A new demographic and workforce study from The Mendoza Law Firm highlights the extraordinary diversity of the U.S. immigrant population and explains how country-of-origin patterns shape America’s labor market.
As of mid-2025, the United States is home to roughly 51.9 million immigrants, representing about 15.4% of the population. In January 2025, the figure briefly reached a record 53.3 million before declining later in the year.
The data shows that Mexico remains the largest source of U.S. immigrants, with approximately 11 million Mexican-born residents. Mexican immigrants account for roughly 22% of the total foreign-born population, more than the next four largest origin countries combined.
India (3.2 million) and China (3 million) each represent approximately 6% of the immigrant population. Other major communities include immigrants from the Philippines (2.1 million) and Cuba (1.7 million).
Combined, immigrants from Latin America account for approximately 52% of all foreign-born U.S. residents, roughly 26.7 million people. In addition to Mexico and Cuba, major Latin American communities include immigrants from El Salvador, Guatemala, the Dominican Republic, Colombia, Honduras, and Venezuela.
Asian-origin immigrants represent another large and growing segment of the population, contributing significantly to high-skill industries, technology, engineering, and healthcare.
Occupational Distribution: High-Skill and Essential Labor
The study highlights that immigrants play critical roles across both white-collar and blue-collar sectors.
Foreign-born workers account for:
- 35.4% of management, professional, and related occupations
- 22% of service occupations
- 15.5% of production, transportation, and material moving roles
- 13.9% of natural resources, construction, and maintenance
- 13.2% of sales and office occupations
These figures demonstrate that immigrant labor is concentrated at both ends of the labor market — from knowledge-driven fields like engineering and healthcare to physically demanding industries like agriculture and construction.
Contrary to simplistic narratives, immigrants are not confined to a single economic tier. They are heavily represented in advanced STEM fields, medical research, entrepreneurship, and technology innovation — while also forming the backbone of manual labor sectors facing chronic workforce shortages.
Earnings Gap Highlights Structural Challenges
Despite their importance, immigrant workers earn less on average than native-born workers.
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data:
- Median weekly earnings for foreign-born workers: $1,001
- Median weekly earnings for native-born workers: $1,190
This means immigrant workers earn approximately 84% of native-born wages.
Among men working full-time, foreign-born men earn $1,077 compared to $1,316 for native-born men. Foreign-born women earn $911 compared to $1,074 for native-born women.
The wage gap reflects structural factors, including credential recognition barriers, occupational mobility limits, tenure differences, and systemic labor-market inequalities.
Economic Contribution Beyond Wages
Immigrants contribute significantly to Social Security funding. Over the past decade, immigrants have contributed hundreds of billions of dollars to the Social Security system — including payroll taxes from both authorized and unauthorized workers.
The study emphasizes that immigration’s impact extends beyond workforce participation. Immigrant entrepreneurs launch businesses at higher rates than native-born Americans, supporting job creation and innovation.
The conclusion is clear: immigrant origin diversity is directly linked to economic resilience. The United States’ global migration ties fuel its competitiveness across industries, innovation sectors, and service-based roles.