Number of African American People in the United States

In this article, we will explore the demographic data of African American people in the United States, and look at historical data to see whether the African American population is growing or declining.

First, let's take a look at the population of African American people in the United States for the last 6 years.

Total U.S. African American Population

Population Year
41,227,384 2020
41,234,642 2019
40,916,113 2018
40,610,815 2017
40,241,818 2016
39,908,095 2015

The table above shows that between 2015 and 2020 the total African American population has increased by 1,319,289 people.

If this growth were to continue at the same rate, the total population of African American people by 2025 could be 42,546,673.

Total U.S. African American Population By State

We can also look at the data for African American people in each individual state and whether the African American population increased or decreased between 2015 and 2020.

For more details on the historical population figures for each state, click the link in the table below.

State 2015 2020 Change (%)
Alabama 1,276,544 1,301,319 1.94%
Alaska 25,022 23,894 -4.51%
Arizona 281,576 325,105 15.46%
Arkansas 459,748 457,840 -0.42%
California 2,265,387 2,250,962 -0.64%
Colorado 213,787 235,692 10.25%
Connecticut 370,501 382,161 3.15%
Delaware 200,481 212,795 6.14%
District of Columbia 316,447 318,631 0.69%
Florida 3,171,108 3,381,061 6.62%
Georgia 3,096,757 3,319,844 7.20%
Hawaii 28,688 26,717 -6.87%
Idaho 9,900 11,536 16.53%
Illinois 1,846,108 1,796,660 -2.68%
Indiana 603,014 631,923 4.79%
Iowa 97,788 117,035 19.68%
Kansas 168,402 165,837 -1.52%
Kentucky 347,034 361,230 4.09%
Louisiana 1,484,363 1,500,633 1.10%
Maine 15,037 18,635 23.93%
Maryland 1,750,916 1,803,128 2.98%
Massachusetts 478,947 513,369 7.19%
Michigan 1,381,388 1,360,149 -1.54%
Minnesota 299,176 359,817 20.27%
Mississippi 1,116,457 1,123,545 0.63%
Missouri 697,022 698,043 0.15%
Montana 4,757 5,919 24.43%
Nebraska 88,195 91,896 4.20%
Nevada 235,721 282,722 19.94%
New Hampshire 17,439 21,045 20.68%
New Jersey 1,202,300 1,189,681 -1.05%
New Mexico 43,738 43,476 -0.60%
New York 3,070,392 3,002,401 -2.21%
North Carolina 2,115,338 2,217,522 4.83%
North Dakota 11,872 23,959 101.81%
Ohio 1,412,045 1,442,655 2.17%
Oklahoma 278,571 287,856 3.33%
Oregon 72,837 79,117 8.62%
Pennsylvania 1,403,143 1,419,582 1.17%
Puerto Rico 301,519 367,906 22.02%
Rhode Island 68,243 69,196 1.40%
South Carolina 1,315,058 1,346,560 2.40%
South Dakota 13,133 18,836 43.42%
Tennessee 1,091,070 1,128,806 3.46%
Texas 3,152,917 3,464,424 9.88%
Utah 31,909 38,059 19.27%
Vermont 6,949 7,964 14.61%
Virginia 1,589,345 1,620,649 1.97%
Washington 253,224 290,245 14.62%
West Virginia 61,367 64,285 4.75%
Wisconsin 360,792 367,889 1.97%
Wyoming 6,142 5,079 -17.31%

Data Source(s)

All of the data on this page is sourced from the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, from the United States Census Bureau. The latest year for the ACS is currently .

Link To or Reference This Page

We spent a lot of time downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

  • "Number of African American People in the United States". NameCensus.com. Accessed on March 19, 2024. https://namecensus.com/ancestry/african-american/.

  • "Number of African American People in the United States". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/ancestry/african-american/. Accessed 19 March, 2024

  • Number of African American People in the United States. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from https://namecensus.com/ancestry/african-american/.