Latinos Rise to Record-High 20% of U.S. Population

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Latinos continue to be one of the fastest growing groups in the U.S., rising to 20% of the population for the first time this past year, according to the U.S. Census.

In addition, Pew Research Center shared these facts:

• Latinos have played a major role in U.S. population growth.
• The sources of Latino population growth have changed in recent years.
• S. Latinos trace their roots to many countries.
• California and Texas have the nation’s largest Latino populations.
• The share of U.S. Latinos with college experience is rising.
• The religious affiliation of U.S. Latinos is changing.

Let’s dig deeper into these facts and how they can impact others.

Latino Population Growth in the U.S.

The U.S. was home to 340,110,988 people in 2024.

Of those, 195 million are White, 68 million are Latino or Hispanic, 43 million are Black or African American, 22 million are Asian, 8 million are two races or more, 2 million are American Indiana and Alaksa Native, and less than 1 million are Native Hawaiian and Alaska Native, according to the U.S. Census.

The U.S. population of Latinos grew from 65 million in 2023 to 68 million in 2024, accounting for 20% of people in the country.

“[The U.S. Latino population has] almost doubling in size since 2000,” according to Pew Research Center. “The nation’s population grew by 58.7 million people from 2000 to 2024, and Hispanics accounted for 56% of this increase – a greater share than any other racial or ethnic group.”

While immigration has been a major driver of the population increase, Latino births have also contributed to the growth.

While a record 22.7 million Latinos were immigrants in 2024, 79% of all U.S. Latinos were U.S. citizens, an increase of 71% in 2000.

“In 2024, 32% of infants born in the U.S. had a Hispanic mother or father,” according to Pew Research Center.

Latino Origins and Geographics in the U.S.

In the United States, people of Mexican origin are the largest single group represented in the U.S. at 57% (40 million) in 2024, according to Pew Research Center.

People of Puerto Rican origin are the next largest group at 6.1 million.

Additional Latino origin groups that make up 1 million or more people include:

• Cubans
• Salvadorans
• Dominicans
• Guatemalans
• Colombians
• Hondurans Venezuelans
• Ecuadorians

Additionally, Venezuelans are the fastest-growing Latino origin group in the U.S., more than doubling in number between 2019 and 2024.

Puerto Rico’s population has declined from 3.7 million to 3.2 million since 2010, a decrease of 500,000.

“This decline has been driven by migration to the U.S. mainland and low fertility rates, as well as the devastation caused by hurricanes Maria and Irma in 2017,” according to Pew Research Center.

Within the U.S., California and Texas have the nation’s largest Latino populations.

By 2024, Latinos accounted for 41% of the population in California. In Texas, Latinos now make up 40% of the population.

Rounding out the top five states with the largest Latino populations are:

• Florida (6.7 million)
• New York (4.0 million)
• Illinois (2.5 million)

As far as metropolitan areas, people with Mexican origins making up 74% of Latinos in the Los Angeles metro area, 85% of those in California’s Riverside 75% of the Latinos and 77% of the Dallas metro areas.

While Dominicans and Puerto Ricans are the largest Latino origin groups in the New York metro area, about a third of Latinos are of Salvadoran origin in the Washington, D.C., metro area.

Latino Education, Language, and More

Data shows that a growing share of U.S. Latinos ages 25 and older have attended college and completed degrees.

“In 2024, 46% had at least some college experience, up from 36% in 2010. And 21% had a bachelor’s degree or more education, up from 13%,” according to Pew Research Center.

Around a quarter of Latino women ages 25 and older (24%) had at least a bachelor’s degree in 2024 (up from 14% in 2010).

Similarly, 19% of Latino men had this level of education, up from 12%.

When it comes to faith, while their share is declining, Catholics are the largest religious group among Latinos with 42% in 2024.

In 2024, 27% of Latinos were unaffiliated, describing themselves as atheist, agnostic or “nothing in particular” (up 10% from 2010).

Regarding language, the share of U.S.-born Latinos who speak English proficiently increased by 10 percentage points, since 2000.

In 2024, 71% of Latinos ages 5 and older (44.8 million people) spoke English proficiently.

“This growth has been driven by U.S.-born Latinos – that is, those born in the U.S. and its territories, including Puerto Rico, and those born abroad to American parents,” according to the Pew Research Center.

Health Resources for Your Area

Many of these factors can contribute to overall health.

But what about the health of your community?

Find out by downloading a Salud America! Health Report Card for your town!

Enter your county name and get auto-generated local data with interactive maps and comparative gauges on several health indicators. This can help you visualize and explore local issues in education, housing, transportation, food, health, and more.

See how your county stacks up compared to the rest of your state and nation.

Then email the Report Card to local leaders to raise awareness, include the data in a presentation or grant proposal, or share it on social media to drive healthy change in your community!

Get your Health Report Card!