The State of the Latino Community in Georgia Report. Key Facts & Figures 

In the context of the 10th Annual Latino Summit & Forum co-hosted with Ser Familia, over 150 decision-makers decision-makers and leaders had the opportunity to explore the findings of The State of the Latino Community in Georgia Report, a collaborative effort supported by the Latinx Alliance LCF Georgia, Ser Familia and Neighborhood Nexus featuring not only quantitative data, but also real voices and experiences of our community through quotes, and narratives. 

52 secondary data sources, 36 interviews and focus groups with 11 artists across the state informed this report and its recommendations. An executive deck summarizing the report is available here.

Some key facts are included below, for more in English and Spanish, visit http://www.StateofLatinosGA.org  or reach out to request a briefing or discuss a presentation of the report to your team.

GROWTH AND WHO WE ARE

• Georgia’s Latino population has surged by 32.7% since 2010—a growth rate that outpaces the national average of 25.9%.
• 62% of the Latino community is under 34, compared to 47% of the general population. This underscores the integral role of Latinos  in shaping Georgia’s future.
• Latinos in Georgia increasingly identify as two or more races, accounting for more than 90% of the overall increase in the Latino population in the state since 2010.
• 3 out of 5 Latinos in Georgia are citizens, the majority of whom are under 21 years old
• . US-born Latinos account for 99.2% of the Latino population growth in Georgia between 2010 and 2022.
• Approximately 350,000 individuals who self-identify as Latino or Hispanic in Georgia are undocumented or under-documented.
• Latinos from Mexican descent are 49.9% of Georgia’s Latino population. However, Venezuelans saw the largest percentage growth in Georgia since 2010, with a 257% increase, followed by Nicaraguans (137.2%) and Bolivians (119.3%). Puerto Ricans are 10% of the population. Second largest.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND WORKFORCE

• While 91% of Latino households report income—indicating high workforce participation and entrepreneurship—about one in five Latinos lives in poverty. Despite high rates of employment, Georgia Latinos’ poverty rate is more than double that of non-Hispanic white Georgians.
• In 2022, the median income for Latino households was $63,786, lower than the Georgia median of $71,355. Additionally, the average Latino household size is 3.4 people, compared to the state average of 2.7, meaning that household income is shared among more individuals.
•  46.1% of  Hispanic households in Georgia have at least $2,000 in emergency savings, compared to 61.2% of the total state population.
• Around 7.6% of employed Latinos in Georgia reported being self-employed in 2023, compared to 5.9% of all employed Georgians. This difference, consistent over the years, reflects the vibrant entrepreneurial spirit within our community. 
• There are an estimated 91,000 Latino-owned businesses in the state of Georgia. Notably, families co-own nearly a quarter of these businesses, which is higher than the national average.
• 90% of Latino businesses report revenues under $200,000. This is mostly self-employment. It is a self-sufficiency strategy for our community and a combination of push and pull factors
•  In Georgia, 21% of employed Hispanics work in service occupations (e.g., retail, restaurants, customer service), compared to only 14.3% of the state’s total employed population
• By 2023, Georgia had the third largest share of Hispanic population working in construction (25.8%)7. Georgia is accompanied in the top ten with mainly other southern states.
• Georgia accounts for 11.3% of all H-2A certifications in the U.S., with 43,436 foreign-certified positions mostly in agricultural work. Second nationally, this underscores the state’s significant reliance on foreign agricultural labor.
• From 1990 to 2000, Hispanic buying power in Georgia increased from $1.3 to $6.4 billion. From 2010 to 2021, it increased by 98.5%, outpacing the state’s growth of 73%, reaching $31.5 billion. Expected to rise to $44.25 billion by 2026, Latino’s would account for  6.5% of the state’s total buying power.
•  In 2021, the Latino GDP in Georgia reached $52.2 billion, comparable to the entire economic output of Wyoming or Vermont.

EDUCATION

• In 2021, Georgia had the sixth-largest population of English Learners in the nation. 80% of these students are estimated to be Latino
• Georgia’s Latino population values education, shown as the group most likely to participate in early learning programs.
•  In 2023, 77.6% of Latino students graduated on time. However, this rate drops to 66% for English Learners. For comparison, 94% of Asian and Pacific Islander students, 87.1% of white students, 82.5% of multiracial students, and 83.7% of Black or African American students graduated on time.
• There is an 11-point gap in college enrollment between the state average and Latino students 16 months after graduation.
• Bans to public university access for undocumented, under-documented individuals and those with temporary statuses as well as the lack of access to in-state tuition for those same groups are a huge barrier to educational attaintment.

HOUSING

• 52% of Latino households were housing cost-burdened, compared to 33% of white households
• 46.1% of  Hispanic households in Georgia have at least $2,000 in emergency savings, compared to 61.2% of the total state population.
• 54.8% of housing units occupied by Hispanic/Latino households are owner-occupied, compared to 77.9% for white households.
• About 60% of cases at AVLF involve housing repairs tied to health issues, mainly caused by mold and insects
• In 2024, the school districts with the highest number of homeless Hispanic students were Forsyth (621 students), Hall (541), and Gwinnett (471).

HEALTHCARE & WELLBEING

• In Georgia, 30.4% of Latinos lack any health insurance coverage, compared to the 17.6% national average among Latinos. When families don’t have health insurance, they are one accident or medical emergency away from a financial disaster.
• Farmworkers are 35 times more likely to die from heatstroke
• In 2022, 11.4% of live births to Hispanic mothers in Georgia received late or no prenatal care, compared to 7.6% for non-Hispanic mothers. Additionally, 22.4% of births to Hispanic mothers had an inadequate Kotelchuck index, compared to 15.9% for non-Hispanics.
• Latinos are the only group in GA for which motor vehicle crashes and intentional harm / suicide rank in the top 10 causes of death. COVID was the top case of death from 2019-2023.
• Georgia ranks 47 out of 50 in access to mental health services.
• Latino individuals in Georgia had a considerably lower drug overdose death rate (9%) compared to non-Latinos (24.5%).

POLITICAL POWER

• Between 2016 and 2020, the self-identified Latino electorate in Georgia grew by 57.5%, adding about 95K new voters.
• About 22% of Latino voters in the 2024 election were between 18 and 24 years old.
• The Latino voter turnout for the 2024 Presidential Election is estimated at 60% of registered voters. Latinos are also estimated to have been the fastest-growing group of new voters in Georgia, with 38.7% of Hispanic early voters in the 2024 presidential election who didn’t vote in 2020.

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