The demographics of Chicago show that it is a very large ethnically and culturally diverse metropolis. It is the third largest city and metropolitan area in the United States by population. Chicago was home to over 2.7 million people in 2020, accounting for over 25% of the population in the Chicago metropolitan area, home to approximately 9.6 million.
The racial makeup of the city in 2020 was 35.9% White, 29.2% Black, 7.0% Asian, 0.1% Native American or Alaska Native, 10.8% from two or more races, and 15.8% from some other race. The ethnic makeup of the population is 29.8% Hispanic or Latino, with 70.2% belonging to a non-Hispanic or Latino background. English is the primary language of the city. Christianity is the predominant faith.
During its first century as a city, Chicago grew at a rate that ranked among the fastest growing in the world. Within the span of forty years, the city's population grew from slightly under 30,000 to over 1 million by 1890. By the close of the 19th century, Chicago was the fifth largest city in the world, eventually growing to become the third largest city in the world by 1933. Within fifty years of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, the population had tripled to over 3 million. The city's population peaked in the 1950 Census, although the city saw moderate growth in the 2000 and 2020 Censuses.
Population
In the 2010 United States census, there were 2,695,598 people and 1,194,337 households residing within the city limits of Chicago. More than half the population of the state of Illinois lives in the Chicago metropolitan area. The 2000 United States census had shown the population density of the city itself was 12,750.3 people per square mile (4,923.0/km<sup>2</sup>), making it one of the nation's most densely populated cities. There were 1,152,868 housing units at an average density of 5,075.8 per square mile (1,959.8/km<sup>2</sup>).
Of the 1,061,928 households in the 2000 census, 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.1% were married couples living together, 18.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.4% were non-families. The median income for a household in the city was $38,625 in 2000, and the median income for a family was $46,748. Males had a median income of $35,907 versus $30,536 for females. Below the poverty line were 19.6% of the population and 16.6% of the families.
Racial and ethnic makeup
2020 census
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+Chicago, Illinois – Racial and ethnic composition<br /><small></small>
!Race / Ethnicity <small>(NH = Non-Hispanic)</small>
!Pop 1970
!Pop 1980
!Pop 1990
!Pop 2000
!Pop 2010
!
!% 1970
!% 1980
!% 1990
!% 2000
!% 2010
!
|-
|White alone (NH)
|2,207,767
|1,299,557
|1,063,281
|907,166
|854,717
|style='background: #ffffe6; |863,622
|65.57%
|43.25%
|38.20%
|31.32%
|31.71%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |31.45%
|-
|Black or African American alone (NH)
|1,102,620
|1,187,905
|1,076,099
|1,053,739
|872,286
|style='background: #ffffe6; |787,551
|32.75%
|39.53%
|38.66%
|36.39%
|32.36%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |28.68%
|-
|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)
|x
|6,072
|5,370
|4,253
|4,097
|style='background: #ffffe6; |3,332
|x
|0.20%
|0.19%
|0.15%
|0.15%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.12%
|-
|Asian alone (NH)
|36,262
|68,347
|99,252
|124,437
|144,903
|style='background: #ffffe6; |189,857
|1.08%
|2.27%
|3.57%
|4.30%
|5.38%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |6.91%
|-
|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)
|x
|844
|1,046
|972
|557
|style='background: #ffffe6; |529
|x
|0.03%
|0.04%
|0.03%
|0.02%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.02%
|-
|Other race alone (NH)
|20,308
|20,284
|3,363
|4,331
|4,227
|style='background: #ffffe6; |11,536
|0.60%
|0.67%
|0.12%
|0.15%
|0.16%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.42%
|-
|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)
|x
|x
|x
|47,474
|35,949
|style='background: #ffffe6; |70,443
|x
|x
|x
|1.64%
|1.33%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |2.56%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|x
|422,063
|535,315
|753,644
|778,862
|style='background: #ffffe6; |819,518
|x
|14.05%
|19.23%
|26.02%
|28.89%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |29.84%
|-
|Total
|3,366,957
|3,005,072
|2,783,726
|2,896,016
|2,695,598
|style='background: #ffffe6; |2,746,388
|100.00%
|100.00%
|100.00%
|100.00%
|100.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%
|}
2024 United States Census Bureau American Community Survey one-year estimates
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