#5 most spoken · language profile
Tagalog in the United States
An estimated 1,332,030 people aged 5 and older speak Tagalog at home across U.S. metropolitan areas. About 30.6% of them, roughly 408,026 people, speak English less than "very well." Interpreter demand is highest where the limited-English population is largest, such as Jacksonville, where about 39.1% of Tagalog speakers report speaking English less than "very well."
Where Tagalog is spoken: top metro areas
Ranked by number of speakers at home. 184 additional metro areas have Tagalog speakers but did not meet Census reliability standards and are not listed.
| # | Metro area | Speakers (± margin) | Limited English | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 223,749 ±7K | 32% | 31–33% |
| 2 | San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA | 129,065 ±5K | 32.7% | 31.3–34.2% |
| 3 | New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | 94,488 ±4K | 25.6% | 24.3–27% |
| 4 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | 69,500 ±4K | 35.5% | 33.6–37.4% |
| 5 | Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | 61,519 ±3K | 31% | 28.6–33.4% |
| 6 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | 57,778 ±4K | 25.3% | 23.5–27.2% |
| 7 | Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 54,003 ±3K | 32.7% | 30.3–35.1% |
| 8 | San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 40,152 ±3K | 33.1% | 30.5–35.8% |
| 9 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 36,260 ±3K | 33.2% | 30.7–35.7% |
| 10 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 33,304 ±2K | 24.8% | 22.6–27.1% |
| 11 | Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 32,022 ±3K | 33% | 30–36% |
| 12 | Vallejo, CA | 26,138 ±2K | 34% | 30.9–37.1% |
| 13 | Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | 23,897 ±2K | 20.5% | 17.1–23.8% |
| 14 | Stockton, CA | 18,931 ±2K | 38.6% | 34.4–42.8% |
| 15 | Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC | 16,619 ±1K | 31.1% | 27.8–34.4% |
| 16 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 15,295 ±2K | 25.6% | 21.8–29.4% |
| 17 | Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ | 14,614 ±1K | 25.3% | 22.2–28.4% |
| 18 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 13,792 ±2K | 27.8% | 23.5–32% |
| 19 | Jacksonville, FL | 10,436 ±1K | 39.1% | 33.3–44.8% |
| 20 | Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | 9,983 ±1K | 28.6% | 22–35.2% |
| 21 | Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA | 9,962 ±997 | 34.9% | 30.1–39.7% |
| 22 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL | 9,035 ±1K | 20.9% | 17–24.8% |
| 23 | Bakersfield, CA | 7,737 ±1K | 33.1% | 27.6–38.8% |
Limited English means speaking English less than "very well." Margins of error are at the 90 percent confidence level. "Range" is the 90 percent confidence interval for the limited-English share.
Help Tagalog speakers be understood
Every dot on this map is a person who deserves to be understood. Medical, legal, and community interpreters turn that need into access. Training is how you start.
Frequently asked questions
- How many people speak Tagalog in the United States?
- An estimated 1,332,030 people aged 5 and older speak Tagalog at home across U.S. metropolitan areas, based on the Census Bureau's 2020 to 2024 American Community Survey.
- What share of Tagalog speakers have limited English proficiency?
- About 30.6 percent, roughly 408,026 people, report speaking English less than "very well." That is the population professional interpreters serve.
- Which U.S. metro area has the most Tagalog speakers?
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA, with about 223,749 Tagalog speakers at home.
- Where is Tagalog interpreter demand highest?
- Demand tracks the size of the limited-English population. Jacksonville, FL stands out, where about 39.1 percent of Tagalog speakers report speaking English less than "very well."