E.g., 06/02/2023
E.g., 06/02/2023
State Language Data - TX
 

Texas

Language & Education
2021
2000
1990
English Proficiency

Note: The term limited English proficient (LEP) refers to any person age 5 and older who reported speaking English "not at all," "not well," or "well" on their survey questionnaire. Persons who speak only English or who report speaking English "very well" are considered proficient in English.

Note: The term "foreign born" refers to people residing in the United States at the time of the population survey who were not U.S. citizens at birth. The foreign-born population includes naturalized U.S. citizens, lawful permanent immigrants (or green-card holders), refugees and asylees, certain legal nonimmigrants (including those on student, work, or some other temporary visas), and persons residing in the country without authorization.

Foreign Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 5,051,702
Speak only English 12.4%
Speak English "very well" 35.3%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 52.3%
Limited English Proficient (LEP) Population: Change over Time  
% change: 2000-2021 53.8%
% change: 1990-2000 98.8%
English Proficiency of the Foreign Born by U.S. Citizenship Status (age 5 and older)*

Note: The term limited English proficient (LEP) refers to any person age 5 and older who reported speaking English "not at all," "not well," or "well" on their survey questionnaire. Persons who speak only English or who report speaking English "very well" are considered proficient in English. Data for Alaska, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are from the Census Bureau's pooled 2017-2021 American Community Survey (ACS). Data for the United States overall and for the remaining states are from the 2021 ACS.

 
Naturalized citizens 2,120,554
Speak only English 15.8%
Speak English "very well" 45.2%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 39%
Noncitizens 2,931,148
Speak only English 9.9%
Speak English "very well" 28.2%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 61.9%

Note: The term "U.S. born" refers to people residing in the United States who were U.S. citizens in one of three categories: people born in one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia; people born in U.S. Insular Areas such as Puerto Rico or Guam; or people who were born abroad to at least one U.S. citizen parent.

U.S. Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 22,584,612
Speak only English 77.0%
Speak English ""very well"" 19.0%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 4.1%
Limited English Proficient (LEP) Population: Change over Time  
% change: 2000-2011 -3.9%
% change: 1990-2000 6.1%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 2,858,396
Speak only English 10.6%
"Speak English ""very well"" 29.3%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 60.1%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 16,383,122
Speak only English 78.9%
"Speak English ""very well"" 15.3%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 5.8%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 1,491,959
Speak only English 11.6%
"Speak English ""very well"" 30.5%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 57.9%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
English Proficiency (age 5 and older) (%) 14,080,586
Speak only English 81.2%
"Speak English ""very well"" 12.4%
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 6.4%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
Population (age 5 and older)
 
 
Language Spoken at Home (by age and English proficiency)

Note: The term limited English proficient (LEP) refers to any person age 5 and older who reported speaking English "not at all," "not well," or "well" on their survey questionnaire. Persons who speak only English or who report speaking English "very well" are considered proficient in English.

Number
Ages 5-17 5,564,920
Speak only English 3,740,275
Speak language other than English 1,824,645
Speak English "very well"
1,398,932
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
425,713
Speak Spanish 1,568,449
Speak English "very well"
1,196,378
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
372,071
Ages 18-64 18,178,983
Speak only English 11,427,729
Speak language other than English 6,751,254
Speak English "very well"
4,159,597
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
2,591,657
Speak Spanish 5,419,667
Speak English "very well"
3,258,740
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
2,160,927
65 and Older 3,892,411
Speak only English 2,835,884
Speak language other than English 1,056,527
Speak English "very well"
517,269
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
539,258
Speak Spanish 835,975
Speak English "very well"
409,247
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP)
426,728
%
65 and Older 100%
Speak only English 67.2%
Speak language other than English 32.8%
Speak English "very well" 25.1%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 7.6%
Speak Spanish 28.2%
Speak English "very well" 21.5%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 6.7%
Ages 18-64 100%
Speak only English 62.9%
Speak language other than English 37.1%
Speak English "very well" 22.9%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 14.3%
Speak Spanish 29.8%
Speak English "very well" 17.9%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 11.9%
Ages 5-17 100%
Speak only English 72.9%
Speak language other than English 27.1%
Speak English "very well" 13.3%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 13.9%
Speak Spanish 21.5%
Speak English "very well" 10.5%
Speak English less than "very well" (LEP) 11.0%
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
Population (age 5 and older)
 
 
Language Spoken at Home (detailed, by English proficiency)

Note: 1) The term limited English proficient (LEP) refers to any person age 5 and older who reported speaking English "not at all," "not well," or "well" on their survey questionnaire. Persons who speak only English or who report speaking English "very well" are considered proficient in English. 2) Data for Alaska, Arkansas, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are from the U.S. Census Bureau's pooled 2017-2021 American Community Survey (ACS). Data for the United States overall and for the remaining states are from the 2021 ACS.

Number
Total Household Population, Age 5 and Older 27,636,314
Speak only English 18,003,888
Speak language other than English 9,632,426
Spanish 7,824,091
Speak English "very well" 4,864,365
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 2,959,726
French (Including Cajun) 71,795
Speak English "very well" 57,076
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 14,719
Haitian 8,786
Speak English "very well" 7,351
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,435
Italian 14,211
Speak English "very well" 10,137
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 4,074
Portuguese 38,147
Speak English "very well" 29,157
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 8,990
German 66,379
Speak English "very well" 54,434
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 11,945
Yiddish, Pennsylvania Dutch or Other West Germanic Languages 11,325
Speak English "very well" 9,601
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 1,724
Russian 33,535
Speak English "very well" 23,070
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 10,465
Polish 9,689
Speak English "very well" 7,265
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 2,424
Other Slavic Languages 22,820
Speak English "very well" 16,718
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 6,102
Armenian 1,463
Speak English "very well" 1,328
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 135
Persian (including Farsi, Dari) 43,468
Speak English "very well" 28,804
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 14,664
Gujarati 40,760
Speak English "very well" 29,405
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 11,355
Hindi 88,054
Speak English "very well" 69,496
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 18,558
Urdu 77,404
Speak English "very well" 59,605
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 17,799
Punjabi 15,538
Speak English "very well" 9,718
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 5,820
Bengali 28,778
Speak English "very well" 19,348
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 9,430
Nepali, Marathi, or Other Indic Languages 58,334
Speak English "very well" 42,426
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 15,908
Other Indo-European Languages 32,903
Speak English "very well" 24,831
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 8,072
Telugu 67,649
Speak English "very well" 52,854
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 14,795
Tamil 44,765
Speak English "very well" 38,048
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 6,717
Malayalam, Kannada, or Other Dravidian Languages 58,875
Speak English "very well" 40,877
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 17,998
Chinese (including Mandarin, Cantonese) 184,592
Speak English "very well" 101,442
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 83,150
Japanese 25,683
Speak English "very well" 13,607
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 12,076
Korean 59,585
Speak English "very well" 29,455
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 30,130
Hmong 3,951
Speak English "very well" 1,938
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 2,013
Vietnamese 232,666
Speak English "very well" 105,040
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 127,626
Khmer 14,241
Speak English "very well" 4,916
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 9,325
Thai, Lao, or Other Tai-Kadai Languages 20,170
Speak English "very well" 8,767
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 11,403
Other Languages of Asia 27,299
Speak English "very well" 12,907
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 14,392
Tagalog (including Filipino) 78,507
Speak English "very well" 56,592
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 21,915
Ilocano, Samoan, Hawaiian, or Other Austronesian Languages 20,138
Speak English "very well" 13,915
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 6,223
Arabic 114,424
Speak English "very well" 79,783
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 34,641
Hebrew 7,806
Speak English "very well" 7,110
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 696
Amharic, Somali, or Other Afro-Asiatic Languages 40,927
Speak English "very well" 25,260
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 15,667
Yoruba, Twi, Igbo, or Other Languages of Western Africa 85,265
Speak English "very well" 74,255
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 11,010
Swahili or Other Languages of Central, Eastern, and Southern Africa 40,786
Speak English "very well" 31,652
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 9,134
Native Languages of North America 4,499
Speak English "very well" 2,471
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 2,028
Other and Unspecified Languages 13,118
Speak English "very well" 10,774
Speak English less than “very well” (LEP) 2,344
%
Field 306 100%
Field 307 65.1%
Field 308 34.9%
Field 310 100%
Field 310 62.2%
Field 310 37.8%
Field 313 100%
Field 314 79.5%
Field 315 20.5%
Field 316 100%
Field 316 83.7%
Field 316 16.3%
Field 319 100%
Field 319 71.3%
Field 319 28.7%
Field 322 100%
Field 322 76.4%
Field 322 23.6%
Field 325 100%
Field 325 82.0%
Field 325 18.0%
Field 328 100%
Field 328 84.8%
Field 328 15.2%
Field 331 100%
Field 331 68.8%
Field 331 31.2%
Field 334 100%
Field 334 75.0%
Field 334 25.0%
Field 337 100%
Field 337 73.3%
Field 337 26.7%
Field 340 100%
Field 340 90.8%
Field 340 9.2%
Field 343 100%
Field 343 66.3%
Field 343 33.7%
Field 346 100%
Field 346 72.1%
Field 346 27.9%
Field 349 100%
Field 349 78.9%
Field 349 21.1%
Field 352 100%
Field 352 77.0%
Field 352 23.0%
Field 355 100%
Field 355 62.5%
Field 355 37.5%
Field 358 100%
Field 358 67.2%
Field 358 32.8%
Field 361 100%
Field 361 72.7%
Field 361 27.3%
Field 364 100%
Field 364 75.5%
Field 364 24.5%
Field 367 100%
Field 367 78.1%
Field 367 21.9%
Field 370 100%
Field 370 85.0%
Field 370 15.0%
Field 373 100%
Field 373 69.4%
Field 373 30.6%
Field 376 100%
Field 376 55.0%
Field 376 45.0%
Field 379 100%
Field 379 53.0%
Field 379 47.0%
Field 382 100%
Field 382 49.4%
Field 382 50.6%
Field 385 100%
Field 385 49.1%
Field 385 50.9%
Field 388 100%
Field 388 45.1%
Field 388 54.9%
Field 391 100%
Field 391 34.5%
Field 391 65.5%
Field 394 100%
Field 394 43.5%
Field 394 56.5%
Field 397 100%
Field 397 47.3%
Field 397 52.7%
Field 400 100%
Field 400 72.1%
Field 400 27.9%
Field 403 100%
Field 403 69.1%
Field 403 30.9%
Field 406 100%
Field 406 69.7%
Field 406 30.3%
Field 409 100%
Field 409 91.1%
Field 409 8.9%
Field 412 100%
Field 412 61.7%
Field 412 38.3%
Field 415 100%
Field 415 87.1%
Field 415 12.9%
Field 418 100%
Field 418 77.6%
Field 418 22.4%
Field 421 100%
Field 421 54.9%
Field 421 45.1%
Field 424 100%
Field 424 82.1%
Field 424 17.9%
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Educational Attainment Foreign Born
Population (age 25 and older) 4,440,032
Less than high school diploma 34.5%
High school diploma or GED 20.8%
Some college or associate's degree 15.5%
Bachelor's degree 16.4%
Graduate or professional degree 12.9%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Less than high school diploma 54.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher 20.4%
Educational Attainment: Change over Time  
Adults with no high school diploma  
% change: 2000-2021 31.2%
% change: 1990-2000 85.2%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher  
% change: 2000-2021 251.3%
% change: 1990-2000 119.0%
Educational Attainment by U.S. Citizenship Status (foreign-born adults, age 25 and older)

Note: 1) Data for Alaska, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are from the U.S. Census Bureau's pooled 2017-2021 American Community Survey (ACS). Data for the United States overall and for the remaining states are from the 2021 ACS. 2) The letter N Indicates that a number could not be provided by the Census Bureau because the number of sample cases was too small for this state.

 
Naturalized citizens (%) 1,982,703
Less than high school diploma 22.5%
High school diploma or GED 19.7%
Some college or associate's degree 20.1%
Bachelor's degree 21.5%
Graduate or professional degree 16.2%
Noncitizens (%) 2,457,329
Less than high school diploma 44.1%
High school diploma or GED 21.6%
Some college or associate's degree 11.7%
Bachelor's degree 12.4%
Graduate or professional degree 10.2%
U.S. Born
Population (age 25 and older) 14,784,656
Less than high school diploma 8.6%
High school diploma or GED 25.7%
Some college or associate's degree 31.4%
Bachelor's degree 22.6%
Graduate or professional degree 11.6%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Nothing  
Nothing  
Educational Attainment: Change over Time  
Adults with no high school diploma  
% change: 2000-2011 -34.3%
% change: 1990-2000 -13.1%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher  
% change: 2000-2011 95.2%
% change: 1990-2000 35.2%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
Population (age 25 and older) 2,162,235
Less than high school diploma 54.0%
High school diploma or GED 14.9%
Some college or associate's degree 14.0%
Bachelor's degree 9.7%
Graduate or professional degree 7.4%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Less than high school diploma 37.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher 12.5%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
Population (age 25 and older) 10,620,896
Less than high school diploma 18.3%
High school diploma or GED 26.9%
Some college or associate's degree 30.4%
Bachelor's degree 16.8%
Graduate or professional degree 7.7%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
Foreign Born
Population (age 25 and older) 1,112,155
Less than high school diploma 56.6%
High school diploma or GED 13.9%
Some college or associate's degree 14.2%
Bachelor's degree 8.6%
Graduate or professional degree 6.6%
% Foreign Born among Adults with  
Less than high school diploma 22.0%
Bachelor's degree or higher 8.1%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
U.S. Born
Population (age 25 and older) 9,186,460
Less than high school diploma 24.3%
High school diploma or GED 27.1%
Some college or associate's degree 27.6%
Bachelor's degree 14.4%
Graduate or professional degree 6.4%
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Sources: Migration Policy Institute tabulations of the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) and Decennial Census. Unless stated otherwise, 2021 data are from the one-year ACS file. For information about ACS definitions, click here. For ACS methodology, sampling error, and nonsampling error, click here. Estimates from 1990 and 2000 Decennial Census data as well as ACS microdata are from Steven Ruggles, Sarah Flood, Ronald Goeken, Megan Schouweiler and Matthew Sobek. IPUMS USA: Version 12.0 [dataset]. Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2022. https://doi.org/10.18128/D010.V12.0.

Definitions

  • The term "foreign born" refers to people residing in the United States at the time of the population survey who were not U.S. citizens at birth. The foreign-born population includes naturalized U.S. citizens, lawful permanent immigrants (or green-card holders), refugees and asylees, certain legal nonimmigrants (including those on student, work, or some other temporary visas), and persons residing in the country without authorization.
  • The term "U.S. born" refers to people residing in the United States who were U.S. citizens in one of three categories: people born in one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia; people born in U.S. Insular Areas such as Puerto Rico or Guam; or people who were born abroad to at least one U.S. citizen parent.
  • The term limited English proficient (LEP) refers to any person age 5 and older who reported speaking English “not at all,” “not well,” or “well” on their survey questionnaire. Persons who speak only English or who report speaking English “very well” are considered proficient in English.

Data-related notes

  • The letter N indicates that an estimate could not be provided by the Census Bureau because the number of sample cases was too small for this state.
  • For “English proficiency of the foreign born by U.S. citizenship status” and “Educational Attainment by U.S. Citizenship Status”: Data for Alaska, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are from the Census Bureau's pooled 2017-2021 American Community Survey (ACS). Data for the United States overall and for the remaining states are from the 2021 ACS. 
  • For “Language Spoken at Home (detailed, by English proficiency)”: Data for Alaska, Arkansas, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming are from the U.S. Census Bureau's pooled 2017-2021 American Community Survey (ACS). Data for the United States overall and for the remaining states are from the 2021 ACS.