Russian Population in Albany County, NY by City : 2025 Ranking & Insights

The Russian population in Albany County, NY is recorded at 4,663 residents, based on the latest U.S. Census estimates. Most cities in Albany County - including Albany, Bethlehem town, Colonie town, and others - report non-zero figures, reflecting a broad and distributed Russian 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 Russian communities are spread across Albany County, NY and comparable counties throughout New York.

Top 5 cities with the largest Russian population in Albany County

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  • 1
    Albany
    Russian population in Albany is 1,466
    1.46% of Albany population is Russian
  • 2
    Bethlehem town
    Russian population in Bethlehem town is 1,159
    3.31% of Bethlehem town population is Russian
  • 3
    Colonie town
    Russian population in Colonie town is 788
    0.92% of Colonie town population is Russian
  • 4
    Cohoes
    Russian population in Cohoes is 332
    1.84% of Cohoes population is Russian
  • 5
    New Scotland town
    Russian population in New Scotland town is 284
    3.13% of New Scotland town population is Russian

Overview of Russian population in Albany County

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data shows Albany County contains 4,663 Russian residents (1.5% of 315,374 total county population), ranking the jurisdiction at the 96th percentile nationally among counties and 80th percentile within New York for Russian demographic concentrations across both absolute and proportional measures.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: Census Bureau's ACS data documents Albany County's Russian demographic representation of 1.5%, exceeding the national average of 0.69% while remaining below New York's elevated state average of 1.6%, placing the county above national concentration levels while below state demographic averages.
  • Share of Total State Population: Official American Community Survey show Albany County's 4,663 Russian residents constitute 1.5% of New York's total Russian population of 317,545.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey shows Albany County maintains 8.9 Russian Americans per square mile compared to New York's average of 6.7, indicating higher demographic concentration relative to state averages.
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18 Cities in Albany County Ranked by Russian Population

View Methodology
ACS data [1] show Russian populations distributed across multiple cities in the county, led by Albany, Bethlehem town, Colonie town, and Cohoes. The table below provides additional context, including total population, population density, and demographic distributions, based on current ACS data for 18 incorporated cities included in this analysis*.
cities in Albany County, NY ranked by Russian population count
Rank by Russian Population
City
Russian Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total Albany County Russian Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Albany 1,466 1.46% 31.44%
2 Bethlehem town 1,159 3.31% 24.86%
3 Colonie town 788 0.92% 16.90%
4 Cohoes 332 1.84% 7.12%
5 New Scotland town 284 3.13% 6.09%
6 Guilderland town 270 0.73% 5.79%
7 Watervliet 239 2.32% 5.13%
8 50 0.65% 1.07%
9 47 1.04% 1.01%
10 33 1.11% 0.71%
10 33 1.74% 0.71%
11 23 0.90% 0.49%
12 22 0.30% 0.47%
12 22 0.68% 0.47%
13 14 0.52% 0.30%
14 13 0.46% 0.28%
15 3 0.17% 0.06%
16 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 Albany County, NY by their Russian population, using the most recent ACS data available.

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

How We Ranked the Data

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

Sources

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