Demographics & Statistics
Population
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2010 American Community Survey, 463,552 (+/- 18,925) individuals reported their first or second generation ancestry as Iranian. However, many community members believe that these numbers represent an undercount of the Iranian American community's population. The under representation can be attributed to the lack of participation in the census surveys as well as the method used by the Census Bureau to obtain such information.
Ethnic Diversity
The Iranian American community, as well as the population of Iran, is ethnically diverse and includes Persians, Azaris, Kurds, Lors, Gilakis, Arabs, Baluchis, Armenians, Assyrians, and Turkmens.
Religious Diversity
The Iranian American community, as well as the population of Iran, is religiously diverse and includes people of Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Zoroastrian, and Baha’i faiths. PAAIA’s Surveys of Iranian Americans show that while approximately two-fifths of Iranian Americans identify themselves as Muslims, almost an equal percentage appear not to practice any particular religion, and the balance are roughly equally divided among Christians, Jews, Bahais and Zoroastrians.
Educational Attainment
An Overview of Socioeconomic Characteristics of the Iranian American Community based on the 2000 U.S. Census completed by the Iranian Studies Group at MIT in 2003 suggests that the Iranian ancestral group have educational attainments that greatly surpass the national average. According to the 2000 Census data, the percent of the Iranians over 25 years old who have obtained a bachelor’s degree or higher was at 57.2% in comparison to 24.4% for the rest of the U.S. population. With more than 27% of Iranian Americans over the age of 25 having a graduate degree or above, Iranian Americans are the most highly educated ethnic group in the United States.
Household Income
The 2000 Census figures indicate that the per capita average income of Iranian Americans is considerably higher than the total U.S. population. The Iranian Studies Group at MIT analysis of the Census data shows that the per capita average income for Iranian Americans is 50% higher than that of the nation, while family average income is 38% higher.