Demographic, Educational, and Linguistic Characteristics

Note: Some percentages do not add up to 100 due to rounding.

Are there equal shares of men and women in the US immigrant population?
In 2011, approximately 51 percent of the immigrant population was female. The share of women fluctuated slightly during the past three decades. Women accounted for 53 percent of the 14.1 million immigrants in 1980, 51 percent of the 19.8 million immigrants in 1990, and 50 percent of the 31.1 million immigrants in 2000.

See the how the male-to-female ratio among immigrants changed between 1870 and 2011 here.

What is the age distribution of the immigrant population?
In 2011, less than 1 percent of the foreign-born population in the United States was under the age of 5 (compared to 7 percent of the native-born population); 6 percent were ages 5 to 17 (compared to 19 percent in the native-born population); 8 percent were ages 18 to 24 (10 percent for the native born); 72 percent were ages 25 to 64 (50 percent); and 13 percent were ages 65 or older (13 percent).

Overall, the immigrant population in 2011 was older than the US-born population: The median age of immigrants was 42.1 years, compared to 35.9 years among the native born.

See the age-sex pyramids of the total, native-born, and immigrant populations (including the five largest immigrant groups) here and compare them to those of 2000 here.

How many immigrants have entered the United States since 2000?
Of the 40.4 million foreign born residing in the United States in 2011, 38 percent entered the country prior to 1990, 27 percent entered between 1990 and 1999, and almost 36 percent entered in 2000 or later.

How many immigrants are naturalized US citizens?
In 2011, 45 percent of immigrants (18.1 million) in the United States were naturalized US citizens. The remaining 55 percent (22.2 million) included lawful permanent residents, unauthorized immigrants, and legal residents on temporary visas, such as students and temporary workers.

Of the 18.1 million naturalized citizens in 2011, 47 percent have naturalized since 2000, 33 percent between 1985 and 1999, and 20 percent prior to 1985.

What is the racial composition of the immigrant population?
Of the foreign born in the United States in 2011, 48 percent reported their race as white alone, 8 percent as black, 25 percent as Asian alone, and 16 percent as some other race; more than 2 percent reported having two or more races.

How many immigrants in the United States are of Hispanic origin?
In 2011, 47 percent of the 40.4 million immigrants (18.8 million) reported having Hispanic or Latino origins.

How many Hispanics are immigrants?
The majority of Hispanics in the United States are native-born US citizens. Of the 52 million people in 2011 who identified themselves as Hispanic or Latino, 36 percent (18.8 million) were immigrants.

Which languages are the most frequently spoken at home by the US population?
In 2011, approximately 79 percent (230.3 million) of the US population* ages 5 and older stated that they speak only English at home. The remaining 21 percent (60.6 million) reported speaking a language other than English at home. Spanish was by far the most common foreign language spoken at home (62 percent), followed by Chinese (including Mandarin and Cantonese, almost 5 percent), Tagalog (almost 3 percent), Vietnamese (2 percent), French (including Cajun and Patois, 2 percent), Korean (almost 2 percent), German (almost 2 percent), Arabic (almost 2 percent), and Russian (1 percent).

Note: *Refers to the 291.5 million people ages 5 and older who resided in the United States at the time of the survey.

What is the size of the Limited English Proficient (LEP) population?
In 2011, there were 25.3 million LEP individuals ages 5 and older in the United States, accounting for 9 percent of the 291.5 million people ages 5 and older. Spanish-speaking LEP individuals accounted for 65 percent (16.4 million) of the total LEP population. The next two languages most commonly spoken by LEP individuals were Chinese, including Mandarin and Cantonese (1.6 million, or 6 percent) and Vietnamese (855,000, or 3 percent).

Note: The term “Limited English Proficient” refers to any person ages 5 and older who reported speaking English “not at all,” “not well,” or “well” on their survey questionnaire. Individuals who reported speaking only English or speaking English “very well” are considered proficient in English.

Read more about the LEP population, its growth, and linguistic diversity in the US population at large in Limited English Proficient Individuals in the United States: Number, Share, Growth, and Linguistic Diversity.

What percentage of the foreign born are LEP?
In 2011, nearly 51 percent (20.5 million) of the 40.1 million foreign-born persons ages 5 and older were LEP, closely resembling the share in 2000 (51 percent of the 30.7 million foreign-born persons ages 5 and older.

What percentage of the adult foreign-born population is college educated?
In 2011, there were 34.4 million immigrants ages 25 and older. Of those, more than 27 percent (9.3 million) had a bachelor’s degree or higher, while nearly 32 percent (11.0 million) lacked a high school diploma. Among the 172.1 million native-born adults ages 25 and older, 29 percent (49.9 million) had a bachelor’s degree or higher and 11 percent (18.9 million) did not have a high school diploma.

Use our 2010-2011 ACS/Census Data Tool for more information on the characteristics of the foreign born in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia as well as nationally (to updated with 2011 ACS data in upcoming months).
The 2010 data on the foreign born and native born are from the American FactFinder of the Census Bureau.

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