Foreign Born Population in California

10.4 M
Foreign-born
27% (1st in the U.S.)
5.6 M
Naturalized citizens
4.8 M
Non-citizen residents

Historical data

Long-run evolution of the key indicators, so you can see the trend — not just today's snapshot.

Foreign-born share

19002023
27% 9%

Share of residents born outside the U.S.

Data table

Foreign-born10.4 M27% (1st in the U.S.)
Naturalized citizens5.6 M
Non-citizen residents4.8 M

Compared to the United States

IndicatorCaliforniaUnited States
Foreign-born share2023, U.S. Census ACS27%13.9%

National ranking

California ranks #5 of 49 states by foreign-born share.

#1Texas5,200,000
#2Wyoming50
#3Alaska47%
#4Vermont44
#5California27%
#6New Jersey23.4%
#7New York22.6%
#8Florida21%
#9Nevada18.3%
#10Massachusetts18.1%
#11Connecticut16%
#12Hawaii16%
#13Arkansas16%
#14Mississippi16%
#15Alabama16%
#16South Carolina16%
#17West Virginia16%
#18Nebraska16%
#19Maryland16%
#20Iowa16%
#21Idaho16%
#22Kansas16%
#23Washington15%
#24Rhode Island14.6%
#25Illinois14.3%
#26Arizona13.4%
#27Virginia12.5%
#28Delaware10.7%
#29Georgia10.5%
#30Oregon10.3%
#31New Mexico9.6%
#32Colorado9.2%
#33Utah9%
#34North Carolina8.5%
#35Pennsylvania8.4%
#36Minnesota8.1%
#37Michigan7.1%
#38New Hampshire6.5%
#39Indiana5.9%
#40Oklahoma5.7%
#41Tennessee5.6%
#42Ohio5.1%
#43Wisconsin5.1%
#44Missouri4.8%
#45South Dakota4.6%
#46Louisiana4.2%
#47Kentucky4%
#48Maine3.7%
#49Montana2.3%

Overview

California is home to 10.4 million foreign-born residents, about 27% of the population and the most of any U.S. state.

Did you know?

  • More than one in four Californians was born outside the United States.

Related data