Academic class models
Dennis Gilbert, 2002 William Thompson & Joseph Hickey, 2005 Leonard Beeghley, 2004
Class Typical characteristics Class Typical characteristics Class Typical characteristics
Capitalist class (1%) Top-level executives, high-rung politicians, heirs. Ivy League education common. Upper class (1%) Top-level executives, celebrities, heirs; income of $500,000+ common. Ivy league education common. The super-rich (0.9%) Multi-millionaires whose incomes commonly exceed $3.5 million or more; includes celebrities and powerful executives/politicians. Ivy League education common.
Upper middle class (15%) Highly-educated (often with graduate degrees), most commonly salaried, professionals and middle management with large work autonomy. Upper middle class (15%) Highly-educated (often with graduate degrees) professionals & managers with household incomes varying from the high 5-figure range to commonly above $100,000. The rich (5%) Households with net worth of $1 million or more; largely in the form of home equity. Generally have college degrees.
Middle class (plurality/
majority?; ca. 46%)
College-educated workers with considerably higher-than-average incomes and compensation; a man making $57,000 and a woman making $40,000 may be typical.
Lower middle class (30%) Semi-professionals and craftsmen with a roughly average standard of living. Most have some college education and are white-collar. Lower middle class (32%) Semi-professionals and craftsmen with some work autonomy; household incomes commonly range from $35,000 to $75,000. Typically, some college education.
Working class (30%) Clerical and most blue-collar workers whose work is highly routinized. Standard of living varies depending on number of income earners, but is commonly just adequate. High school education.
Working class (32%) Clerical, pink- and blue-collar workers with often low job security; common household incomes range from $16,000 to $30,000. High school education. Working class
(ca. 40–45%)
Blue-collar workers and those whose jobs are highly routinized with low economic security; a man making $40,000 and a woman making $26,000 may be typical. High school education.
Working poor (13%) Service, low-rung clerical and some blue-collar workers. High economic insecurity and risk of poverty. Some high school education.
Lower class (ca. 14–20%) Those who occupy poorly-paid positions or rely on government transfers. Some high school education.
Underclass (12%) Those with limited or no participation in the labor force. Reliant on government transfers. Some high school education. The poor (ca. 12%) Those living below the poverty line with limited to no participation in the labor force; a household income of $18,000 may be typical. Some high school education.
References: Gilbert, D. (2002) The American Class Structure: In An Age of Growing Inequality. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, ISBN 0534541100. (see also Gilbert Model);
Thompson, W. & Hickey, J. (2005). Society in Focus. Boston, MA: Pearson, Allyn & Bacon; Beeghley, L. (2004). The Structure of Social Stratification in the United States. Boston, MA: Pearson, Allyn & Bacon.
1 The upper middle class may also be referred to as "Professional class" Ehrenreich, B. (1989). The Inner Life of the Middle Class. NY, NY: Harper-Collins.

Generational cohorts

A definitive recent study of US generational cohorts was done by Schuman and Scott (2012) in which a broad sample of adults of all ages was asked, "What world events are especially important to you?" They found that 33 events were mentioned with great frequency. When the ages of the respondents were correlated with the expressed importance rankings, seven (some put 8 or 9) distinct cohorts became evident.

Today the following descriptors are frequently used for these cohorts:

  • Lost Generation – born from approximately 1883 to 1900.
  • Greatest Generation – born from approximately 1901 to 1927 (in the U.S., this was the "Depression cohort" who fought and won World War II).
  • Silent Generation – born from approximately 1928 to 1945 during the Great Depression and World War II. The label was originally applied to people in North America but has also been applied to those in Western Europe, Australasia and South America. It includes most of those who fought during the Korean War.
  • Baby boomers (also known as Boomers) – born from 1946 to 1964.
  • Generation X – born from approximately 1965 to 1980. In the U.S., some called Xers the "baby bust" generation because of the drop in birth rates following the baby boom.
  • Millennials (also known as Generation Y) – born from approximately 1981 to 1996.
  • Generation Z (also known as iGeneration, Digital Natives, or Zoomers) – born from approximately 1997 to 2012.
  • Generation Alpha – born from approximately the early 2010s to mid-2020s.

U.S. demographic birth cohorts

Birth rate, death rate and natural increase rate in the United States 1935–2021

Subdivided groups are present when peak boom years or inverted peak bust years are present, and may be represented by a normal or inverted bell-shaped curve (rather than a straight curve). The boom subdivided cohorts may be considered as "pre-peak" (including peak year) and "post-peak". The year 1957 was the baby boom peak with 4.3 million births and 122.7 fertility rate. Although post-peak births (such as trailing edge boomers) are in decline, and sometimes referred to as a "bust", there are still a relatively large number of births. The dearth-in-birth bust cohorts include those up to the valley birth year, and those including and beyond, leading up to the subsequent normal birth rate. The baby boom began around 1943 to 1946.[citation needed]

From the decline in U.S. birth rates starting in 1958 and the introduction of the birth control pill in 1960, the Baby Boomer normal distribution curve is negatively skewed. The trend in birth rates from 1958 to 1961 show a tendency to end late in the decade at approximately 1969, thus returning to pre-WWII levels, with 12 years of rising and 12 years of declining birth rates. Pre-war birth rates were defined as anywhere between 1939 and 1941 by demographers such as the Taeuber's, Philip M. Hauser and William Fielding Ogburn.

Demographic statistics

Birth, growth, death rates, and marriage rates

Births, deaths and natural increase in the United States 1935–2021
Marriages, Families & Intimate Relationships in the US, 1970–2000

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2021, the population of the United States grew at a slower rate than in any other year since the country's founding. The U.S. population grew only 0.1% from the previous year before. The United States' population has grown by less than one million people for the first time since 1937, with the lowest numeric growth since at least 1900, when the Census Bureau began yearly population estimates. Apart from the previous few years, when population growth plummeted to historically low levels, the slowest pace of increase in the twentieth century occurred between 1918 and 1919, when the influenza epidemic and World War I were both in full swing. Slower population growth has been the norm in the United States for some years, owing to lower fertility and net international migration, as well as rising mortality from an aging population.

To put it another way, since the mid-2010s, births and net international migration have been dropping while deaths have risen. These trends have a cumulative effect of reduced population increase.

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated this trend, resulting in a historically slow population increase in 2021.

The growth rate is 0.1% as estimated for 2021.

The birth rate is 11.0 births/1,000 population, as of 2020. This was the lowest birth rate since records began. There were 3,613,647 births in 2020, this was the lowest number of births since 1980.

11.0 births/1,000 population per year (final data for 2020).
11.4 births/1,000 population per year (final data for 2019).

In 2020, the CDC reported that there were 1,676,911 marriages in 2020, compared to 2019, there were 2,015,603 marriages. Marriage rates varied significantly by state, ranging from 3.2 marriages/1,000 population in California to 21.0 marriages/1,000 population in Nevada.*

  • 5.1 marriages/1,000 population per year (provisional data for 2020).
  • 6.1 marriages/1,000 population per year (provisional data for 2019).

*Rates are based on provisional counts of marriages by state of occurrence

In 2009, Time magazine reported that 40% of births were to unmarried women. The following is a breakdown by race for unwed births: 17% Asian, 29% White, 53% Hispanics (of any race), 66% Native Americans, and 72% Black American.

According to the CDC, in 2020, there were at least, 1,461,121 births to unmarried women. In 2020, 40.5% of births were to unmarried women. The following is breakdown by race for unwed births: 28.4% Non-Hispanic White, 70.4% Non-Hispanic Black, and 52.8% Hispanic (of any race).

The drop in the birth rate from 2007 to 2009 is believed to be associated with the Great Recession.

A study by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) found that more than half (51 percent) of live hospital births in 2008 and 2011 were male.

Per U.S. federal government data released in March 2011, births fell 4% from 2007 to 2009, the largest drop in the U.S. for any two-year period since the 1970s. Births have declined for three consecutive years, and are now 7% below the peak in 2007. This drop has continued through 2010, according to data released by the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics in June 2011. Numerous experts have suggested that this decline is largely a reflection of unfavorable economic conditions. This connection between birth rates and economic downturns partly stems from the fact that American birth rates have now fallen to levels that are comparable to the Great Depression of the 1930s. Teen birth rates in the U.S. are at the lowest level in U.S. history. In fact, teen birth rates in the U.S. have consistently decreased since 1991 through 2011, except for a brief increase between 2005 and 2007. The other aberration from this otherwise steady decline in teen birth rates is the 6% decrease in birth rates for 15- to 19-year-olds between 2008 and 2009. Despite these years of decrease, U.S. teen birth rates are still higher than in other developed nations. Racial differences prevail with teen birth and pregnancy rates as well. The American Indian/Alaska Native, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic Black teen pregnancy rates are more than double the non-Hispanic white teen birth rate.

Age group (2010) Total
(of population)
White alone
(of race/age group)
Black alone
(of race/age group)
Mixed and/or Some Other Race
(of race/age group)
Asian alone
(of race/age group)
Either American Indian or Alaska Native
(of race/age group)
Either Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
(of race/age group)
Total 308745538
(100%)
223553265
(72.4%)
38929319
(12.6%)
28116441
(9.1%)
14674252
(4.9%)
2932248
(1.0%)
540013
(0.2%)
0–4 20201362
(6.5%)
12795675
(5.7%/63.3%)
2902590
(7.5%/14.4%)
3315480
(11.8%/16.4%)
898011
(6.1%/4.5%)
244615
(8.3%/1.2%)
44991
(8.3%/0.2%)
5–9 20348657
(6.6%)
13293799
(5.9%/65.3%)
2882597
(7.4%/14.2%)
2957487
(10.5%/14.5%)
928248
(6.3%/4.6%)
243259
(8.3%/1.2%)
43267
(8.0%/0.0%)
10–14 20677194
(6.7%)
13737332
(6.1%/66.4%)
3034266
(7.8%/14.7%)
2736570
(9.7%/13.2%)
881590
(6.0%/4.3%)
245049
(8.4%/1.19%)
42387
(7.8%/0.2%)
15–19 22040343
(7.1%)
14620638
(6.5%/66.4%)
3448051
(8.9%/15.6%)
2704571
(9.6%/12.3%)
956028
(6.5%/4.3%)
263805
(9.0%/1.2%)
47250
(8.7%/0.2%)
20–24 21585999
(7.0%)
14535947
(6.5%/67.3%)
3111397
(8.0%/14.4%)
2538967
(9.0%/11.8%)
1106222
(7.5%/5.1%)
240716
(8.2%/1.1%)
52750
(9.8%/0.2%)
25–29 21101849
(6.8%)
14345364
(6.4%/68.0%)
2786254
(7.2%/13.2%)
2464343
(8.8%/11.7%)
1234322
(8.4%/5.9%)
221654
(7.6%/1.1%)
49912
(9.2%/0.2%)
30–34 19962099
(6.5%)
13573270
(6.1%/68.0%)
2627925
(6.8%/13.2%)
2273322
(8.1%/11.4%)
1240906
(8.5%/6.2%)
202928
(6.9%/1.0%)
43748
(8.1%/0.2%)
35–39 20179642
(6.5%)
13996797
(6.3%/69.36%)
2613389
(6.7%/13.0%)
2038408
(7.2%/10.1%)
1296301
(8.8%/6.4%)
196017
(6.7%/1.0%)
38730
(7.2%/0.2%)
40–44 20890964
(6.8%)
15052798
(6.7%/72.1%)
2669034
(6.9%/12.8%)
1782463
(6.3%/8.5%)
1155565
(7.9%/5.5%)
194713
(6.6%/0.9%)
36391
(6.7%/0.2%)
45–49 22708591
(7.4%)
17028255
(7.6%/75.0%)
2828657
(7.3%/12.5%)
1532117
(5.4%/6.8%)
1076060
(7.3%/4.7%)
207857
(7.1%/0.9%)
35645
(6.6%/0.2%)
50–54 22298125
(7.2%)
17178632
(7.7%/77.0%)
2694247
(6.9%/12.1%)
1222175
(4.3%/5.5%)
980282
(6.7%/4.4%)
191893
(6.5%/0.9%)
30896
(5.7%/0.1%)
55–59 19664805
(6.4%)
15562187
(7.0%/79.1%)
2205820
(5.7%/11.2%)
873943
(3.1%/4.4%)
844490
(5.8%/4.3%)
154320
(5.3%/0.8%)
24045
(4.5%/0.1%)
60–64 16817924
(5.4%)
13693334
(6.1%/81.4%)
1686695
(4.3%/10.0%)
611144
(2.2%/3.6%)
689601
(4.7%/4.1%)
118362
(4.0%/0.7%)
18788
(3.5%/0.1%)
65–69 12435263
(4.0%)
10313002
(4.6%/82.9%)
1162577
(3.0%/9.4%)
394208
(1.4%/3.2%)
474327
(3.2%/3.8%)
79079
(2.7%/0.6%)
12070
(2.2%/0.1%)
70–74 9278166
(3.0%)
7740932
(3.5%/83.4%)
852317
(2.2%/9.2%)
268574
(1.0%/2.9%)
354268
(2.4%/3.8%)
53926
(1.8%/0.6%)
8149
(1.5%/0.1%)
75–79 7317795
(2.4%)
6224569
(2.8%/85.1%)
616789
(1.6%/8.4%)
184596
(0.7%/2.5%)
251210
(1.7%/3.4%)
35268
(1.2%/0.5%)
5363
(1.0%/0.1%)
80–84 5743327
(1.9%)
5002427
(2.2%/87.1%)
424592
(1.1%/7.4%)
122249
(0.4%/2.1%)
168879
(1.2%/2.9%)
21963
(0.7%/0.4%)
3217
(0.6%/0.1%)
85+ 5493433
(1.8%)
4858307
(2.2%/88.4%)
382122
(1.0%/7.0%)
95824
(0.3%/1.7%)
137942
(0.9%/2.5%)
16824
(0.6%/0.3%)
2414
(0.4%/0.0%)
U.S. unemployment by state in December 2015 (official, or U3 rate).
 <3.0%
 <3.5%
 <4.0%
 <4.5%
 <5.0%
 <5.5%
 <6.0%
 <6.5%
 ≥6.5%

For those interested in a look at where the U.S. population is headed over a longer term, the link below to a recent article offers a preliminary overview of census trends. Yes, a multi-racial democracy awaits, if we can keep it, but also a society with significant demographic pitfalls. Here is a quote summarizing key points:

These trends include an unprecedented stagnation in population growth, a continued decrease in Americans' geographical mobility, more pronounced population aging, a first-time decline in the size of the white population, and rising racial and ethnic diversity among millennials, Gen Z, and younger groups, which now comprise a majority of the nation's residents.

Unemployment rate (seasonally adjusted)

As of July 2020, the U.S. unemployment rate was 10.2 percent (U3 rate).

As of July 2019, the U.S. unemployment rate was 3.7 percent (U3 rate).

As of July 2018, the U.S. unemployment rate was 3.7 percent (U3 rate).

As of July 2017, the U.S. unemployment rate was 4.3 percent (U3 rate).

As of July 2016, the U.S. unemployment rate was 4.9 percent (U3 rate).

As of July 2015, the U.S. unemployment rate was 5.3 percent (U3 rate).

As of July 2014, the U.S. unemployment rate was 6.2 percent (U3 rate).

The U6 unemployment rate as of April 2017 was 8.6 percent. The U6 unemployment rate counts not only people without work seeking full-time employment (the more familiar U3 rate), but also counts "marginally attached workers and those working part-time for economic reasons." Note that some of these part-time workers counted as employed by U6 could be working as little as an hour a week. And the "marginally attached workers" include those who have become discouraged and stopped looking, but still want to work. The age considered for this calculation is 16 years and over.

Urban Americans have more job opportunities than those in more rural areas. From 2008 to 2018, 72% of the nation's employment growth occurred in cities with more than one million residents, which account for 56% of the overall population.

Mobility

In 2021, 27.1 million Americans said they were living in a different place than a year before, compared to 29.8 million in 2020. This reflects an 8.4% mover rate, the lowest recorded in more than 70 years.

See also

Lists

Income

Population


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