An estimated 225,000 people in the United States identified as Nepalese in 2023, according to estimates published by the U.S. Census Bureau.1 Nepalese Americans are the 15th-largest Asian origin population living in the U.S., accounting for approximately 1% of the country’s Asian population.
The Nepalese population includes people living in the United States who self-identify as Nepalese. This includes people who trace their or their family’s origins to Nepal, including immigrants from Nepal and those born in the U.S. or elsewhere. It also includes people who identify as Nepalese alone and no other race or Asian origin – who account for 93% of the population – as well as people who identify as Nepalese in combination with any other race, ethnicity or Asian origin.
Due to data limitations, the following facts about the Nepalese population are based on people who identify as Nepalese 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 Nepalese-alone population in the U.S. It at times compares the characteristics of Nepalese 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 225,000 people in the U.S. identify as Nepalese alone and no other race or Asian origin, according to Center analysis of the 2021-23 ACS. The Nepalese-alone population has grown by roughly 45,000 since 2019, up from 180,000 – a 24% increase over roughly the last half-decade.
Immigrants made up 77% of the Nepalese-alone population in the U.S. in 2023, a decrease from 83% in 2019. However, the number of Nepalese immigrants in the country increased from 150,000 to 175,000 people over the same period.
(Data on the Nepalese population in the U.S. is not available prior to 2012.)
Nepalese population in the U.S., 2019-2023
U.S. Nepalese (alone) population, by nativity
| Year | Total | Immigrant | U.S. born |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 180,000 | 150,000 | 30,000 |
| 2023 | 225,000 | 175,000 | 50,000 |
Source: Pew Research Center analysis of the 2017-19 and 2021-23 American Community Surveys (IPUMS).
Note: The population shown includes only those who identify as Nepalese 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 Nepalese immigrants, 46% have lived in the U.S. for more than 10 years and 47% are naturalized U.S. citizens.
Language2
- 61% of Nepalese ages 5 and older speak English proficiently. This share includes 11% who speak only English at home and 50% 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 Nepalese 5 and older, 57% of immigrants are English proficient, while 82% of the U.S. born are.
- Other top languages spoken at home by Nepalese Americans ages 5 and older include Nepali (85%), Hindi (1%), other Asian languages (1%) and Japanese (0.4%).
Geography
- 35,000 out of the nation’s Nepalese-alone population of 225,000, or 17%, live in Texas.
- Other states with large Nepalese populations are Ohio (24,000), California (21,000), New York (19,000) and Pennsylvania (13,000).
- Metropolitan areas with the largest Nepalese populations include the Dallas (22,000), New York (18,000) and Washington, D.C. (15,000) metro areas.
Age
- The median age of Nepalese is 31.2, younger than the median age of Asians overall (34.7).
- The median age of Nepalese immigrants is 34.7. Some 8% of the Nepalese immigrant population is under 18 years old, and 5% are 65 and older.
- The median age of U.S.-born Nepalese Americans is 5.7. Some 82% are under 18 and fewer than 1% are 65 and older.
Educational attainment
- 51% of Nepalese Americans ages 25 and older have a bachelor’s (25%) or advanced degree (26%). Among Asians overall, 56% have a bachelor’s degree or higher.
- 51% of Nepalese immigrants 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or higher.
Marital status
- 70% of Nepalese adults are married, compared with 58% of Asian adults overall.
- Among Nepalese ages 18 and older, 71% of immigrants are married, compared with 40% of the U.S. born.
Fertility
- 8% of Nepalese females ages 15 to 44 gave birth in the 12 months prior to the survey. The rate for Asian females overall was 5%.
- Among Nepalese immigrant females 15 to 44, the fertility rate is 8%.
Income
Median annual household income
- The median annual income of Nepalese-headed households was $94,800 in 2023. Among Asian-headed households overall, it was $105,600.
- Households with a Nepalese immigrant household head had a median annual income of $93,600.
Median annual personal earnings
- The median annual personal earnings of Nepalese Americans ages 16 and older was $40,000 in 2023, lower than among Asians overall ($52,400).
- Among full-time, year-round workers, Nepalese had a median of $54,100 and Asians overall had a median of $75,000.
Poverty status
- 9% of Nepalese in the U.S. are living in poverty, a similar share to Asians overall (10%).
- 10% of Nepalese immigrants live in poverty, compared with 7% of U.S.-born Nepalese.
Homeownership
- The rate of homeownership among Nepalese-headed households is 55%, lower than the rate for Asian-headed households overall (62%).
- Among households with a Nepalese immigrant household head in the U.S., the homeownership rate is 55%.
Note: Some topics covered for other Asian origin groups are not shown for the Nepalese 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.