Gay people in america
LGBT Populations
This map shows the estimated raw number of LGBT people (ages 13+) living in each state. The statistics are based on a Williams Institute analysis of surveys conducted by Gallup Polling () and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC; and YRBS). For more information, see the methodology in the Williams analysis.
K - M+
K - K
50K - K
8K - 49K
Data are not currently on hand about LGBT people living in the U.S. territories.
Percent of Mature person LGBTQ Population Covered by Laws
*Note: These percentages show estimates of the LGBTQ individual population living in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Estimates of the LGBTQ adult population in the five inhabited U.S. territories are not available, and so cannot be reflected here.
This map shows the estimated percentage of each state's adult (ages 18+) population that identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or gender diverse, based on a analysis of Gallup data by The Williams Institute.
% and greater
%%
%%
%%
Percent of Grown-up LGBTQ Popula We Are Here: LGBTQ+ Adult Population in United States Reaches At Least 20 Million, According to Human Rights Campaign Foundation Describe
by Laurel Powell •
According to an analysis of numbers in the Census Bureau’s recent Domestic Pulse Survey, 8% of respondents identified themselves as Queer, suggesting previous surveys undercounted the population.
WASHINGTON -- Today, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC) released “We Are Here: Understanding the Size of the Homosexual Community,” a inform analyzing recent results from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Domestic Pulse Survey. Based on data from respondents in the Household Pulse Survey, a national domesticated probability survey of adults in the United States, at least 20 million adults in the United States could be lesbian, lgbtq+, bisexual, or gender nonconforming - nearly 8% of the total adult population, almost double prior estimates for the Queer community’s size. It also suggests that more than 1% of people in the United States identify as trans, higher than any prior estimates. Additionally, it confirms prior research showin
LGBTQ Rights
The ACLU has a long history of defending the LGBTQ community. We brought our first LGBTQ rights case in Founded in , the Jon L. Stryker and Slobodan Randjelović LGBTQ & HIV Project brings more LGBTQ rights cases and activism initiatives than any other national organization does and has been counsel in seven of the nine LGBTQ rights cases that the U.S. Supreme Court has decided. With our reach into the courts and legislatures of every state, there is no other organization that can match our record of making progress both in the courts of regulation and in the court of public opinion.
The ACLU’s current priorities are to end discrimination, harassment and violence toward transgender people, to close gaps in our federal and express civil rights laws, to prevent protections against discrimination from being undermined by a license to discriminate, and to protect LGBTQ people in and from the criminal legal system.
Need help?
fill out our confidential online form
For non-LGBTQ issues, please contact your local ACLU affiliate.
The ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual Non-binary Pro
Adult LGBT Population in the United States
This report provides estimates of the number and percent of the U.S. adult population that identifies as LGBT, overall, as well as by age. Estimates of LGBT adults at the national, state, and regional levels are included. We rely on BRFSS data for these estimates. Pooling multiple years of data provides more stable estimates—particularly at the state level.
Combining BRFSS data, we estimate that % of U.S. adults identify as LGBT. Further, we estimate that there are almost million (13,,) LGBT adults in the U.S.
Regions and States
LGBT people reside in all regions of the U.S. (Table 2 and Figure 2). Consistent with the overall population in the Merged States,more LGBT adults inhabit in the South than in any other region. More than half (%) of LGBT people in the U.S. live in the Midwest (%) and South (%), including million in the Midwest and million in the South. About one-quarter (%) of LGBT adults reside in the West, approximately million people. Less than one in five (%) LGBT adults live in the Northeast ( million).
The perce
We Are Here: LGBTQ+ Adult Population in United States Reaches At Least 20 Million, According to Human Rights Campaign Foundation Describe
by Laurel Powell •
According to an analysis of numbers in the Census Bureau’s recent Domestic Pulse Survey, 8% of respondents identified themselves as Queer, suggesting previous surveys undercounted the population.
WASHINGTON -- Today, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC) released “We Are Here: Understanding the Size of the Homosexual Community,” a inform analyzing recent results from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Domestic Pulse Survey. Based on data from respondents in the Household Pulse Survey, a national domesticated probability survey of adults in the United States, at least 20 million adults in the United States could be lesbian, lgbtq+, bisexual, or gender nonconforming - nearly 8% of the total adult population, almost double prior estimates for the Queer community’s size. It also suggests that more than 1% of people in the United States identify as trans, higher than any prior estimates. Additionally, it confirms prior research showin
LGBTQ Rights
The ACLU has a long history of defending the LGBTQ community. We brought our first LGBTQ rights case in Founded in , the Jon L. Stryker and Slobodan Randjelović LGBTQ & HIV Project brings more LGBTQ rights cases and activism initiatives than any other national organization does and has been counsel in seven of the nine LGBTQ rights cases that the U.S. Supreme Court has decided. With our reach into the courts and legislatures of every state, there is no other organization that can match our record of making progress both in the courts of regulation and in the court of public opinion.
The ACLU’s current priorities are to end discrimination, harassment and violence toward transgender people, to close gaps in our federal and express civil rights laws, to prevent protections against discrimination from being undermined by a license to discriminate, and to protect LGBTQ people in and from the criminal legal system.
Need help?
fill out our confidential online form
For non-LGBTQ issues, please contact your local ACLU affiliate.
The ACLU Lesbian Gay Bisexual Non-binary Pro
Adult LGBT Population in the United States
This report provides estimates of the number and percent of the U.S. adult population that identifies as LGBT, overall, as well as by age. Estimates of LGBT adults at the national, state, and regional levels are included. We rely on BRFSS data for these estimates. Pooling multiple years of data provides more stable estimates—particularly at the state level.
Combining BRFSS data, we estimate that % of U.S. adults identify as LGBT. Further, we estimate that there are almost million (13,,) LGBT adults in the U.S.
Regions and States
LGBT people reside in all regions of the U.S. (Table 2 and Figure 2). Consistent with the overall population in the Merged States,more LGBT adults inhabit in the South than in any other region. More than half (%) of LGBT people in the U.S. live in the Midwest (%) and South (%), including million in the Midwest and million in the South. About one-quarter (%) of LGBT adults reside in the West, approximately million people. Less than one in five (%) LGBT adults live in the Northeast ( million).
The perce