Number of Immigrants and Immigrants as

Percentage of the U.S. Population, 1850 to 2022

Immigrants as a
Year Number of Immigrants Percentage of the U.S.
Population (%)
1850 2,244,600 9.7
1860 4,138,700 13.2
1870 5,567,200 14.4
1880 6,679,900 13.3
1890 9,249,500 14.8
1900 10,341,300 13.6
1910 13,515,900 14.7
1920 13,920,700 13.2
1930 14,204,100 11.6
1940 11,594,900 8.8
1950 10,347,400 6.9
1960 9,738,100 5.4
1970 9,619,300 4.7
1980 14,079,900 6.2
1990 19,767,300 7.9
2000 31,107,900 11.1
2010 39,955,900 12.9
2011 40,377,900 13.0
2012 40,824,700 13.0
2013 41,348,100 13.1
2014 42,391,800 13.3
2015 43,290,400 13.5
2016 43,739,300 13.5
2017 44,525,900 13.7
2018 44,728,700 13.7
2019 44,932,900 13.7
2021 45,270,100 13.6
2022 46,182,200 13.9

Note: 1) The term "immigrants" refers to people residing in the United States who
were not U.S. citizens at birth. This population includes naturalized citizens, lawful
permanent immigrants, refugees and asylees, legal nonimmigrants (including those
on student, work, or other temporary visas), and persons residing in the United
States without authorization.

2) The U.S. Census Bureau experienced significant challenges collecting data in

2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and released only a small number of data
points from its 2020 American Community Survey (ACS), which it called
“experimental.” This data table does not include estimates from the 2020 ACS.
Source: Migration Policy Institute (MPI) tabulation of the U.S. Census Bureau's
2010-2022 American Community Surveys and 1970, 1990, and 2000 Census data.
All other data are from Gibson, Campbell and Emily Lennon, U.S. Census Bureau,
Working Paper No. 29, Historical Census Statistics on the Foreign-Born Population
of the United States: 1850 to 1990, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington,
DC, 1999.