Italian Population in Lewis and Clark County, MT by City : 2025 Ranking & Insights

The Italian population in Lewis and Clark County, MT totals 2,969 residents, according to the most recent census estimates. Of these, Helena and East Helena account for 1,360 and 47 residents respectively, suggesting a shared urban presence. However, the remaining population appears to reside outside city boundaries, likely spread across unincorporated parts of Lewis and Clark County or smaller incorporated cities not captured in this ranking analysis*. The analysis below explores this hybrid distribution and how it reflects broader trends across Montana counties.

Top 5 cities with the largest Italian population in Lewis and Clark County

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  • 1
    Helena
    Italian population in Helena is 1,360
    4.11% of Helena population is Italian
  • 2
    East Helena
    Italian population in East Helena is 47
    2.53% of East Helena population is Italian

Overview of Italian population in Lewis and Clark County

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data shows Lewis and Clark County contains 2,969 Italian residents (4.1% of 72,580 total county population), ranking the jurisdiction at the 79th percentile nationally among counties and 87th percentile within Montana for Italian demographic concentrations across both absolute and proportional measures.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: Census Bureau's ACS indicate Lewis and Clark County's Italian population of 4.1% exceeds Montana's state average of 3.3% while remaining below the national average of 4.9%, placing the county above regional demographic benchmarks while below national concentration levels.
  • Share of Total State Population: Official American Community Survey data documents Lewis and Clark County with 2,969 Italian residents, representing 8.2% of Montana's total Italian population of 36,150.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey indicate Lewis and Clark County's density of 0.86 Italian Americans per square mile exceeds Montana's average of 0.25 per square mile by three and a half times, establishing the county as a significant concentration center for Italian demographic communities.
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Lewis and Clark County Cities by Italian Population

View Methodology
ACS [1] population records show Helena and East Helena account for 1,360 and 47 Italian residents. The following table shows comprehensive population data, demographic percentages, density measurements, and complete comparison metrics for both cities in Lewis and Clark County, MT.
cities in Lewis and Clark County, MT ranked by Italian population count
Rank by Italian Population
City
Italian Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total Lewis and Clark County Italian Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Helena 1,360 4.11% 45.81%
2 East Helena 47 2.53% 1.58%
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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 Lewis and Clark County, MT by their Italian population, using the most recent ACS data available.

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

How We Ranked the Data

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

Sources

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