Puerto Rican Population in Arizona by City : 2025 Ranking & Insights

The Puerto Rican population in Arizona totals 49,014, according to recent U.S. Census estimates. Leading cities include Phoenix (11,051), followed by Tucson (4,339) and Mesa (4,198), each hosting visible segments of the community. While these urban centers anchor much of the population, the statewide total points to a broader presence in unincorporated areas and smaller towns beyond major city boundaries. The analysis below explores how Puerto Rican residents are distributed across Arizona''s urban and rural landscape.

Top 5 cities with the largest Puerto Rican population in Arizona

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  • 1
    Phoenix
    Puerto Rican population in Phoenix is 11,051
    0.68% of Phoenix population is Puerto Rican
  • 2
    Tucson
    Puerto Rican population in Tucson is 4,339
    0.80% of Tucson population is Puerto Rican
  • 3
    Mesa
    Puerto Rican population in Mesa is 4,198
    0.83% of Mesa population is Puerto Rican
  • 4
    Chandler
    Puerto Rican population in Chandler is 2,789
    1.00% of Chandler population is Puerto Rican
  • 5
    Gilbert
    Puerto Rican population in Gilbert is 1,995
    0.74% of Gilbert population is Puerto Rican

Overview of Puerto Rican population in Arizona

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data indicate Arizona contains 49,014 Puerto Rican residents (0.67% of 7.3 million total state population), positioning the state at the 64th percentile nationally among U.S. states for Puerto Rican population concentrations.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: U.S. Census surveys show Arizona's Puerto Rican demographic representation of 0.67% remains below the national average of 1.8%, positioning the state below typical U.S. demographic distribution patterns.
  • Share of Total National Population: Official American Community Survey data indicates Arizona contains 49,014 Puerto Rican residents, representing less than 1% of the nation's total Puerto Rican population of 5.9 million, constituting a minimal fraction of the national demographic community relative to the state's overall population size.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey data shows Arizona's density of 0.43 Puerto Ricans per square mile remains below the national average of 1.7 per square mile, indicating relatively sparse distribution compared to national demographic concentrations.
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88 Cities in Arizona Ranked by Puerto Rican Population

View Methodology
American Community Survey data [1] show Puerto Rican population in Arizona present in Phoenix, Tucson, and Mesa, along with several other incorporated cities reporting non-zero populations. The table below provides broader statistics, including total population figures, density measures, and demographic distributions based on current ACS data for all incorporated cities included in this analysis*.
cities in Arizona ranked by Puerto Rican population count
Rank by Puerto Rican Population
City
Puerto Rican Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total Arizona Puerto Rican Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Phoenix 11,051 0.68% 22.55%
2 Tucson 4,339 0.80% 8.85%
3 Mesa 4,198 0.83% 8.56%
4 Chandler 2,789 1.00% 5.69%
5 Gilbert 1,995 0.74% 4.07%
6 Peoria 1,624 0.84% 3.31%
7 Glendale 1,344 0.54% 2.74%
8 1,334 0.55% 2.72%
9 1,197 1.32% 2.44%
10 1,193 0.64% 2.43%
11 1,063 0.71% 2.17%
12 927 0.93% 1.89%
13 916 1.68% 1.87%
14 898 1.99% 1.83%
15 719 1.14% 1.47%
16 651 0.63% 1.33%
17 632 0.64% 1.29%
18 453 0.95% 0.92%
19 426 0.73% 0.87%
20 410 1.17% 0.84%
21 387 0.58% 0.79%
22 377 0.49% 0.77%
23 354 0.99% 0.72%
24 283 0.67% 0.58%
25 280 0.49% 0.57%
26 183 0.54% 0.37%
27 150 0.31% 0.31%
28 144 2.98% 0.29%
29 132 1.89% 0.27%
30 130 0.85% 0.27%
30 130 7.19% 0.27%
31 129 0.80% 0.26%
32 115 1.13% 0.23%
33 103 0.26% 0.21%
34 97 0.49% 0.20%
35 83 0.23% 0.17%
36 74 0.29% 0.15%
37 73 0.55% 0.15%
38 64 0.66% 0.13%
39 63 0.13% 0.13%
40 61 0.37% 0.12%
41 45 0.36% 0.09%
42 43 0.49% 0.09%
43 41 2.22% 0.08%
44 33 0.72% 0.07%
45 26 0.36% 0.05%
46 24 0.19% 0.05%
47 21 0.48% 0.04%
48 16 0.47% 0.03%
49 15 0.09% 0.03%
50 14 0.34% 0.03%
51 12 0.49% 0.02%
52 11 0.34% 0.02%
53 9 0.18% 0.02%
53 9 0.04% 0.02%
54 8 0.15% 0.02%
55 6 0.11% 0.01%
55 6 0.18% 0.01%
56 4 0.06% 0.01%
57 3 0.02% 0.01%
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 0 - -
58 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 Arizona by their Puerto Rican population, using the most recent ACS data available.

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

How We Ranked the Data

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

Sources

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