U.S. Latinos by the Numbers

48.2 million: U.S. Latino population (includes residents of Puerto Rico).

15%: Part of the U.S. population that's Latino.

1 of 2: One of every two people added to the nation’s population between July 1, 2005, and July 1, 2006, was Latino. There were 1.4 million Latinos added to the population over the period.

3.4%: Percentage increase in the Latino population between July 1, 2005, and July 1, 2006, making it the fastest-growing minority group.

102.6 million: The projected Latino population of the U.S. as of July 1, 2050. A quarter of all U.S. residents will be Latino.

3rd: Ranking of the size of the U.S. Latino population worldwide. Only Brazil (183 million) and Mexico (109 million) have larger Latino populations than does the United States (48.2 million). Colombia is 4th with 44 million.

58%: The percentage of Latinos who are of Mexican background. Another 16.6 percent are of Puerto Rican background, with 3.2 percent Cuban, 2.7 percent Salvadoran and 2.4 percent Dominican. The remainder are other Central and South American.

27.4 years: Median age of the Latino population in 2006 (vs 36.4 years for the general population).

45%: The percentage of the Latino population that lives in California or Texas. California is home to 13.1 million Latinos, and Texas is home to 8.4 million.

15: The number of states with at least a half million Latino residents, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington.

44%: The percentage of New Mexico’s population that is Latino, the highest of any state. Latinos also make up more than a quarter of the population in California and Texas, at 36 percent each, and Arizona (29 percent).

4.7 million: The Latino population of Los Angeles County, Calif. — the largest of any county in the nation.

305,000: The increase in Texas’ Latino population between July 1, 2005, and July 1, 2006, which led all states. California (283,000), Florida (161,000) and Arizona (102,000) also recorded large increases.

22: Number of states in which Latinos are the largest minority group, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wyoming.

1.6 million: The number of Latino-owned businesses in 2002.

Triple: The rate of growth of Latino-owned businesses between 1997 and 2002 (31 percent) compared with the national average (10 percent) for all businesses.

$222 billion: Revenue generated by Latino-owned businesses in 2002, up 19 percent from
1997.

29,168: Number of Latino-owned firms with receipts of $1 million or more.

23%: Percentage of total population younger than 5 that was Latino as of July 1, 2006.

$35,967: The median income of Latino households in 2005.

21.8%: The poverty rate among Latinos in 2005.

59%: The percentage of Latinos 25 and older who had at least a high school education in 2006.

12%: The percentage of the Latino population 25 and older with a bachelor’s degree or higher in 2006.

3.1 million: The number of Latinos 18 and older who had at least a bachelor’s degree in 2006, up from 1.4 million a decade earlier.

68%: Percentage of Latinos 16 and older who are in the civilian labor force.

17%: The percentage of Latinos 16 or older who work in management, professional and related occupations.

77,700: Number of Latino chief executives. In addition, 49,200 physicians and surgeons; 53,700 teachers; 29,000 lawyers; and 3,300 news analysts, reporters and correspondents are Latino.

7.6 million: The number of Latino citizens who reported voting in the 2004 presidential election.

1.1 million: The number of Latino veterans of the U.S. armed forces.

SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau