Chinese Population in King County, WA by City : 2025 Ranking & Insights

The Chinese population in King County, WA is reported at 151,551 residents, according to recent U.S. Census estimates. Several cities in King County - including Seattle, Bellevue, Redmond, and others - contribute to the Chinese population, but the total county figure of 151,551 indicates additional presence beyond municipal borders. The sections below explores how Chinese residents are distributed in Washington and the U.S.

Top 5 cities with the largest Chinese population in King County

View All
  • 1
    Seattle
    Chinese population in Seattle is 54,591
    7.36% of Seattle population is Chinese
  • 2
    Bellevue
    Chinese population in Bellevue is 24,879
    16.45% of Bellevue population is Chinese
  • 3
    Redmond
    Chinese population in Redmond is 9,137
    12.07% of Redmond population is Chinese
  • 4
    Sammamish
    Chinese population in Sammamish is 9,040
    13.62% of Sammamish population is Chinese
  • 5
    Renton
    Chinese population in Renton is 7,969
    7.57% of Renton population is Chinese

Overview of Chinese population in King County

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data shows King County contains 151,551 Chinese residents (6.7% of 2.3 million total county population), ranking the jurisdiction at the 99th percentile nationally among counties and 97th percentile within Washington for Chinese demographic concentrations across both absolute and proportional measures.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: Census Bureau's ACS show King County's Chinese population of 6.7% surpassing both Washington's state average of 2.8% and the national average of 1.6%, positioning the county as a high-concentration jurisdiction exceeding demographic benchmarks across all geographic scales.
  • Share of Total State Population: Official American Community Survey data indicates King County hosts 151,551 Chinese residents, constituting 70.8% of Washington's total Chinese population of 214,205, creating a demographic concentration where more than half of the state's Chinese community resides within a single county—a geographic clustering pattern rarely documented in American demographic research.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey data shows King County maintains 71.6 Chinese Americans per square mile, representing twenty-two and one-quarter times Washington's average of 3.2 per square mile, establishing the county as an exceptional concentration center comparable to major metropolitan demographic areas.
  • Need additional overviews? Extended research data available for purchase and license. ➔

36 Cities in King County Ranked by Chinese Population

View Methodology
ACS data [1] show Chinese populations distributed across multiple cities in the county, led by Seattle, Bellevue, Redmond, and Sammamish. The table below provides additional context, including total population, population density, and demographic distributions, based on current ACS data for 36 incorporated cities included in this analysis*.
cities in King County, WA ranked by Chinese population count
Rank by Chinese Population
City
Chinese Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total King County Chinese Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Seattle 54,591 7.36% 36.02%
2 Bellevue 24,879 16.45% 16.42%
3 Redmond 9,137 12.07% 6.03%
4 Sammamish 9,040 13.62% 5.97%
5 Renton 7,969 7.57% 5.26%
6 Kirkland 6,611 7.22% 4.36%
7 Issaquah 4,586 11.62% 3.03%
8 3,944 2.92% 2.60%
9 3,363 13.30% 2.22%
10 3,110 6.40% 2.05%
11 2,962 5.00% 1.95%
12 2,326 17.97% 1.53%
13 1,978 1.99% 1.31%
14 1,778 2.08% 1.17%
15 1,557 6.60% 1.03%
16 926 3.29% 0.61%
17 782 5.82% 0.52%
18 672 5.03% 0.44%
19 669 2.15% 0.44%
20 639 1.24% 0.42%
21 631 3.01% 0.42%
22 582 1.79% 0.38%
23 570 18.36% 0.38%
24 539 18.66% 0.36%
25 455 2.12% 0.30%
26 334 2.43% 0.22%
27 207 17.37% 0.14%
28 179 2.31% 0.12%
29 157 1.90% 0.10%
30 127 1.45% 0.08%
31 94 1.41% 0.06%
32 73 1.29% 0.05%
33 32 0.25% 0.02%
34 25 0.35% 0.02%
35 14 0.57% 0.01%
36 0 - -
Need the complete table? Full rankings and the underlying data sets for California and other locations are available for purchase or license.

Methodology

This ranking list is based on data from the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. The ACS is one of the most reliable sources for understanding population trends across different locations, and it provides estimates for various racial and ethnic groups at city, county, state and all geography levels down to the Census block group.
This list ranks city in King County, WA by their Chinese population, using the most recent ACS data available.

How the Census defines Chinese population

The U.S. Census Bureau allows people to self-identify their ancestry, meaning individuals can write upto ancestries when responding to the survey. In this ranking, we include everyone who identifies as having Chinese ancestry, whether alone or in combination with another ancestry.
Here are a few important things to know about how ancestry is reported:
  • Some people identify as Chinese alone, while others identify as Chinese along with another race (such as Chinese and German).
  • We’ve used the “Chinese alone or in any combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the Chinese population in each area.

How We Ranked the Data

This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as Chinese alone or in combination in city. To provide additional context, we’ve also included two key percentages:
  1. % of Total City Population – This shows what percentage of the total state population identifies as Chinese .
  2. % of Total King County Chinese Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. Chinese population lives in that state.
To keep things simple, all population numbers have been rounded to the nearest whole number, and percentages are rounded to one decimal place. Because of rounding, some percentages may not add up to exactly 100%.

Things to Keep in Mind

Like all survey-based data, ACS estimates come with some limitations. Here are a few things to be aware of:
  • In places with very small Chinese populations, the numbers may not be reported at all due to privacy protections or sampling variability in the survey.
  • Since the ACS is based on a sample, the numbers are estimates, not exact counts. That means they may slightly differ from other sources like the decennial U.S. Census.
  • City that don’t have any reported Chinese population are not included in the ranking but are listed separately below for reference.
This ranking is meant to provide a clear, data-driven look at where Chinese populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.

Sources

  1. 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.
  2. 2023.