This data brief, produced by the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute research team, provides detailed information on Georgia’s Latino population using the 2015-19 American Community Survey data.

1. Latinos are the third-largest racial and ethnic group in Georgia at 10% of the population (Figure 1), compared to 18% of the national share of Latinos. Latinos are the second largest contributor to the state’s population growth since 2010, after Black Georgians (40%), accounting for 20% of the increase.

Figure 1: Georgia Population by Race/Ethnicity, 2019

Source: LPPI analysis of 2015-19 5-year American Community Survey public use microdata.

2. Latinos in Georgia are very young. With a median age of 26, the Latino population is the youngest of all major racial groups and significantly younger than Georgians (36). Over 20% of Latinos in Georgia are children ages 0 to 10—compared with less than 15% of Georgia’s population—while less than 10% of Latinos are aged 61 and older (vs. roughly 20% of Georgia overall).

3. More than half of Latinos in Georgia are Mexican (57%), less than the national average of 62%, and much lower than Western and Southwest states. Puerto Ricans (10%), South Americans (8%), Guatemalans (6%), and Salvadorans (5%) close out the top five Latino ancestry groups in Georgia.

4. Georgia’s Latinos have lower education levels than the Georgia average and Latinos nationally. Thirty-eight percent of Latinos in Georgia did not complete high school, a rate slightly higher than Latinos nationally (31%) but much higher than the state overall (13%). Among Latino sub-groups, 69% of Guatemalans didn’t finish high school, versus only 11% of Puerto Ricans and 9% of South Americans.

5. Latinas in Georgia have higher educational attainment than Latino men, but both groups have lower attainment of postsecondary degrees than every other major demographic group (Figure 2). Twenty-six percent of Latinas completed an associate degree or higher, compared to 20% of Latino men.

Figure 2: Population with an Associate Degree or Higher by Race/Ethnicity and Gender, 2019

Source: LPPI analysis of 2015-19 5-year American Community Survey public use microdata.

6. Latino men in Georgia have higher labor force participation rates than men from other racial groups (Figure 3). Latina women have the second-highest labor force participation rate among women (58%), on par with AAPI women. Only Black women are more likely to participate in the workforce (65%).

Figure 3: Labor Force Participation Rates for Men by Race/Ethnicity and Gender, 2019

Source: LPPI analysis of 2015-19 5-year American Community Survey public use microdata.

7. Almost half of Latinos in Georgia live in poverty or low-income conditions, the highest among all race and ethnicity groups (Figure 4). Georgia Latinos are almost as likely to live below the poverty line as U.S. Latinos (21% vs. 22%) but are more likely to live in low-income conditions (28% vs. 26%).

Figure 4: Household Poverty by Race and Ethnicity, 2019

Source: LPPI analysis of 2015-19 5-year American Community Survey public use microdata.

8. Despite having high poverty and low-income rates, only 15% of Latinos receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits due to the high share of low-income Latinos who are noncitizens, thus potentially ineligible for the program. For instance, 28% of noncitizen Latinos in Georgia experience poverty, but only 19% receive SNAP benefits.

9. Latinos have the second-lowest homeownership rate (47%) among major racial groups: only Black Georgians are slightly less likely to own their home. Latinos in Georgia are on par with Latinos nationally in homeownership rates (47%).

10. Latinos in Georgia has the third-lowest home values among major racial groups, higher than the Native Americans and Blacks. In 2019, Latinos’ median home value was $130,000, $45,000 lower than the state median. Among Latino origin groups, South Americans own homes with the highest median value ($200,000).

11. More than half (52%) of Latinos in Georgia are housing cost-burdened, meaning they spend more than 30% of their incomes on housing costs, a rate slightly higher than the Georgia average (50%) but lower than Latinos nationally (55%).

12. Latinos, especially Latino children, are the most likely to live in overcrowded households. Ten percent of all Latinos and 24% of Latino children in Georgia live in overcrowded homes, compared to 4% of all Blacks and 12% of Black children.

13. Latinos are the most likely to be uninsured in Georgia (Figure 5). Thirty-three percent of Latinos are uninsured, a rate much higher than Georgia’s average (14%) and Latinos nationally (18%). Among Latino origin groups, more than half (56%) of Guatemalans are uninsured, the most of any group, followed by Hondurans (50%). Noncitizen Latinos are the most vulnerable, with over two-thirds (68%) without health insurance.

Figure 5: Georgia Uninsured Rate by Race/Ethnicity, 2019

Source: LPPI analysis of 2015-19 5-year American Community Survey public use microdata.

14. Fifteen percent of Latino children in Georgia are uninsured, more than twice the state average (7%) and the national level for Latino children (8%). Among different Latino groups, 29% of Honduran children are uninsured, followed by Guatemalan (23%) and Mexican (16%) children. 

15. A quarter of Latinos in Georgia are covered by Medicaid, while over half of Latino children are covered by Medicaid. Medicaid covers eighteen percent of all Georgians and 40% of children.

This work was made possible by the generous support of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and Casey Family Programs. Featured photo by ibuki Tsubo on Unsplash.