Immigrants listen to a speech every bit they look to become U.Southward. citizens at a naturalization ceremony in Los Angeles. (Mark Ralson/AFP/Getty Images)

The United States has more than immigrants than any other country in the globe. Today, more than xl one thousand thousand people living in the U.S. were born in some other country, accounting for nearly i-fifth of the earth's migrants. The population of immigrants is also very diverse, with just well-nigh every country in the earth represented among U.S. immigrants.

Pew Enquiry Eye regularly publishes statistical portraits of the nation's foreign-built-in population, which include historical trends since 1960. Based on these portraits, here are answers to some central questions nearly the U.South. immigrant population.

How many people in the U.S. are immigrants?

The U.S. foreign-born population reached a tape 44.8 1000000 in 2018. Since 1965, when U.South. immigration laws replaced a national quota organization, the number of immigrants living in the U.S. has more than than quadrupled. Immigrants today account for 13.seven% of the U.S. population, nearly triple the share (four.8%) in 1970. Yet, today's immigrant share remains below the record xiv.eight% share in 1890, when 9.2 million immigrants lived in the U.S.

Immigrant share of U.S. population nears historic high

What is the legal status of immigrants in the U.S.?

Unauthorized immigrants are almost a quarter of U.S. foreign-born population

Most immigrants (77%) are in the land legally, while almost a quarter are unauthorized, according to new Pew Research Centre estimates based on census data adjusted for undercount. In 2017, 45% were naturalized U.Southward. citizens.

Some 27% of immigrants were permanent residents and 5% were temporary residents in 2017. Another 23% of all immigrants were unauthorized immigrants. From 1990 to 2007, the unauthorized immigrant population more tripled in size – from 3.5 one thousand thousand to a tape high of 12.2 million in 2007. By 2017, that number had declined past one.7 million, or 14%. There were 10.5 one thousand thousand unauthorized immigrants in the U.Due south. in 2017, accounting for iii.2% of the nation'due south population.

The refuse in the unauthorized immigrant population is due largely to a fall in the number from Mexico – the unmarried largest grouping of unauthorized immigrants in the U.S. Between 2007 and 2017, this grouping decreased by 2 million. Meanwhile, there was a rise in the number from Primal America and Asia.

Do all lawful immigrants cull to become U.Southward. citizens?

Not all lawful permanent residents choose to pursue U.S. citizenship. Those who wish to practise and then may apply after meeting sure requirements, including having lived in the U.S. for five years. In fiscal twelvemonth 2019, virtually 800,000 immigrants applied for naturalization. The number of naturalization applications has climbed in recent years, though the annual totals remain below the one.4 one thousand thousand applications filed in 2007.

By and large, most immigrants eligible for naturalization apply to become citizens. However, Mexican lawful immigrants have the lowest naturalization rate overall. Language and personal barriers, lack of interest and fiscal barriers are among the height reasons for choosing not to naturalize cited by Mexican-built-in green card holders, according to a 2015 Pew Inquiry Center survey.

Where exercise immigrants come from?

Mexico, China and India are among top birthplaces for immigrants in the U.S.

Mexico is the top origin country of the U.S. immigrant population. In 2018, roughly eleven.2 one thousand thousand immigrants living in the U.S. were from there, accounting for 25% of all U.S. immigrants. The next largest origin groups were those from Communist china (six%), India (6%), the Philippines (four%) and El Salvador (3%).

By region of birth, immigrants from Asia combined accounted for 28% of all immigrants, shut to the share of immigrants from United mexican states (25%). Other regions make upwardly smaller shares: Europe, Canada and other North America (13%), the Caribbean (10%), Central America (8%), South America (seven%), the Heart East and North Africa (4%) and sub-Saharan Africa (5%).

Who is arriving today?

Among new immigrant arrivals, Asians outnumber Hispanics

More than 1 million immigrants make it in the U.S. each year. In 2018, the top country of origin for new immigrants coming into the U.South. was Mainland china, with 149,000 people, followed by India (129,000), Mexico (120,000) and the Philippines (46,000).

Past race and ethnicity, more Asian immigrants than Hispanic immigrants have arrived in the U.Southward. in nearly years since 2009. Immigration from Latin America slowed following the Not bad Recession, specially for United mexican states, which has seen both decreasing flows into the U.s. and large flows dorsum to Mexico in recent years.

Asians are projected to become the largest immigrant group in the U.S. by 2055, surpassing Hispanics. Pew Research Heart estimates indicate that in 2065, those who identify equally Asian will brand up some 38% of all immigrants; as Hispanic, 31%; White, 20%; and Blackness, ix%.

Is the immigrant population growing?

U.S. foreign-born population reached 45 million in 2015, projected to reach 78 million by 2065

New immigrant arrivals accept fallen, mainly due to a decrease in the number of unauthorized immigrants coming to the U.S. The drop in the unauthorized immigrant population tin can primarily be attributed to more Mexican immigrants leaving the U.S. than coming in.

Looking forward, immigrants and their descendants are projected to business relationship for 88% of U.S. population growth through 2065, assuming current immigration trends continue. In addition to new arrivals, U.Due south. births to immigrant parents will be of import to future growth in the country'south population. In 2018, the percentage of women giving birth in the past twelvemonth was higher amidst immigrants (seven.5%) than amidst the U.Southward. born (5.7%). While U.Due south.-born women gave birth to more 3 million children that year, immigrant women gave nascency to about 760,000.

How many immigrants have come up to the U.Due south. every bit refugees?

More than half of U.S. refugees in 2019 were from D.R. Congo and Burma

Since the cosmos of the federal Refugee Resettlement Program in 1980, about three meg refugees have been resettled in the U.Southward. – more than than whatsoever other state.

In fiscal 2019, a full of 30,000 refugees were resettled in the U.S. The largest origin grouping of refugees was the Democratic Democracy of the Congo, followed by Burma (Myanmar), Ukraine, Eritrea and Afghanistan. Amid all refugees admitted in fiscal yr 2019, 4,900 are Muslims (16%) and 23,800 are Christians (79%). Texas, Washington, New York and California resettled more than than a quarter of all refugees admitted in fiscal 2018.

Where exercise most U.S. immigrants alive?

Nearly half (45%) of the nation's immigrants live in just 3 states: California (24%), Texas (eleven%) and Florida (10%). California had the largest immigrant population of any land in 2018, at 10.6 million. Texas, Florida and New York had more than than 4 1000000 immigrants each.

In terms of regions, well-nigh ii-thirds of immigrants lived in the W (34%) and South (34%). Roughly one-5th lived in the Northeast (21%) and xi% were in the Midwest.

In 2018, nearly immigrants lived in just 20 major metropolitan areas, with the largest populations in the New York, Los Angeles and Miami metro areas. These top twenty metro areas were abode to 28.7 million immigrants, or 64% of the nation'due south total foreign-born population. Virtually of the nation's unauthorized immigrant population lived in these top metro areas also.

20 metropolitan areas with the largest number of immigrants in 2018

How do immigrants compare with the U.Due south. population overall in education?

Educational attainment among U.S. immigrants, 2018

Immigrants in the U.S. every bit a whole have lower levels of educational activity than the U.Due south.-born population. In 2018, immigrants were over 3 times every bit likely equally the U.S. born to have not completed high school (27% vs. viii%). However, immigrants were just as probable every bit the U.S. born to have a bachelor'due south degree or more (32% and 33%, respectively).

Educational attainment varies amidst the nation's immigrant groups, particularly beyond immigrants from different regions of the world. Immigrants from United mexican states and Central America are less likely to exist high school graduates than the U.S. born (54% and 47%, respectively, do not have a loftier schoolhouse diploma, vs. 8% of U.S. born). On the other hand, immigrants from every region except Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America were as likely as or more than likely than U.South.-built-in residents to take a bachelor'south or advanced caste.

Among all immigrants, those from South Asia (71%) were the most likely to have a bachelor's degree or more. Immigrants from United mexican states (7%) and Key America (xi%) were the least likely to have a bachelor'south or higher.

How many immigrants are working in the U.S.?

Total U.S. labor force grows since 2007, but number of unauthorized immigrant workers declines

In 2017, about 29 million immigrants were working or looking for work in the U.Southward., making up some 17% of the total civilian labor force. Lawful immigrants made up the majority of the immigrant workforce, at 21.ii million. An additional 7.6 million immigrant workers are unauthorized immigrants, less than the total of the previous year and notably less than in 2007, when they were viii.ii million. They alone account for 4.6% of the civilian labor forcefulness, a dip from their summit of v.4% in 2007. During the same period, the overall U.S. workforce grew, as did the number of U.S.-born workers and lawful immigrant workers.

Immigrants are projected to drive future growth in the U.S. working-age population through at least 2035. As the Infant Boom generation heads into retirement, immigrants and their children are expected to offset a decline in the working-age population by calculation about xviii 1000000 people of working age between 2015 and 2035.

How well do immigrants speak English?

Half of immigrants in U.S. are English proficient as of 2018

Among immigrants ages 5 and older in 2018, half (53%) are proficient English language speakers – either speaking English very well (37%) or only speaking English at habitation (17%).

Immigrants from Mexico accept the everyman rates of English language proficiency (34%), followed past those from Central America (35%), Eastward and Southeast Asia (50%) and Southward America (56%). Immigrants from Canada (96%), Oceania (82%), Europe (75%) and sub-Saharan Africa (74%) take the highest rates of English proficiency.

The longer immigrants take lived in the U.S., the greater the likelihood they are English proficient. Some 47% of immigrants living in the U.S. five years or less are proficient. Past contrast, more than than half (57%) of immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for twenty years or more are skillful English speakers.

Among immigrants ages 5 and older, Spanish is the most unremarkably spoken language. Some 42% of immigrants in the U.South. speak Spanish at habitation. The top five languages spoken at home among immigrants outside of Spanish are English language only (17%), followed past Chinese (half dozen%), Hindi (v%), Filipino/Tagalog (4%) and French (three%).

How many immigrants accept been deported recently?

Around 337,000 immigrants were deported from the U.S. in fiscal 2018, up since 2017. Overall, the Obama administration deported nearly 3 million immigrants between 2009 and 2016, a significantly higher number than the 2 1000000 immigrants deported by the Bush administration between 2001 and 2008. In 2017, the Trump assistants deported 295,000 immigrants, the everyman total since 2006.

Immigrants convicted of a crime made up the less than one-half of deportations in 2018, the most contempo twelvemonth for which statistics by criminal condition are bachelor. Of the 337,000 immigrants deported in 2018, some 44% had criminal convictions and 56% were not bedevilled of a crime. From 2001 to 2018, a majority (lx%) of immigrants deported accept non been bedevilled of a crime.

U.S. deportations of immigrants slightly up in 2018

How many immigrant apprehensions have place at the U.South.-Mexico edge?

The number of apprehensions at the U.South.-Mexico edge has doubled from financial 2018 to fiscal 2019, from 396,579 in fiscal 2018 to 851,508 in fiscal 2019. Today, there are more than apprehensions of non-Mexicans than Mexicans at the border. In fiscal 2019, apprehensions of Fundamental Americans at the border exceeded those of Mexicans for the fourth consecutive year. The first time Mexicans did not brand up the bulk of Border Patrol apprehensions was in 2014.

How do Americans view immigrants and immigration?

U.S. immigrants are seen more as a strength than a burden to the country

While clearing has been at the forefront of a national political argue, the U.S. public holds a range of views about immigrants living in the country. Overall, a majority of Americans have positive views virtually immigrants. Virtually ii-thirds of  Americans (66%) say immigrants strengthen the country "because of their hard work and talents," while about a quarter (24%) say immigrants burden the country by taking jobs, housing and health care.

Yet these views vary starkly by political affiliation. Amid Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents, 88% recall immigrants strengthen the country with their hard work and talents, and just 8% say they are a brunt. Among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents, 41% say immigrants strengthen the country, while 44% say they burden it.

Americans were divided on futurity levels of immigration. A quarter said legal immigration to the U.S. should exist decreased (24%), while 1-tertiary (38%) said immigration should exist kept at its present level and almost some other third (32%) said immigration should be increased.

Notation: This is an update of a mail service originally published May 3, 2017, and written by Gustavo López, a former research analyst focusing on Hispanics, immigration and demographics; and Kristen Bialik, a former research assistant.

CORRECTION (Sept. 21, 2020): An update to the methodology used to tabulate figures in the nautical chart "Among new immigrant arrivals, Asians outnumber Hispanics" has changed all figures from 2001 and 2012. This new methodology has too allowed the inclusion of the effigy from 2000. Furthermore, the earlier version of the chart incorrectly showed thepartial year shares of Hispanic and Asian recent arrivals in 2015; the correctedcomplete yr shares are 31% and 36%, respectively.

Abby Budiman is a former research analyst focusing on race and ethnicity research at Pew Inquiry Center.