Portuguese Population in Providence County, RI by City : 2025 Ranking & Insights

The Portuguese population in Providence County, RI is recorded at 41,160 residents, based on the latest U.S. Census estimates. Every city in Providence County reports some Portuguese residents. With no unincorporated share evident in the totals, this points to a completely city-based population. The sections below explores how Portuguese residents are distributed in Rhode Island and the U.S.

Top 5 cities with the largest Portuguese population in Providence County

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  • 1
    East Providence
    Portuguese population in East Providence is 10,280
    21.89% of East Providence population is Portuguese
  • 2
    Pawtucket
    Portuguese population in Pawtucket is 7,572
    10.06% of Pawtucket population is Portuguese
  • 3
    Providence
    Portuguese population in Providence is 4,390
    2.31% of Providence population is Portuguese
  • 4
    Cranston
    Portuguese population in Cranston is 3,853
    4.66% of Cranston population is Portuguese
  • 5
    Cumberland town
    Portuguese population in Cumberland town is 3,474
    9.55% of Cumberland town population is Portuguese

Overview of Portuguese population in Providence County

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data shows Providence County contains 41,160 Portuguese residents (6.2% of 658,977 total county population), ranking the jurisdiction at the 99th percentile nationally among counties and 80th percentile within Rhode Island for Portuguese demographic concentrations across both absolute and proportional measures.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: Census Bureau's ACS data documents Providence County's Portuguese demographic representation of 6.2%, exceeding the national average of 0.41% while remaining below Rhode Island's elevated state average of 7.2%, placing the county above national concentration levels while below state demographic averages.
  • Share of Total State Population: Official American Community Survey data indicates Providence County hosts 41,160 Portuguese residents, constituting 52.4% of Rhode Island's total Portuguese population of 78,544, creating a demographic concentration where more than half of the state's Portuguese community resides within a single county—a geographic clustering pattern rarely documented in American demographic research.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey shows Providence County maintains 100.5 Portuguese Americans per square mile compared to Rhode Island's average of 76, indicating higher demographic concentration relative to state averages.
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16 Cities in Providence County Ranked by Portuguese Population

View Methodology
ACS data [1] confirm Portuguese populations in every incorporated city in the county, with the largest counts in East Providence, Pawtucket, Providence, and Cranston. The table below provides detailed figures, including total population, density measures, and demographic distributions, based on the current ACS data for all 16 incorporated cities included in this analysis*.
cities in Providence County, RI ranked by Portuguese population count
Rank by Portuguese Population
City
Portuguese Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total Providence County Portuguese Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 East Providence 10,280 21.89% 24.98%
2 Pawtucket 7,572 10.06% 18.40%
3 Providence 4,390 2.31% 10.67%
4 Cranston 3,853 4.66% 9.36%
5 Cumberland town 3,474 9.55% 8.44%
6 Lincoln town 1,972 8.74% 4.79%
7 North Providence town 1,655 4.88% 4.02%
8 1,418 6.42% 3.45%
9 1,255 4.25% 3.05%
10 1,214 2.82% 2.95%
11 926 4.12% 2.25%
12 844 5.20% 2.05%
13 813 6.46% 1.98%
14 659 6.55% 1.60%
15 635 6.10% 1.54%
16 200 4.46% 0.49%
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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 Providence County, RI by their Portuguese population, using the most recent ACS data available.

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

How We Ranked the Data

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

Sources

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