U.S. Census data puts the number of millennials in the United States at roughly 72 million, surpassing Baby Boomers to make millennials America’s most-populous generation. While not as racially and ethnically diverse as the up-and-coming Generation Z, millennials are more diverse than the population as a whole, and increasingly so; according to the Pew Research Center, immigration is adding more numbers to the millennial population than it is to any other demographic group in the United States.
The ascendance of the millennial population is happening in tandem with the decline of America’s majority white population. According to U.S. Census data, about four out of 10 people in the United States identify as non-white, a proportion that has been increasing for decades. But the period from 2010 to 2020 marked America’s first-ever decade with both a decline in the white population proportion and a decline in absolute numbers. This means that all of the nation’s population growth over the past decade was attributed to racial and ethnic minorities.
America’s overall shift away from a majority-white country is all but certain. The U.S. Census forecasts that the United States will be “minority white” in the year 2045 with a demographic makeup of: 49.7% whites, 24.6% Hispanics or Latinos, 13.1% Blacks, 7.9% Asians, and 3.8% multiracial populations. America’s up-and-coming generations will be the most diverse in the nation’s history.
At the state level, diversity among the millennial population and among the general population track similarly. In 2020, data computed by the Census Bureau using a Diversity Index, which measures the probability that two randomly chosen people will be from different ethnic and racial groups, showed that Hawaii had an overall DI score of 76%, the highest among the states. Employing the same methodology to determine the makeup of the millennial population here, Hawaii also ranks the highest among U.S. states, with a DI score of 78.4% for millennials.
Hawaii was followed by Western states—California (69.7% overall, 69.1% millennial) and Nevada (68.8% overall, 69.1% millennial). The lowest collective DI scores—the states with the least amount of diversity—are found in a cohort of Northeastern states that includes New Hampshire (23.6% overall, 25.5% millennial), Vermont (20.2% overall, 19.9% millennial), and Maine (18.5% overall, 17.6% millennial). West Virginia and much of the Midwest and Mountain West also report some of the least diverse populations.
At the metro level, from 2010 to 2020, white population proportions declined in 381 of America’s 384 metropolitan areas, according to the Brookings Institution. And 2020 Census data shows there were minority-white populations in 32 of America’s 100 largest metropolitan areas, including New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, and Dallas. Among the 100 largest metropolitan areas, Honolulu, Hawaii had the highest DI score for millennials, 77.9%, followed by cohorts of urban locales that are spread out across the United States.
The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 ACS PUMS 5-Year Estimates. To determine the locations with the most diverse millennial populations, researchers at HireAHelper calculated a Simpson’s Diversity Index for the millennial population (aged 26–40 in 2020) using the demographic groups listed below.
The analysis found that Colorado has a DI score of 51.7% for its millennial population. Here is a summary of the data for Colorado:
- Diversity index: 51.7%
- Hispanic or Latino: 311,323
- White alone non-Hispanic: 903,151
- Black or African American alone non-Hispanic: 61,881
- American Indian and Alaska Native alone non-Hispanic: 7,395
- Asian alone non-Hispanic: 50,497
- Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone non-Hispanic: 1,735
- Some Other Race alone non-Hispanic: 2,882
- Multiracial non-Hispanic: 41,913
For reference, here are the statistics for the entire United States:
- Diversity index: 62.8%
- Hispanic or Latino: 14,683,791
- White alone non-Hispanic: 39,345,611
- Black or African American alone non-Hispanic: 9,452,537
- American Indian and Alaska Native alone non-Hispanic: 466,138
- Asian alone non-Hispanic: 4,827,317
- Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone non-Hispanic: 143,112
- Some Other Race alone non-Hispanic: 218,701
- Multiracial non-Hispanic: 1,957,067
For more information, a detailed methodology, and complete results,* you can find the original report on HireAHelper’s website: https://www.hireahelper.com/lifestyle/cities-with-the-most-diverse-millennial-population/
*Please interpret small numbers and/or zeros with caution. The data used in this study is derived from Census survey data, which due to chance, could miss individuals in small population groups.
