Costa Rican Population in Alabama by County : 2025 Ranking & Insights
According to the latest U.S. Census estimates, the Costa Rican population in Alabama totals 811. Madison County contains the largest Costa Rican community with 250 residents, followed by Elmore County (158), Jefferson County (117), and others contributing to this statewide total. This demographic analysis ranks all counties in Alabama by their Costa Rican populations, offering insights into local community distribution and broader settlement trends.
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Top 5 counties with the largest Costa Rican population in Alabama
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1Madison CountyCosta Rican population in Madison County is 2500.06% of Madison County population is Costa Rican
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2Elmore CountyCosta Rican population in Elmore County is 1580.18% of Elmore County population is Costa Rican
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3Jefferson CountyCosta Rican population in Jefferson County is 1170.02% of Jefferson County population is Costa Rican
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4Lee CountyCosta Rican population in Lee County is 680.04% of Lee County population is Costa Rican
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5Baldwin CountyCosta Rican population in Baldwin County is 650.03% of Baldwin County population is Costa Rican
Overview of Costa Rican population in Alabama
- Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data indicate Alabama contains 811 Costa Rican residents (0.016% of 5.1 million total state population), positioning the state at the 39th percentile nationally among U.S. states for Costa Rican population concentrations.
- Comparison to State and National Averages: U.S. Census surveys show Alabama's Costa Rican demographic representation of 0.016% remains below the national average of 0.055%, positioning the state below typical U.S. demographic distribution patterns.
- Share of Total National Population: Official American Community Survey data indicates Alabama contains 811 Costa Rican residents, representing less than 1% of the nation's total Costa Rican population of 181,635, constituting a minimal fraction of the national demographic community relative to the state's overall population size.
- Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey data shows Alabama's density of 0.016 Costa Rican Americans per square mile remains below the national average of 0.051 per square mile, indicating relatively sparse distribution compared to national demographic concentrations.
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67 Counties in Alabama Ranked by Costa Rican Population
American Community Survey data [1] show Costa Rican population in Alabama distributed across multiple counties, led by Madison County, Elmore County, Jefferson County, and Lee County, while several other counties recorded no residents identified as Americans of at least partial Costa Rican descent. The table below provides broader statistics, including total population figures, density measures, and demographic distributions based on current ACS data for all counties included in this analysis*.
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 county in Alabama by their Costa Rican population, using the most recent ACS data available.
How the Census defines Costa Rican 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 Costa Rican 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 Costa Rican alone, while others identify as Costa Rican along with another race (such as Costa Rican and German).
- We’ve used the “Costa Rican alone or in any combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the Costa Rican population in each area.
How We Ranked the Data
This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as Costa Rican alone or in combination in county. To provide additional context, we’ve also included two key percentages:
- % of Total County Population – This shows what percentage of the total state population identifies as Costa Rican .
- % of Total Alabama Costa Rican Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. Costa Rican 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 Costa Rican 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.
- County that don’t have any reported Costa Rican 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 Costa Rican populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.
Sources
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.
- U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line Shapefiles 2023.
