Most & Least Ethnically Diverse Cities in the U.S. (2026)

The U.S. today is a vibrant melting pot of cultures, driven by growing ethnic and racial diversity. If this trend continues, America is expected to be more diverse than ever by 2045, when, for the first time, no single ethnic group will make up a majority of the population.

However, with immigration reform remaining a contentious issue, the nation’s ethnic makeup could shift again in the coming years. Against this backdrop—and amid ongoing conversations about racial and ethnic equality—WalletHub analyzed America’s current cultural landscape by comparing more than 500 of the largest U.S. cities across three key measures of ethnic diversity. Each city was evaluated based on residents’ race and ethnicity, language, and birthplace.

Most Ethnically Diverse Cities

1. Germantown, MD
2. Jersey City, NJ
3. Gaithersburg, MD
4. Silver Spring, MD
5. Federal Way, WA

“Living in an ethnically diverse city can be an economic benefit, as people bring a wide range of skillsets and approaches to solving problems from their own cultures and national origins. Residents can also establish unique types of businesses, such as restaurants serving cultural dishes. People who live in ethnically diverse cities have the opportunity to learn a lot about people different from themselves, which is not only an enriching experience but also a good way to break down walls of prejudice.”

Chip Lupo, WalletHub Analyst

Main Findings

Most Culturally Diverse Cities in the U.S.

Note: With the exception of “Ethnic Diversity Score,” the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of each city, where a rank of 1 represents the best conditions for that category.

In-Depth Look at the Most Ethnically Diverse Cities

Germantown, MD

You might not expect a place named “Germantown” to be very diverse, but this Maryland city is actually the most ethnically diverse place to live in the U.S. The city is split close to equally among the major ethnic groups: over 23% of the population is White, 27% is Black, 23% is Hispanic and 21% is Asian.

When it comes to language, nearly 52% of the population speaks only English at home. Of the rest, 19% speak Spanish, 11% speak other Indo-European languages, and 13% speak Asian or Pacific Islander languages.

While Germantown is the most racially diverse city and has the fifth-most language diversity, it ranks 100th when it comes to birthplace diversity. However, that’s still in the top 20% of the more than 500 cities in our study.

Jersey City, NJ

Jersey City, NJ, ranks second for ethnic diversity. In Jersey City, white people are actually not the largest ethnic group, unlike in the country as a whole. Asians make up the largest ethnic group in the city, at over 26%, while Hispanics are nearly 26% of the population, white people are 23%, and Black people are 19%.

Many people in Jersey City speak foreign languages at home, which shows that people are preserving and passing down their cultures. Less than half of the population (49%) only speaks English at home, while 19% speak Spanish, 15% speak other Indo-European languages, and 12% speak Asian or Pacific Islander languages.

Fun fact – the Statue of Liberty is technically located within the bounds of Jersey City, even though New York City has jurisdiction over it. It’s no wonder that Jersey City is so diverse considering that it’s the home of this monument dedicated to welcoming immigrants.

Gaithersburg, MD

Gaithersburg, MD is the third-most ethnically diverse city in the U.S., with around 30% of its residents being white, 31% being Hispanic, 15% being Black and 20% being Asian. For comparison, the U.S. as a whole is around 59% White, 19% Hispanic, 12% Black and 6% Asian, so there’s still quite a big difference, even if the numbers aren’t as evenly split as the other top cities.

Gaithersburg also has rich diversity when it comes to the languages people speak. Just 46% of the population speaks only English at home. Around 25% speak Spanish at home, 11% speak other Indo-European languages, and 14% speak Asian or Pacific Islander languages.

Over 44% of Gaithersburg’s population are immigrants born outside of the U.S., and more than 28% were born in the U.S. in states other than Maryland. While those may seem like high percentages, Gaithersburg still only ranks 123rd among the more than 500 cities in our study when it comes to birthplace diversity.

Ratio – Over Time

Birthplaces of Population as of 2024

*Also includes persons born abroad to American parents.

Concentrations by Category

Ranking by City Size

Ask the Experts

Ethnic diversity brings about both benefits and challenges. For more insight, we asked a panel of experts to weigh in with their thoughts on the following key questions:

1. What are the main benefits of living in an ethnically diverse city?
2. What does it mean for residents when a city’s ethnic composition changes rapidly?
3. What are some tips for managing a culturally diverse workplace?
4. Younger generations in the U.S. are the most ethnically diverse yet. What impact do you think the increasingly diverse demographic makeup will have on the economy?
5. What kinds of programs should state and local governments develop in order to promote the benefits of cultural diversity?

Ask the Experts

Colleen Wynn
Ph.D. – Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Sociology; Co-Director, Community Research Center - University of Indianapolis
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Kevin Lang
Laurence A. Bloom Professor of Economics - Boston University
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Deana A. Rohlinger
Ph.D. – Mildred and Claude Pepper Distinguished Professor of Sociology; FSU Associate Dean, College of Social Sciences and Public Policy - Florida State University
Read More

Jaclyn S. Piatak
Ph.D. | Professor - UNC Charlotte | Political Science & Public Administration
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Horace R. Hall
Ph.D. – Professor in the departments of Teacher Education, Critical Ethnic Studies, and African Black Diaspora, College of Education – DePaul University
Read More

Brad R. Fulton
Ph.D. – Associate Professor, O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs – Indiana University
Read More

More Experts

Methodology

In order to determine the most ethnically diverse places in America, WalletHub compared 501 of the most populated U.S. cities across three key metrics: 1) Ethnoracial Diversity, 2) Linguistic Diversity and 3) Birthplace Diversity. Our data set, each metric’s subcomponents and its corresponding weight are listed below. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with 100 representing the most ethnic diversity.

We then determined the city's weighted average across all metrics to calculate its “Ethnic Diversity Score” and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.

Each city in our sample refers to the city proper and excludes the surrounding metro area. We limited our sample to no more than 10 cities from each state and categorized them according to the following population sizes:

• Large city: More than 300,000 people
• Midsize city: 100,000 to 300,000 people
• Small city: Fewer than 100,000 people

This analysis was conducted using the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index method, which is a commonly accepted measurement of market concentration that also works effectively as a general-purpose measure of diversity.

Ethnoracial Diversity: Total Points - 50.00

• Hispanic or Latino
• White (not Hispanic or Latino)
• Black or African American (not Hispanic or Latino)
• Asian (not Hispanic or Latino)
• All Others (American Indian and Alaska native; native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander; some other race alone; two or more races) (but not Hispanic or Latino)

Linguistic Diversity: Total Points - 33.33

• English
• Spanish
• Other Indo-European Languages
• Asian & Pacific Islander Languages
• Other Languages

Birthplace Diversity: Total Points - 16.67

• In State of Residence
• Northeast Region
• Midwest Region
• South Region
• West Region
• U.S. Territory & Abroad (if born to American parent(s))
• Foreign Nation

 
Sources: Data used to create this ranking were obtained as of January 29, 2026 from the U.S. Census Bureau.

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