Which US cities have the largest Somali immigrant populations and how do their poverty rates compare to national averages?
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Executive summary
Minnesota’s Twin Cities are the single largest concentration of Somali immigrants in the United States, followed by sizable communities in Columbus, Ohio; the Seattle–Tacoma region; parts of Maine (Lewiston and Portland); and pockets in San Diego and elsewhere — patterns reported across multiple demographic analyses [1] [2] [3]. Across these cities the Somali community experiences poverty rates that are substantially higher than U.S. national averages, but estimates vary widely by data source, geography and methodology — reported Somali poverty ranges from roughly 25–37% nationally to localized figures approaching or exceeding 40–55% in Minnesota [1] [4] [5] [6].
1. Where Somali Americans live — a geography of hubs and secondary cities
The clearest anchor point in every account is Minnesota, especially the Minneapolis–St. Paul metro, which hosts by far the largest Somali population in the country and concentrates a majority of the state’s Somali residents in the Twin Cities [1] [7] [3]; other significant state-level totals cited include Ohio (Columbus area) and Washington (Seattle–Tacoma) with meaningful Somali communities, and Maine’s Lewiston and Portland notable for high per-capita concentrations [1] [2] [4]. Aggregators of 2025 ACS and community estimates put Minnesota first, followed by Ohio and Washington in descending order; several sources also flag San Diego and scattered communities across 40+ states as smaller but visible nodes [1] [2].
2. How big are the Minneapolis–St. Paul and other local populations?
Public reporting and state analyses place tens of thousands of Somali residents in Minnesota alone: estimates range from the mid‑30,000s (foreign‑born Somalis) up to roughly 75,000–107,000 residents of Somali descent cited in different pieces, with roughly three‑quarters concentrated in the Twin Cities according to Minnesota-focused reporting [7] [3] [8]. National rankings using recent ACS-style methods list Minnesota with the largest Somali population (e.g., ~61,000 in one 2025 dataset), then Ohio (~26,000) and Washington (~14,000), underscoring that population counts depend on whether analysts count Somalia‑born residents or anyone reporting Somali ancestry [2] [9].
3. Poverty: a consistently elevated but uneven picture
Multiple sources agree Somali poverty rates exceed U.S. averages, but the scale varies by dataset and locality. Nationally aggregated summaries cite Somali poverty in the mid‑20s to mid‑30s percent range versus U.S. poverty nearer 12–14% in recent comparisons, and median Somali household incomes far below national medians [1]. Minnesota‑specific studies and advocacy/analytic reports paint a starker picture in the Twin Cities: city and state analyses report Somali child poverty and household poverty rates in the range of roughly 40–55% depending on cohort and measurement — figures that some researchers and policy groups have used to argue for urgent social supports [5] [6] [4].
4. Why the numbers diverge — methodology, demographics and politics
Differences among claims stem from definitional and methodological choices: whether counts include U.S.‑born Somali‑Americans, whether they measure immigrants only or ancestry, which ACS years are used, and whether analysts report household vs. individual poverty or child poverty specifically [1] [2] [9]. Political and institutional agendas also skew emphasis: advocacy and state business reports highlight economic progress and integration over time [7], whereas conservative think tanks and investigative pieces emphasize persistent welfare dependency or fraud narratives tied to Somali communities [8] [5], so readers must treat extreme single‑source claims with caution.
5. What can be said with confidence and what remains uncertain
It is firm that Minnesota — principally the Twin Cities — is the largest Somali destination in the U.S., and that Somali populations generally experience poverty rates higher than national averages; precise percentages, however, depend heavily on the chosen dataset and geographic scope [1] [3]. Where sources diverge — for example, between an approximately 25–37% national Somali poverty estimate and Minnesota‑specific figures approaching 40–55% — the reporting shows both a real concentration of disadvantage in key hubs and a trend toward better outcomes for second‑generation Somali Americans in some measures, a nuance emphasized by state and community analyses [1] [7].