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Please note!
This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Is the US home to more immigrants than any other country?

By Eric Smith
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YES

The U.S. has by far the largest immigrant population in the world, at 48.2 million people, a fifth of all those who have settled outside their native country. Russia, with 11.6 million immigrants, is the next largest destination.

Mexico accounted for 25% of all foreign-born U.S. residents in 2018, with another 25% from Central and South America or the Caribbean. Another 28% were born in Asia, 9% in the Middle East and Africa, and 13% in Europe and Canada.

As a proportion of total population, immigrants make up just over 15% of the total U.S. population, similar to the level in the U.K. (13%) or Sweden (16%) but lower than in Canada (21%) or Australia (28%). The country with the largest proportion of immigrants in its total population is the United Arab Emirates at 87%.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
World Economic Forum: Which countries have the most immigrants?
Pew Research: Key findings about US immigrants
Migration Policy Institute: Maps of Immigrants and Emigrants Around the World
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.