An estimated 360,000 people in the United States identified as Hmong in 2023, according to estimates published by the U.S. Census Bureau.1 Hmong Americans are the eighth-largest Asian origin population living in the U.S., accounting for approximately 1% of the country’s Asian population.
The Hmong population includes people living in the United States who self-identify as Hmong. This includes people who identify as Hmong through their or their family’s origins, including immigrants from China, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand or Myanmar (also called Burma) and those born in the U.S. or elsewhere. It also includes people who identify as Hmong alone and no other race or Asian origin – who account for 93% of the population – as well as people who identify as Hmong in combination with any other race, ethnicity or Asian origin.
Due to data limitations, the following facts about the Hmong population are based on people who identify as Hmong alone and no other race or Asian origin.
This fact sheet is a profile of the geographic, social and demographic, and economic characteristics of the Hmong-alone population in the U.S. It at times compares the characteristics of Hmong Americans with characteristics of the U.S. Asian population overall. These detailed tabulations are based on Pew Research Center analysis of the 2021-23 American Community Survey (ACS). (For more information, refer to the methodology.)
Detailed tables: U.S. Asian population data by origin groups
Population
About 330,000 people in the U.S. identify as Hmong alone and no other race or Asian origin, according to Center analysis of the 2021-23 ACS. The Hmong-alone population has grown by roughly 155,000 since 2000, up from 175,000 – an 89% increase over roughly two decades.
Immigrants made up 31% of the Hmong-alone population in the U.S. in 2023, a decrease from 55% in 2000. The number of Hmong immigrants in the country remained steady over the same period: 100,000 people in 2023 and 95,000 in 2000.
Hmong population in the U.S., 2000-2023
U.S. Hmong (alone) population, by nativity
| Year | Total | Immigrant | U.S. born |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 175,000 | 95,000 | 80,000 |
| 2010 | 230,000 | 100,000 | 130,000 |
| 2019 | 300,000 | 105,000 | 200,000 |
| 2023 | 330,000 | 100,000 | 225,000 |
Source: Pew Research Center analysis of the 2000 decennial census (5%) and the 2008-10, 2017-19 and 2021-23 American Community Surveys (IPUMS).
Note: The population shown includes only those who identify as Hmong alone and no other race or Asian origin. All figures are rounded according to rules shown in the methodology.
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Time in the U.S. and citizenship status
- Among Hmong immigrants, 90% have lived in the U.S. for more than 10 years and 85% are naturalized U.S. citizens.
Language2
- 71% of Hmong Americans ages 5 and older speak English proficiently. This share includes 26% who speak only English at home and 44% who speak another language at home but say they speak English very well. By comparison, 74% of Asian Americans 5 and older are English proficient.
- Among Hmong 5 and older, 43% of immigrants are English proficient, compared with 85% of the U.S. born.
- Other top languages spoken at home by Hmong Americans ages 5 and older include Miao or Hmong (73%), Laotian (0.2%), Spanish (0.2%) and Thai (0.1%).
Geography
- 110,000 out of the nation’s Hmong-alone population of 330,000, or 33%, live in California. The second-most populous state for this population is Minnesota, where 95,000 Hmong live.
- Other states with large Hmong populations are Wisconsin (55,000), North Carolina (12,000) and Oklahoma (9,000).
- Metropolitan areas with the largest Hmong populations include the Minneapolis (90,000), Fresno, California (35,000) and Sacramento, California (30,000) metro areas.
Age
- The median age of Hmong is 26.8, younger than the median age of Asians overall (34.7).
- The median age of Hmong immigrants is 43.5. Some 5% of the Hmong immigrant population is under 18 years old and 11% are 65 and older.
- The median age of U.S.-born Hmong Americans is 19.3. Some 45% are under 18 and less than 1% are 65 and older.
Educational attainment
- 26% of Hmong Americans ages 25 and older have a bachelor’s (20%) or advanced degree (6%). Among Asians overall, 56% have a bachelor’s degree or higher.
- Hmong immigrants 25 and older are less likely to have a bachelor’s degree or higher than those born in the U.S. (21% vs. 31%).
Marital status
- 41% of Hmong adults are married, compared with 58% of Asian adults overall.
- Among Hmong Americans ages 18 and older, 56% of immigrants are married, compared with 29% of the U.S. born.
Fertility
- 9% of Hmong females ages 15 to 44 gave birth in the 12 months prior to the survey. The rate for Asian females overall was 5%.
- Among Hmong females 15 to 44, immigrants had a fertility rate of 10%, while the U.S. born had a fertility rate of 8%.
Income
Median annual household income
- The median annual income of Hmong-headed households was $85,700 in 2023. Among Asian-headed households overall, it was $105,600.
- Households with a Hmong immigrant household head had a higher median annual income than those with a U.S.-born Hmong household head ($90,700 vs. $80,100).
Median annual personal earnings
- The median annual personal earnings of Hmong Americans ages 16 and older was $40,800 in 2023, lower than among Asians overall ($52,400).
- Among full-time, year-round workers, Hmong Americans had a median of $48,000 and Asians overall had a median of $75,000.
Poverty status
- 14% of Hmong in the U.S. are living in poverty, a greater share than among Asians overall (10%).
- Equal shares of immigrant and U.S.-born Hmong live in poverty (14% each).
Homeownership
- The rate of homeownership among Hmong-headed households is 56%, lower than the rate for Asian-headed households overall (62%).
- Among Hmong-headed households in the U.S., homeownership rates are higher for those with an immigrant household head than those with a U.S.-born household head (67% vs. 45%).
Note: Some topics covered for other Asian origin groups are not shown for the Hmong population because of insufficient sample size in the surveys used.
Find out more
Explore fact sheets on other Asian origin groups in the U.S.
For detailed information on the data and analysis used for these fact sheets, read the methodology.
This fact sheet was written and compiled by Carolyne Im, research analyst. It is an update of a fact sheet originally published on April 29, 2021, compiled by Abby Budiman, former temporary research associate.
The following individuals provided research and editorial guidance: Mark Hugo Lopez, director of race and ethnicity research; Jens Manuel Krogstad, senior writer and editor; Sahana Mukherjee, associate director of race and ethnicity research; Jeffrey S. Passel, senior demographer; Neil G. Ruiz, head of new research initiatives; and Ziyao Tian, research associate. Research Assistants Alexandra Cahn and Gracie Martinez and Research Associates Luis Noe-Bustamante, Khadijah Edwards and Tian provided research support.
This fact sheet was produced by Sara Atske, digital producer. It was copy edited by David Kent, senior copy editor. John Carlo Mandapat, information graphics designer, provided guidance on charts. The communications and outreach strategy was led by Tanya Arditi, senior communications manager, with support from Talia Price, communications associate.
Find related reports online at www.pewresearch.org/AsianAmericans.