Korean Population in Kent County, MI by City : 2025 Ranking & Insights

The Korean population in Kent County, MI is recorded at 3,632 residents, based on the latest U.S. Census estimates. Most cities in Kent County - including Grand Rapids, Cascade charter township, Gaines charter township, and others - report non-zero figures, reflecting a broad and distributed Korean presence. However, the combined population across these cities exceeds the official county total - a likely result of rounding differences or sampling variations in small-population census data. The analysis below explores how Korean communities are spread across Kent County, MI and comparable counties throughout Michigan.

Top 5 cities with the largest Korean population in Kent County

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  • 1
    Grand Rapids
    Korean population in Grand Rapids is 1,295
    0.65% of Grand Rapids population is Korean
  • 2
    Cascade charter township
    Korean population in Cascade charter township is 391
    1.98% of Cascade charter township population is Korean
  • 3
    Gaines charter township
    Korean population in Gaines charter township is 323
    1.11% of Gaines charter township population is Korean
  • 4
    Ada township
    Korean population in Ada township is 289
    2.01% of Ada township population is Korean
  • 5
    Kentwood
    Korean population in Kentwood is 287
    0.53% of Kentwood population is Korean

Overview of Korean population in Kent County

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data document Kent County with 3,632 Korean residents (0.55% of 658,844 total county population), positioning the jurisdiction at the 97th percentile nationally among counties and 95th percentile within Michigan for Korean population concentrations, despite absolute population figures.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: Census Bureau's ACS indicate Kent County's Korean population of 0.55% exceeds Michigan's state average of 0.38% while remaining below the national average of 0.6%, placing the county above regional demographic benchmarks while below national concentration levels.
  • Share of Total State Population: Official American Community Survey data documents Kent County with 3,632 Korean residents, representing 9.5% of Michigan's total Korean population of 38,310.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey document Kent County with 4.3 Korean Americans per square mile, more than six times Michigan's average density of 0.68 per square mile, placing the county among the most densely concentrated jurisdictions within the state.
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33 Cities in Kent County Ranked by Korean Population

View Methodology
ACS data [1] show Korean populations distributed across multiple cities in the county, led by Grand Rapids, Cascade charter township, Gaines charter township, and Ada township. The table below provides additional context, including total population, population density, and demographic distributions, based on current ACS data for 33 incorporated cities included in this analysis*.
cities in Kent County, MI ranked by Korean population count
Rank by Korean Population
City
Korean Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total Kent County Korean Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Grand Rapids 1,295 0.65% 35.66%
2 Cascade charter township 391 1.98% 10.77%
3 Gaines charter township 323 1.11% 8.89%
4 Ada township 289 2.01% 7.96%
5 Kentwood 287 0.53% 7.90%
6 Wyoming 213 0.28% 5.86%
7 Algoma township 163 1.34% 4.49%
8 157 0.83% 4.32%
9 97 0.29% 2.67%
10 84 0.58% 2.31%
11 65 0.40% 1.79%
12 61 0.38% 1.68%
13 52 0.21% 1.43%
14 45 0.17% 1.24%
15 33 0.29% 0.91%
16 22 0.67% 0.61%
16 22 0.23% 0.61%
17 19 0.37% 0.52%
18 11 0.57% 0.30%
19 10 0.11% 0.28%
20 9 0.21% 0.25%
21 3 0.02% 0.08%
22 1 0.02% 0.03%
23 0 - -
23 0 - -
23 0 - -
23 0 - -
23 0 - -
23 0 - -
23 0 - -
23 0 - -
23 0 - -
23 0 - -
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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 Kent County, MI by their Korean population, using the most recent ACS data available.

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

How We Ranked the Data

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

Sources

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