Hispanics and Latinos in Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is home to a large number of Hispanic and Latino residents. As of the 2020 Census, Hispanics and Latinos accounted for 12% of the total state's population (that is; 627,654 residents of Hispanic or Latino ethnic origin)

Starting in the 1960s, there was large influx of Hispanic immigrants to the state of Massachusetts mainly because of the economic opportunities the state has to offer. The Latino population in the state of Massachusetts continues to grow at a rapid rate.

Statistics[edit]

• Massachusetts is one of six states in the country that can attribute nearly all of its growth from 2000 to 2010 to the Hispanic population.^[1]
• 69% of Massachusetts' Hispanic population is native-born.^[2] This can be attributed to the large Puerto Rican population.
• The largest population of Puerto Ricans in the United States, per capita, is in Holyoke, Massachusetts, comprising 44.8% of all residents in the 2010 Census.^[3][4]
• Massachusetts ranks first in the nation (out of 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C.) for percentage of Hispanics of non-Mexican origin, with 94% of the Hispanic population being of non-Mexican origin.^[2]
• The median age for all Hispanics is 26; significantly lower than for non-Hispanic Whites (median age: 43). For native-born Hispanics, the median age is 20; for foreign-born Hispanics, the median age is 38.^[2]
• 33% of all Hispanic persons that were 15 years and older were married (26% for native-born Hispanics; 43% for foreign-born Hispanics); compared to 49% for non-Hispanic Whites and 33% for non-Hispanic Blacks.^[2]
• 41% of Hispanic youths were in poverty, compared to 8% for non-Hispanic White youths and 26% for non-Hispanic Black youths.^[2]
• 25% of Hispanic adults were in poverty, compared to 8% for non-Hispanic White adults and 19% for non-Hispanic Black adults.^[2]
• 10% of all Hispanics in Massachusetts are uninsured (6% for native-born Hispanics; 17% for foreign-born Hispanics); compared to 3% for non-Hispanic Whites and 8% for non-Hispanic Blacks.^[2]
• There were 149,000 Hispanics enrolled in K-12, accounting for 15% of all K-12 students.^[2]
• 22% of Hispanic persons age 5 and older spoke only English at home, while 78% of Hispanic persons age 5 and older spoke a language other than English at home.^[2]
• According to a 2019 projection conducted by Gaston Institute, by 2035, the Latino population in the state of Massachusetts will grow to over 1.15 million and will represent roughly 15.3 percent of the population. This projection also concludes that the Latinos already living in the state of Massachusetts will have more of an impact on the future population than will future immigrants.^[5]
• According to a 2019 Census provided by the Migration Policy Institute, there are estimated to be around 209,000 unauthorized immigrants in the state of Massachusetts. Of that 209,000, 20 percent of those unauthorized immigrants are born in Brazil. However, only 12 percent of that 209,000 live below the poverty line. ^[6] 

Hispanic or Latino by type[edit]

Hispanic or Latino by type[10]	Number
Total population	6,991,852	100.0%
Hispanic or Latino (of any race)	864,202	12.4%
Mexican	48,495	0.7%
Puerto Rican	332,682	4.8%
Cuban	16,354	0.2%
Dominican	172,759	2.5%
Central American	151,603	2.2%
Costa Rican	3,994	0.1%
Guatemalan	48,468	0.7%
Honduran	18,396	0.3%
Nicaraguan	2,285	0.0%
Panamanian	3,520	0.1%
Salvadoran	71,704	1.0%
Other Central American	3,236	0.0%
South American	87,838	1.3%
Argentine	5,444	0.1%
Bolivian	2,357	0.0%
Chilean	3,892	0.1%
Colombian	36,490	0.5%
Ecuadorian	17,148	0.2%
Paraguayan	741	0.0%
Peruvian	10,509	0.2%
Uruguayan	2,412	0.0%
Venezuelan	7,625	0.1%
Other South American	1,220	0.0%
Other Hispanic or Latino	54,471	0.8%
Spaniard	12,211	0.2%
Spanish	8,712	0.1%
Spanish American	292	0.0%
All other Hispanic or Latino	33,256	0.5%

Hispanic and Latino communities[edit]

The largest Hispanic and Latino communities in Massachusetts are as follow:^[11]

City	Total	Percent	Largest pop.	Number	Percent	2nd largest pop.	Number	Percent	3rd largest pop.	Number	Percent
Boston	133,332	19.8%	Dominican	38,960	5.8%	Puerto Rican	35,031	5.2%	Salvadoran	12,689	1.9%
Springfield	73,954	47.5%	Puerto Rican	60,357	38.7%	Dominican	5,600	3.6%	Mexican	1,501	1.0%
Lawrence	72,240	82.3%	Dominican	46,383	52.8%	Puerto Rican	16,974	19.3%	Guatemalan	3,199	3.6%
Worcester	48,666	23.9%	Puerto Rican	30,033	14.7%	Dominican	6,127	3.0%	Salvadoran	4,090	2.0%
Lynn	41,876	41.8%	Dominican	15,358	15.3%	Guatemalan	8,579	8.6%	Salvadoran	4,857	4.8%
Chelsea	26,439	66.1%	Salvadoran	10,680	26.7%	Honduran	3,406	8.5%	Guatemalan	3,375	8.4%
New Bedford	23,188	23.1%	Puerto Rican	12,204	12.2%	Guatemalan	2,591	2.6%	Dominican	2,306	2.3%
Revere	22,289	36.7%	Salvadoran	6,315	10.4%	Colombian	5,182	8.5%	Guatemalan	2,757	4.5%
Holyoke	20,506	53.3%	Puerto Rican	18,299	47.6%	Dominican	480	1.2%	Uruguayan	316	0.8%
Lowell	20,172	17.6%	Puerto Rican	12,204	10.6%	Dominican	3,110	2.7%	Colombian	1,356	1.2%
Haverhill	15,675	23.4%	Puerto Rican	6,486	9.7%	Dominican	5,520	8.2%	Colombian	865	1.3%
Methuen	15,256	29.0%	Dominican	8,956	17.0%	Puerto Rican	3,100	5.9%	Guatemalan	845	1.6%
Everett	14,807	30.6%	Salvadoran	7,400	15.3%	Puerto Rican	1,887	3.9%	Honduran	734	1.5%
Brockton	12,657	12.1%	Puerto Rican	6,144	5.9%	Ecuadorian	1,458	1.4%	Dominican	1,399	1.3%
Fitchburg	12,539	30.0%	Puerto Rican	9,261	22.2%	Mexican	762	1.8%	Uruguayan	684	1.6%
Chicopee	12,472	22.4%	Puerto Rican	11,081	19.9%	Dominican	294	0.5%	Salvadoran	182	0.3%
Framingham	12,068	16.7%	Puerto Rican	3,339	4.6%	Salvadoran	1,990	2.8%	Guatemalan	1,372	1.9%
Fall River	10,985	11.8%	Puerto Rican	7,180	7.7%	Dominican	1,095	1.2%	Honduran	446	0.5%
Cambridge	10,265	8.8%	Puerto Rican	2,446	2.1%	Mexican	1,487	1.3%	Dominican	894	0.8%
Somerville	9,877	12.3%	Salvadoran	3,108	3.9%	Mexican	1,058	1.3%	Puerto Rican	1,057	1.3%

References[edit]

Notes[edit]