German Population in United States by City : 2025 Ranking & Insights

According to the latest U.S. Census estimates, the German population in the United States stands at 41.8 million individuals. New York contains the largest German community with 250,836 residents, followed by Chicago (200,098) and Phoenix (156,368), with many other cities across the country home to active German communities of varying sizes. This nationwide ranking highlights how German populations are distributed across American cities, offering a broader view into their settlement patterns and regional diversity.

Top 5 cities with the largest German population in United States

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  • 1
    New York
    German population in New York is 250,836
    2.95% of New York population is German
  • 2
    Chicago
    German population in Chicago is 200,098
    7.39% of Chicago population is German
  • 3
    Phoenix
    German population in Phoenix is 156,368
    9.62% of Phoenix population is German
  • 4
    Los Angeles
    German population in Los Angeles is 151,393
    3.92% of Los Angeles population is German
  • 5
    Columbus
    German population in Columbus is 135,382
    14.93% of Columbus population is German

U.S. Cities by German Population : National Rankings

View Methodology
American Community Survey data [1] show significant German populations in leading metropolitan areas, including New York, Chicago, Phoenix, and Los Angeles, while numerous other incorporated cities recorded minimal or zero residents identified as Americans of German birth or descent. The table below provides broader statistics, including total population figures, density measures, and demographic distributions based on current ACS data for all incorporated cities included in this analysis*.
cities in United States ranked by German population count
Rank by German Population
City
German Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total United States German Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 New York 250,836 2.95% 0.60%
2 Chicago 200,098 7.39% 0.48%
3 Phoenix 156,368 9.62% 0.37%
4 Los Angeles 151,393 3.92% 0.36%
5 Columbus 135,382 14.93% 0.32%
6 Omaha 121,124 24.81% 0.29%
7 San Diego 120,675 8.71% 0.29%
8 114,270 4.97% 0.27%
9 111,279 11.50% 0.27%
10 110,140 6.96% 0.26%
11 104,714 7.18% 0.25%
12 103,544 13.97% 0.25%
13 99,615 13.96% 0.24%
14 97,432 15.16% 0.23%
15 93,623 5.75% 0.22%
16 89,781 21.03% 0.21%
17 88,272 30.24% 0.21%
18 86,181 17.84% 0.21%
19 85,886 15.07% 0.21%
20 78,212 28.38% 0.19%
21 77,250 15.20% 0.18%
22 76,010 19.17% 0.18%
23 74,624 7.76% 0.18%
24 72,350 2.73% 0.17%
25 70,201 13.83% 0.17%
26 69,590 5.35% 0.17%
27 69,567 10.10% 0.17%
28 67,113 7.13% 0.16%
29 65,727 7.42% 0.16%
30 64,636 13.25% 0.15%
31 62,754 11.55% 0.15%
32 62,651 31.70% 0.15%
33 60,160 19.55% 0.14%
34 59,953 22.52% 0.14%
35 59,189 7.08% 0.14%
36 55,108 9.80% 0.13%
37 54,659 2.35% 0.13%
38 54,506 6.91% 0.13%
39 54,050 17.46% 0.13%
40 52,112 8.01% 0.12%
41 52,013 17.13% 0.12%
42 51,781 7.70% 0.12%
43 51,369 11.24% 0.12%
44 49,380 18.39% 0.12%
45 47,400 12.15% 0.11%
46 46,602 15.90% 0.11%
47 45,521 23.08% 0.11%
48 44,150 19.26% 0.11%
49 43,774 4.42% 0.10%
50 43,168 9.17% 0.10%
51 42,932 10.41% 0.10%
52 42,869 18.19% 0.10%
53 42,436 32.88% 0.10%
54 42,125 15.54% 0.10%
55 40,647 16.78% 0.10%
56 40,634 19.13% 0.10%
57 39,232 23.12% 0.09%
58 39,147 12.06% 0.09%
59 39,018 13.50% 0.09%
60 36,615 26.75% 0.09%
61 36,605 13.16% 0.09%
62 35,593 7.13% 0.09%
63 35,079 28.84% 0.08%
64 34,498 8.77% 0.08%
65 34,463 9.38% 0.08%
66 34,062 6.49% 0.08%
67 33,680 23.43% 0.08%
68 33,673 12.92% 0.08%
69 33,572 5.82% 0.08%
70 33,520 45.21% 0.08%
71 33,050 12.29% 0.08%
72 32,735 27.67% 0.08%
73 32,728 18.44% 0.08%
74 32,547 5.99% 0.08%
75 32,093 4.83% 0.08%
76 30,523 10.19% 0.07%
77 30,479 23.96% 0.07%
78 30,188 13.69% 0.07%
79 30,139 17.79% 0.07%
80 30,067 8.88% 0.07%
81 29,584 18.93% 0.07%
82 29,336 15.22% 0.07%
83 29,205 15.03% 0.07%
84 28,912 38.61% 0.07%
85 28,868 10.44% 0.07%
86 28,843 16.33% 0.07%
87 28,446 28.14% 0.07%
88 28,348 26.60% 0.07%
89 27,759 7.03% 0.07%
90 27,646 13.40% 0.07%
91 27,630 11.04% 0.07%
92 27,370 21.02% 0.07%
93 27,300 14.40% 0.07%
94 27,269 29.42% 0.07%
95 26,919 38.03% 0.06%
96 26,880 13.59% 0.06%
97 26,545 21.05% 0.06%
98 26,384 39.83% 0.06%
99 26,021 9.06% 0.06%
100 25,919 27.15% 0.06%
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 United States by their German population, using the most recent ACS data available.

How the Census defines German 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 German 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 German alone, while others identify as German along with another race (such as German and German).
  • We’ve used the “German alone or in any combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the German population in each area.

How We Ranked the Data

This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as German 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 German .
  2. % of Total United States German Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. German 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 German 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 German 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 German populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.

Sources

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