The Common Languages of Each US State

Did you know America is one of the most linguistically diverse countries in the world? With over 350 languages spoken, 78.4% of Americans speak only English at home, while 21.6% use other languages.

Over 8% of the US population have limited English proficiency (LEP). Unfortunately, many industries often overlook this group of over 25 million people.

To bridge the gap, civil rights laws are pushing for better language access. Businesses and agencies that receive federal funding must now provide interpreters and translated materials to help people with limited English. Hospitals, for example, must translate vital documents into the 15 most common languages in their service areas.

As America's demographics shift, adapting to changing language needs is more important than ever. In this blog, we’ll explore the most common non-English languages in each US state.

Top Non-English Languages by State

Here are the top 15 languages spoken by Limited English Proficiency (LEP) populations in each U.S. state, along with the number of speakers.*

Alabama

1. Spanish or Spanish Creole – 75,000
2. Korean – 4,554
3. Chinese – 5,405
4. Vietnamese – 3,708
5. Arabic – 1,440
6. German – 1,411
7. French – 1,278
8. Gujarati – 888
9. Tagalog – 856
10. Hindi – 818
11. Laotian – 681
12. Russian – 586
13. Portuguese – 516
14. Turkish – 505
15. Japanese – 484

Alaska

1. Tagalog – 7,021
2. Spanish – 5,975
3. Korean – 2,219
4. Hmong – 1,944
5. Russian – 1,392
6. Samoan – 870
7. Chinese – 1,008
8. Laotian – 743
9. Japanese – 737
10. Ilocano – 535
11. Vietnamese – 516
12. Ukrainian – 505
13. Thai – 474
14. German – 247
15. Polish – 223

Arizona

1. Spanish – 457,022
2. Navajo – 20,627
3. Chinese – 14,028
4. Vietnamese – 12,996
5. Arabic – 7,166
6. Tagalog – 6,109
7. Korean – 4,759
8. French – 2,978
9. German – 2,896
10. Russian – 2,353
11. Japanese – 2,308
12. Persian – 2,262
13. Syriac – 2,110
14. Serbo-Croatian – 2,000
15. Thai – 1,779

Arkansas

1. Spanish – 68,847
2. Vietnamese – 3,088
3. Marshallese – 2,615
4. Chinese – 2,358
5. Laotian – 1,701
6. Tagalog – 1,074
7. Arabic – 986
8. German – 799
9. French – 670
10. Hmong – 574
11. Korean – 550
12. Portuguese – 442
13. Japanese – 432
14. Hindi – 376
15. Gujarati – 324

California

1. Spanish – 4,490,408
2. Chinese – 610,934
3. Vietnamese – 316,886
4. Tagalog – 260,443
5. Korean – 218,938
6. Armenian – 94,516
7. Persian – 74,437
8. Russian – 73,133
9. Japanese – 63,441
10. Arabic – 62,500
11. Panjabi – 53,335
12. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 41,476
13. Hmong – 34,953
14. Hindi – 31,256
15. Thai – 27,573

Colorado

1. Spanish – 226,453
2. Vietnamese – 12,078
3. Chinese – 10,489
4. Korean – 8,475
5. Russian – 6,405
6. Amharic – 4,200
7. Arabic – 4,093
8. German – 2,856
9. French – 2,528
10. Nepali – 2,095
11. Tagalog – 2,055
12. Japanese – 1,635
13. Cushite – 1,610
14. Persian – 1,280
15. Kru, Ibo, Yoruba – 1,220

Connecticut

1. Spanish – 156,861
2. Portuguese – 16,008
3. Polish – 15,109
4. Chinese – 13,409
5. Italian – 10,037
6. French – 7,501
7. French Creole – 5,567
8. Russian – 4,916
9. Vietnamese – 4,681
10. Arabic – 3,805
11. Korean – 3,535
12. Albanian – 3,295
13. Hindi – 2,930
14. Tagalog – 2,639
15. Greek – 2,242

Delaware

1. Spanish – 25,069
2. Chinese – 3,265
3. French Creole – 1,281
4. Gujarati – 1,104
5. French – 729
6. Korean – 709
7. Italian – 614
8. Vietnamese – 532
9. German – 491
10. Tagalog – 418
11. Hindi – 406
12. Urdu – 362
13. Arabic – 348
14. Telugu – 315
15. Dutch – 290

District of Columbia

1. Spanish – 17,465
2. Amharic – 2,475
3. Chinese – 2,070
4. French – 1,824
5. Tagalog – 627
6. Russian – 552
7. Portuguese – 475
8. Italian – 432
9. Vietnamese – 389
10. Kru, Ibo, Yoruba – 360
11. Bengali – 305
12. Japanese – 281
13. Korean – 240
14. Thai – 230
15. German – 217

Florida

1. Spanish – 1,640,329
2. French Creole – 172,555
3. Vietnamese – 35,602
4. Portuguese – 33,193
5. Chinese – 33,151
6. French – 29,811
7. Tagalog – 17,755
8. Russian – 16,572
9. Arabic – 15,490
10. Italian – 13,210
11. German – 11,442
12. Korean – 9,686
13. Polish – 9,020
14. Gujarati – 5,850
15. Thai – 5,259

Georgia

1. Spanish – 342,161
2. Vietnamese – 26,867
3. Korean – 25,239
4. Chinese – 23,196
5. Gujarati – 6,945
6. French – 6,923
7. Amharic – 5,585
8. Hindi – 5,381
9. French Creole – 5,169
10. Russian – 5,146
11. Arabic – 4,485
12. Portuguese – 3,623
13. Persian – 3,618
14. German – 3,394
15. Japanese – 3,114

Hawaii

1. Ilocano – 33,085
2. Tagalog – 31,449
3. Japanese – 21,288
4. Chinese – 19,649
5. Korean – 11,595
6. Spanish – 6,974
7. Vietnamese – 6,349
8. Samoan – 4,400
9. Marshallese – 3,840
10. Trukese – 3,410
11. Hawaiian – 3,010
12. Micronesian – 2,210
13. Bisayan – 1,640
14. Tongan – 1,515
15. Laotian – 1,362

Idaho

1. Spanish – 47,041
2. Chinese – 1,798
3. Serbo-Croatian – 815
4. Korean – 767
5. Vietnamese – 630
6. Arabic – 628
7. German – 588
8. Tagalog – 562
9. Russian – 481
10. French – 449
11. Japanese – 395
12. Romanian – 315
13. Sudan – 305
14. Persian – 296
15. Ukrainian – 245

Illinois

1. Spanish – 694,457
2. Polish – 90,066
3. Chinese – 52,736
4. Korean – 25,762
5. Tagalog – 23,742
6. Arabic – 19,749
7. Russian – 19,419
8. Gujarati – 17,728
9. Urdu – 12,001
10. Vietnamese – 11,973
11. Italian – 10,319
12. Hindi – 9,862
13. French – 8,435
14. Greek – 8,392
15. German – 7,481

Indiana

1. Spanish – 121,383
2. Chinese – 14,737
3. German – 7,565
4. Pennsylvanian Dutch – 4,600
5. Burmese – 4,320
6. Arabic – 3,783
7. Korean – 3,729
8. Vietnamese – 3,434
9. French – 2,835
10. Japanese – 2,679
11. Dutch – 2,595
12. Tagalog – 1,887
13. Russian – 1,759
14. Panjabi – 1,755
15. Hindi – 1,712

Iowa

1. Spanish – 49,357
2. Chinese – 6,025
3. Vietnamese – 4,552
4. Serbo-Croatian – 3,795
5. German – 2,624
6. Arabic – 2,213
7. Laotian – 1,997
8. Korean – 1,950
9. Hindi – 1,078
10. French – 937
11. Pennsylvanian Dutch – 875
12. Thai – 872
13. Tagalog – 789
14. Karen – 780
15. Russian – 614

Kansas

1. Spanish – 83,374
2. Vietnamese – 7,435
3. Chinese – 5,876
4. German – 2,202
5. Korean – 2,022
6. Laotian – 1,998
7. Arabic – 1,647
8. Tagalog – 1,223
9. Burmese – 830
10. French – 786
11. Japanese – 777
12. Russian – 748
13. Hmong – 590
14. Persian – 549
15. Swahili – 525

Kentucky

1. Spanish – 48,275
2. Chinese – 4,565
3. German – 3,138
4. Vietnamese – 3,076
5. Arabic – 3,004
6. Serbo-Croatian – 2,545
7. Japanese – 2,320
8. French – 1,914
9. Korean – 1,739
10. Pennsylvanian Dutch – 1,255
11. Nepali – 1,185
12. Cushite – 1,060
13. Russian – 875
14. Tagalog – 589
15. Bantu – 580

Louisiana

1. Spanish – 69,262
2. French – 17,467
3. Vietnamese – 15,024
4. Chinese – 5,462
5. Arabic – 2,460
6. Tagalog – 1,567
7. Korean – 1,271
8. Portuguese – 1,048
9. Laotian – 836
10. Japanese – 719
11. Urdu – 604
12. German – 562
13. Persian – 475
14. Russian – 470
15. Thai – 411

Maine

1. French – 8,381
2. Spanish – 2,583
3. Chinese – 1,490
4. Cushite – 1,285
5. Vietnamese – 1,191
6. Arabic – 880
7. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 567
8. Russian – 489
9. Tagalog – 486
10. German – 385
11. Thai – 307
12. Nilotic – 290
13. Korean – 221
14. Polish – 200
15. Japanese – 162

Maryland

1. Spanish – 174,142
2. Chinese – 29,766
3. Korean – 21,344
4. Vietnamese – 12,905
5. French – 12,695
6. Tagalog – 10,644
7. Russian – 8,713
8. Amharic – 7,435
9. Kru, Ibo, Yoruba – 5,605
10. Urdu – 5,456
11. Persian – 4,756
12. French Creole – 3,854
13. Portuguese – 3,496
14. Arabic – 3,363
15. Gujarati – 3,270

Massachusetts

1. Spanish – 219,004
2. Portuguese – 81,920
3. Chinese – 59,573
4. French Creole – 30,607
5. Vietnamese – 24,785
6. Russian – 15,633
7. Arabic – 13,726
8. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 12,262
9. French – 11,221
10. Italian – 10,022
11. Korean – 7,725
12. Greek – 6,453
13. Polish – 6,240
14. Hindi – 3,552
15. Gujarati – 3,543

Michigan

1. Spanish – 93,487
2. Arabic – 50,019
3. Chinese – 20,265
4. Syriac – 11,725
5. Vietnamese – 9,173
6. Albanian – 8,895
7. Korean – 8,479
8. Bengali – 7,110
9. Polish – 6,508
10. German – 6,385
11. Italian – 5,720
12. Japanese – 5,543
13. Russian – 5,107
14. Serbo-Croatian – 4,470
15. Tagalog – 4,453

Minnesota

1. Spanish – 83,799
2. Hmong – 24,584
3. Cushite – 18,500
4. Vietnamese – 13,241
5. Chinese – 9,922
6. Russian – 6,463
7. Laotian – 5,053
8. Amharic – 4,395
9. Karen – 4,045
10. German – 4,032
11. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 3,691
12. Arabic – 3,251
13. French – 3,187
14. Korean – 2,146
15. Tagalog – 1,800

Mississippi

1. Spanish – 28,414
2. Vietnamese – 3,687
3. Chinese – 2,298
4. French – 969
5. Arabic – 908
6. Choctaw – 800
7. Tagalog – 699
8. German – 696
9. Korean – 662
10. Gujarati – 419
11. Japanese – 273
12. Russian – 224
13. Panjabi – 190
14. Italian – 186
15. Hindi – 148

Missouri

1. Spanish – 54,023
2. Chinese – 10,426
3. Vietnamese – 7,399
4. Serbo-Croatian – 6,045
5. German – 5,476
6. Arabic – 4,383
7. Korean – 4,183
8. Russian – 3,831
9. French – 2,596
10. Tagalog – 2,067
11. Pennsylvanian Dutch – 1,685
12. Persian – 1,094
13. Cushite – 1,000
14. Portuguese – 938
15. Amharic – 915

Montana

1. Spanish – 3,129
2. German – 1,030
3. Chinese – 709
4. Japanese – 433
5. Tagalog – 312
6. French – 306
7. Russian – 266
8. Korean – 256
9. Arabic – 171
10. Thai – 132
11. Norwegian – 115
12. Vietnamese – 106
13. Ukrainian – 95
14. Pennsylvanian Dutch – 80
15. Italian – 56

Nebraska

1. Spanish – 57,612
2. Vietnamese – 4,973
3. Chinese – 2,504
4. Arabic – 2,161
5. Karen – 1,465
6. French – 1,244
7. Cushite – 1,110
8. German – 759
9. Korean – 728
10. Nepali – 715
11. Russian – 651
12. Laotian – 474
13. Kurdish – 410
14. Persian – 392
15. Japanese – 388

Nevada

1. Spanish – 229,155
2. Tagalog – 21,723
3. Chinese – 16,103
4. Korean – 6,342
5. Vietnamese – 5,068
6. Amharic – 3,915
7. Thai – 3,348
8. Japanese – 2,445
9. Arabic – 1,945
10. Russian – 1,757
11. French – 1,734
12. Persian – 1,344
13. Samoan – 1,315
14. German – 1,156
15. Ilocano – 795

New Hampshire

1. Spanish – 9,708
2. French – 4,372
3. Chinese – 2,621
4. Nepali – 1,550
5. Vietnamese – 1,338
6. Portuguese – 998
7. Greek – 713
8. Arabic – 664
9. Serbo-Croatian – 655
10. Indonesian – 565
11. Korean – 534
12. Russian – 500
13. French Creole – 353
14. Bantu – 345
15. Polish – 344

New Jersey

1. Spanish – 598,155
2. Chinese – 52,343
3. Korean – 41,424
4. Portuguese – 36,578
5. Gujarati – 29,495
6. Polish – 29,060
7. Italian – 23,336
8. Arabic – 22,488
9. Tagalog – 21,205
10. Russian – 18,816
11. French Creole – 18,642
12. Hindi – 14,913
13. Vietnamese – 12,659
14. French – 9,881
15. Urdu – 8,280

New Mexico

1. Spanish – 152,981
2. Navajo – 10,292
3. Vietnamese – 2,727
4. German – 1,488
5. Chinese – 2,205
6. Arabic – 766
7. Korean – 717
8. Tagalog – 697
9. Japanese – 563
10. French – 548
11. Italian – 390
12. Russian – 319
13. Hindi – 275
14. Persian – 271
15. Thai – 238

New York

1. Spanish – 1,240,490
2. Chinese – 350,976
3. Russian – 130,296
4. French Creole – 68,509
5. Korean – 61,833
6. Italian – 58,200
7. Yiddish – 53,052
8. Bengali – 48,980
9. Polish – 40,883
10. Arabic – 36,053
11. French – 32,900
12. Urdu – 29,109
13. Tagalog – 22,095
14. Greek – 19,521
15. Albanian – 17,010

North Carolina

1. Spanish – 329,155
2. Chinese – 14,502
3. Vietnamese – 14,257
4. Korean – 7,473
5. French – 6,338
6. Arabic – 5,494
7. Hmong – 3,804
8. Russian – 3,420
9. Tagalog – 3,339
10. Gujarati – 3,338
11. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 2,607
12. German – 2,578
13. Hindi – 2,428
14. Laotian – 2,346
15. Japanese – 2,335

North Dakota

1. Spanish – 1,984
2. German – 1,452
3. Chinese – 807
4. Cushite – 685
5. Vietnamese – 497
6. Bantu – 410
7. Arabic – 331
8. Swahili – 245
9. Russian – 243
10. Japanese – 210
11. Nepali – 190
12. French – 184
13. Korean – 181
14. Tagalog – 173
15. Norwegian – 170

Ohio

1. Spanish – 88,196
2. Chinese – 20,651
3. German – 13,583
4. Arabic – 12,864
5. Pennsylvanian Dutch – 10,900
6. Russian – 8,141
7. French – 6,525
8. Vietnamese – 6,438
9. Cushite – 5,820
10. Korean – 5,516
11. Italian – 4,766
12. Japanese – 4,709
13. Dutch – 4,255
14. Ukrainian – 3,735
15. Romanian – 3,055

Oklahoma

1. Spanish – 104,866
2. Vietnamese – 9,131
3. Chinese – 4,498
4. Korean – 2,267
5. German – 1,477
6. Arabic – 1,403
7. Burmese – 1,110
8. Hmong – 1,084
9. Tagalog – 1,003
10. French – 906
11. Laotian – 881
12. Thai – 739
13. Urdu – 698
14. Cherokee – 695
15. Persian – 694

Oregon

1. Spanish – 140,093
2. Vietnamese – 15,643
3. Chinese – 13,886
4. Russian – 9,547
5. Korean – 5,322
6. Ukrainian – 3,065
7. Japanese – 3,036
8. Arabic – 2,610
9. Romanian – 2,350
10. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 1,666
11. Cushite – 1,580
12. German – 1,459
13. Persian – 1,342
14. French – 1,241
15. Thai – 1,208

Pennsylvania

1. Spanish – 215,529
2. Chinese – 43,089
3. Vietnamese – 23,912
4. Russian – 17,418
5. Pennsylvanian Dutch – 16,510
6. Korean – 14,783
7. Italian – 12,079
8. Arabic – 11,150
9. French – 9,751
10. German – 9,444
11. Gujarati – 7,231
12. Polish – 7,030
13. French Creole – 6,849
14. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 6,820
15. Portuguese – 5,087

Rhode Island

1. Spanish – 48,872
2. Portuguese – 12,291
3. Chinese – 3,616
4. French Creole – 2,610
5. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 2,397
6. French – 1,922
7. Italian – 1,739
8. Laotian – 1,387
9. Arabic – 1,259
10. Russian – 930
11. Vietnamese – 808
12. Kru, Ibo, Yoruba – 795
13. Polish – 766
14. Korean – 652
15. Tagalog – 620

South Carolina

1. Spanish – 91,878
2. Chinese – 5,355
3. Vietnamese – 3,766
4. Korean – 2,446
5. French – 2,187
6. Tagalog – 2,108
7. Russian – 1,945
8. German – 1,712
9. Gujarati – 1,575
10. Arabic – 1,531
11. Portuguese – 1,248
12. Japanese – 1,134
13. Ukrainian – 940
14. Hindi – 647
15. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 596

South Dakota

1. Spanish – 6,600
2. German – 972
3. Chinese – 820
4. Karen – 750
5. Vietnamese – 455
6. Nepali – 370
7. Serbo-Croatian – 325
8. Amharic – 315
9. Sudanic – 315
10. Tagalog – 277
11. Korean – 252
12. Russian – 250
13. Cushite – 240
14. Ukrainian – 235
15. French – 205

Tennessee

1. Spanish – 111,267
2. Arabic – 7,880
3. Chinese – 6,462
4. Vietnamese – 6,361
5. Korean – 3,969
6. French – 2,544
7. Laotian – 2,418
8. Amharic – 1,995
9. German – 1,895
10. Gujarati – 1,825
11. Japanese – 1,814
12. Tagalog – 1,635
13. Hindi – 1,346
14. Russian – 1,319
15. Persian – 1,224

Texas

1. Spanish – 2,966,475
2. Vietnamese – 115,640
3. Chinese – 71,139
4. Korean – 30,852
5. Arabic – 22,002
6. Urdu – 18,041
7. Tagalog – 17,982
8. French – 12,673
9. Hindi – 12,656
10. Persian – 11,610
11. German – 10,664
12. Gujarati – 9,864
13. Russian – 7,004
14. Japanese – 6,620
15. Laotian – 5,709

Utah

1. Spanish – 99,208
2. Chinese – 5,825
3. Vietnamese – 4,190
4. Korean – 1,835
5. Navajo – 1,450
6. Nepali – 1,405
7. Tongan – 1,330
8. Serbo-Croatian – 1,330
9. Tagalog – 1,319
10. German – 1,289
11. Russian – 1,287
12. Arabic – 1,225
13. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 1,152
14. French – 1,132
15. Japanese – 1,127

Vermont

1. French – 1,583
2. Spanish – 1,501
3. Chinese – 777
4. Vietnamese – 672
5. Nepali – 570
6. Serbo-Croatian – 455
7. German – 309
8. Cushite – 275
9. Italian – 146
10. Arabic – 144
11. Russian – 141
12. Tagalog – 136
13. Portuguese – 128
14. Japanese – 117
15. Thai – 115

Virginia

1. Spanish – 217,843
2. Korean – 30,193
3. Vietnamese – 25,813
4. Chinese – 23,706
5. Arabic – 13,844
6. Tagalog – 12,976
7. Persian – 9,316
8. Amharic – 8,550
9. Urdu – 8,094
10. French – 6,755
11. Russian – 5,332
12. Hindi – 4,552
13. German – 4,056
14. Bengali – 4,000
15. Kru, Ibo, Yoruba – 3,805

Washington

1. Spanish – 232,748
2. Chinese – 42,812
3. Vietnamese – 38,432
4. Korean – 27,088
5. Russian – 25,421
6. Tagalog – 19,128
7. Ukrainian – 12,555
8. Mon-Khmer, Cambodian – 9,046
9. Japanese – 9,016
10. Amharic – 7,590
11. Cushite – 6,965
12. Arabic – 6,417
13. Panjabi – 6,145
14. German – 3,863
15. Laotian – 3,712

West Virginia

1. Spanish – 6,677
2. Chinese – 1,534
3. French – 711
4. German – 668
5. Arabic – 654
6. Vietnamese – 592
7. Korean – 369
8. Japanese – 346
9. Tagalog – 336
10. Italian – 193
11. Thai – 185
12. Nepali – 165
13. Persian – 149
14. Russian – 94
15. Urdu – 85

Wisconsin

1. Spanish – 103,190
2. Hmong – 17,202
3. Chinese – 8,142
4. German – 6,583
5. Arabic – 2,816
6. Russian – 2,482
7. Korean – 2,398
8. Vietnamese – 2,151
9. Pennsylvanian Dutch – 1,970
10. Laotian – 1,767
11. French – 1,678
12. Polish – 1,666
13. Hindi – 1,472
14. Albanian – 1,460
15. Tagalog – 1,336

Wyoming

1. Spanish – 7,924
2. Chinese – 525
3. German – 233
4. Tagalog – 229
5. French – 134
6. Korean – 126
7. Vietnamese – 98
8. Italian – 71
9. Russian – 63
10. Indonesian – 55
11. Japanese – 55
12. Nepali – 55
13. Persian – 52
14. Gujarati – 40
15. Navajo – 39

About the State Language Data*

The language data in this article is sourced from cms.gov, an official government website. 

For additional insight on state and local languages, we recommend these resources: 

• Interactive 2015 Language Map App by LEP.gov (Instructions)
• How to Use data.census.gov to Identify Language Needs by the American Translators Association

If you have any questions about federal language access laws for your industry, contact the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) or your state government. 

Looking Ahead

Embracing the linguistic diversity of the United States is essential for businesses, healthcare providers, and agencies. Offering multilingual services not only bridges communication gaps but also builds trust and fosters inclusivity within diverse communities. For digital marketers, understanding the most spoken languages in each region enables more targeted and impactful messaging.

Translation isn't just a "nice-to-have" anymore—it's a necessity. By translating your website and digital content, you expand your reach, enhance user experience, and increase engagement with non-English-speaking audiences both in the U.S. and worldwide. For industries like healthcare, SaaS, and ecommerce, this means building stronger customer relationships, and staying ahead of competitors, and complying with federal language access laws. 

Now is the perfect time to future-proof your business by embracing translation. Whether you're a healthcare provider or a tech startup, Localize can help you translate websites and apps across industries, allowing you to serve all communities effectively and inclusively.