*Visit the most recent data on U.S. Hispanics.

Characteristics of the U.S. Hispanic population: 1980-2015

There were 56.5 million Hispanics in the United States in 2015, comprising 17.6% of the total U.S. population. In 1980, with a population of 14.8 million, Hispanics made up just 6.5% of the total U.S. population. Click on the expand buttons below the summary tables to see detailed tables for each.

Click here for a PDF of all the tables below and read the accompanying blog post, “How the U.S. Hispanic population is changing.” Download the Excel workbook.

For a profile of the foreign-born population in the United States, click here.

Population/Hispanic Origin/Language Use/Race

1980 1990 2000 2010 2015
Population (#) 14,775,080 21,836,851 35,204,480 50,729,570 56,476,777
Mexican N/A N/A N/A 64.9% 63.3%
Foreign born 28.3% 35.7% 40.1% 37.1% 34.4%
Speaking English at least very well (ages 5 and older) 59.0% 60.7% 59.3% 64.8% 69.0%
White N/A N/A 47.8% 64.1% 66.3%



Age/Gender/Marital Status/Fertility

1980 1990 2000 2010 2015
Median age (in years) 22 25 25 27 28
Female 50.4% 54.9% 55.0% 47.8% 45.8%
Married (ages 18 and older) 60.5% 54.9% 55.0% 47.8% 45.8%
Women ages 15-44 giving birth in past year N/A N/A N/A 8.1% 6.7%



Educational Attainment and Enrollment (highest degree completed, ages 25 and older)

1980 1990 2000 2010 2015
High school graduate or less 78.4% 71.7% 69.6% 64.1% 61.4%
Two-year degree/Some college 13.9% 19.2% 19.9% 22.8% 23.6%
Bachelor’s degree or more 7.7% 9.1% 10.5% 13.1% 15.0%



Work/Earnings/Income (ages 16 and older)

1980 1990 2000 2010 2015
In labor force (among civilian population) 62.9% 67.3% 61.2% 67.6% 67.0%
Median annual personal earnings
(in 2015 dollars, among those with earnings)
N/A $21,114 $23,406 $21,742 $24,000
Median annual household income (in 2015 dollars) $36,751 $42,227 $45,835 $43,484 $44,800



Poverty

1980 1990 2000 2010 2015
Living in poverty 23.2% 24.9% 22.5% 24.7% 21.9%



Homeownership and Household Characteristics

1980 1990 2000 2010 2015
In family households 93.3% 92.6% 92.3% 91.2% 90.6%



Region and Top Five States of Residence

1980 1990 2000 2010 2015
West 42.7% 45.5% 43.4% 40.8% 40.0%
California 31.0% 34.6% 31.0% 27.8% 26.9%
South 30.6% 30.4% 32.8% 36.1% 36.9%
Texas 20.4% 19.6% 18.9% 18.8% 18.9%
Florida 5.7% 7.1% 7.6% 8.4% 8.8%
Northeast 17.9% 16.6% 14.9% 13.8% 14.0%
New York 11.4% 9.8% 8.1% 6.8% 6.6%
Midwest 8.7% 7.6% 8.9% 9.2% 9.1%
Illinois 4.4% 4.0% 4.3% 4.0% 3.8%



Source: Pew Research Center tabulations of 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990 and 2000 censuses and 2010 and 2015 American Community Surveys (IPUMS). Total foreign-born population estimates for 1960-2000 shown here may differ from other reported estimates since they are based on IPUMS data files (1% samples in 1960 and 1970 and 5% samples in 1980, 1990 and 2000), and are not based on U.S. Census Bureau population estimates.
“Statistical Portrait of the Foreign-Born Population in the United States, 1960-2015”