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

The Norwegian population in Kent County, MI is recorded at 4,998 residents, based on the latest U.S. Census estimates. Most cities in Kent County - including Grand Rapids, Wyoming, Plainfield charter township, and others - report non-zero figures, reflecting a broad and distributed Norwegian 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 Norwegian communities are spread across Kent County, MI and comparable counties throughout Michigan.

Top 5 cities with the largest Norwegian population in Kent County

View All
  • 1
    Grand Rapids
    Norwegian population in Grand Rapids is 1,271
    0.64% of Grand Rapids population is Norwegian
  • 2
    Wyoming
    Norwegian population in Wyoming is 509
    0.66% of Wyoming population is Norwegian
  • 3
    Plainfield charter township
    Norwegian population in Plainfield charter township is 483
    1.43% of Plainfield charter township population is Norwegian
  • 4
    Byron township
    Norwegian population in Byron township is 393
    1.44% of Byron township population is Norwegian
  • 5
    Kentwood
    Norwegian population in Kentwood is 292
    0.54% of Kentwood population is Norwegian

Overview of Norwegian population in Kent County

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data document Kent County with 4,998 Norwegian residents (0.76% of 658,844 total county population), positioning the jurisdiction at the 94th percentile nationally among counties and 96th percentile within Michigan for Norwegian population concentrations, despite absolute population figures.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: Census Bureau's ACS indicate Kent County's Norwegian population of 0.76% exceeds Michigan's state average of 0.74% while remaining below the national average of 1.2%, 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 4,998 Norwegian residents, representing 6.7% of Michigan's total Norwegian population of 74,557.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey indicate Kent County's density of 5.9 Norwegian Americans per square mile exceeds Michigan's average of 1.3 per square mile by four and a half times, establishing the county as a significant concentration center for Norwegian demographic communities.
  • Need additional overviews? Extended research data available for purchase and license. ➔

33 Cities in Kent County Ranked by Norwegian Population

View Methodology
ACS data [1] show Norwegian populations distributed across multiple cities in the county, led by Grand Rapids, Wyoming, Plainfield charter township, and Byron 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 Norwegian population count
Rank by Norwegian Population
City
Norwegian Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total Kent County Norwegian Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Grand Rapids 1,271 0.64% 25.43%
2 Wyoming 509 0.66% 10.18%
3 Plainfield charter township 483 1.43% 9.66%
4 Byron township 393 1.44% 7.86%
5 Kentwood 292 0.54% 5.84%
6 Cascade charter township 273 1.39% 5.46%
7 Grandville 175 1.08% 3.50%
8 160 0.99% 3.20%
9 152 0.80% 3.04%
10 142 0.49% 2.84%
11 139 3.65% 2.78%
12 134 0.53% 2.68%
13 115 1.27% 2.30%
14 109 1.78% 2.18%
15 105 0.73% 2.10%
16 99 0.82% 1.98%
17 96 1.02% 1.92%
18 94 2.25% 1.88%
19 63 0.55% 1.26%
20 55 0.39% 1.10%
21 52 2.69% 1.04%
22 48 1.31% 0.96%
23 41 0.96% 0.82%
24 30 0.46% 0.60%
25 24 0.49% 0.48%
26 18 0.55% 0.36%
26 18 0.36% 0.36%
27 17 1.40% 0.34%
28 1 0.02% 0.02%
29 0 - -
29 0 - -
29 0 - -
29 0 - -
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 Kent County, MI by their Norwegian population, using the most recent ACS data available.

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

How We Ranked the Data

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

Sources

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