Korean Population in United States by State : 2025 Ranking & Insights

According to U.S. Census estimates, all 50 states and the District of Columbia report a measurable Korean population, totaling 2.0 million nationwide. California leads with 565,921 residents, followed by New York (146,133) and Texas (122,201). This ranking examines how Korean communities are distributed across the entire United States, highlighting regional patterns, cultural concentrations, and state-level differences.

Top 5 states with the largest Korean population in United States

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  • 1
    California
    Korean population in California is 565,921
    1.44% of California population is Korean
  • 2
    New York
    Korean population in New York is 146,133
    0.74% of New York population is Korean
  • 3
    Texas
    Korean population in Texas is 122,201
    0.41% of Texas population is Korean
  • 4
    New Jersey
    Korean population in New Jersey is 111,443
    1.20% of New Jersey population is Korean
  • 5
    Washington
    Korean population in Washington is 102,228
    1.32% of Washington population is Korean

U.S. States by Korean Population : National Rankings

View Methodology
American Community Survey data [1] show Korean populations present across states nationwide, with the largest counts in California, New York, Texas, and New Jersey. The table below provides additional context, including total population, population density, and demographic distributions based on current ACS data for all states included in this analysis*.
states in United States ranked by Korean population count
Rank by Korean Population
State
Korean Population
% of Total State Population
% of Total United States Korean Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 California 565,921 1.44% 28.31%
2 New York 146,133 0.74% 7.31%
3 Texas 122,201 0.41% 6.11%
4 New Jersey 111,443 1.20% 5.58%
5 Washington 102,228 1.32% 5.11%
6 Virginia 94,234 1.09% 4.71%
7 Georgia 76,116 0.70% 3.81%
8 71,217 0.56% 3.56%
9 59,301 0.96% 2.97%
10 52,207 0.40% 2.61%
11 43,472 0.20% 2.18%
12 38,310 0.38% 1.92%
13 38,129 0.66% 1.91%
14 36,353 0.52% 1.82%
15 35,097 0.33% 1.76%
16 29,603 0.41% 1.48%
17 26,634 0.23% 1.33%
18 26,200 0.62% 1.31%
19 25,983 0.45% 1.30%
20 24,971 0.80% 1.25%
21 17,850 0.35% 0.89%
22 17,338 0.25% 0.87%
23 17,048 0.28% 0.85%
24 15,906 0.23% 0.80%
25 14,739 0.41% 0.74%
26 13,408 0.23% 0.67%
27 11,381 0.34% 0.57%
28 11,296 0.35% 0.57%
29 11,010 0.21% 0.55%
30 9,928 0.25% 0.50%
31 9,186 0.20% 0.46%
32 9,133 0.31% 0.46%
33 6,840 0.93% 0.34%
34 5,192 0.27% 0.26%
35 4,987 0.11% 0.25%
36 4,914 0.73% 0.25%
37 4,497 0.32% 0.23%
38 4,495 0.21% 0.22%
39 4,420 0.15% 0.22%
40 4,371 0.22% 0.22%
41 3,131 0.31% 0.16%
42 2,924 0.21% 0.15%
43 2,921 0.27% 0.15%
44 2,792 0.09% 0.14%
45 2,399 0.31% 0.12%
46 2,126 0.19% 0.11%
47 1,857 0.10% 0.09%
48 1,834 0.20% 0.09%
49 1,582 0.25% 0.08%
50 920 0.16% 0.05%
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 state in United States 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 state. To provide additional context, we’ve also included two key percentages:
  1. % of Total State Population – This shows what percentage of the total state population identifies as Korean .
  2. % of Total United States 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.
  • State 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.