Over the past decade, the U.S. Latino economy has grown two and a half times faster than its non-Latino counterpart, surpassing the gross domestic product of the United Kingdom, India, France, and Italy.
The Latino community is a key driver of the U.S. economy: its GDP is growing faster than the rest of the country’s.
The total economic output of this group reached $4.1 trillion in 2023, nearly three times what it was in 2010.
With a GDP that size, if it were a standalone economy, the U.S. Latino economy would rank as the fifth largest in the world, ahead of countries like Canada and the United Kingdom, and growing twice as fast as the overall U.S. economy.
These are some of the findings from the annual economic study conducted by the Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the Center for Economic Research & Forecasting at California Lutheran University.
Here are some key points based on the latest data:
Comparative Growth Rates:
Between 2010 and 2023, the average annual growth rate of the Latino GDP in the U.S. was 4.4%, compared to 2.2% for the entire U.S. economy. This means the Latino economy grew twice as fast.
The report highlights the “impressive” size of the Latino GDP, as well as its “rapid growth.” Among the world’s ten largest GDPs, the Latino GDP was the third fastest-growing from 2010 to 2023, the last year with complete data available.
During that period, the average annual growth of the Latino GDP was 4.4%, compared to 2.2% for the entire U.S. economy.
In the most recent period from 2019 to 2023 (including the pandemic), the U.S. Latino GDP was the fastest-growing among the world’s 10 largest economies, even surpassing China and growing 2.7 times faster than the non-Latino GDP within the U.S.
Other reports, analyzing slightly different periods (such as 2010-2022 or 2019-2022), also consistently show that real Latino GDP grew at an annual rate more than double that of the overall U.S. economy (for example, 4.2% vs. 1.7% for 2010-2022, and 4.8% vs. 1.5% for 2019-2022).
Size of the Latino Economy:
The total GDP of Latinos in the U.S. reached a record $4.1 trillion in 2023, up from $3.7 trillion in 2022 and $3.2 trillion in 2021.
One of the major reasons for this strong economic performance is the high labor force participation rate within the Latino community.
“Since 2011, this participation has been four percentage points above that of non-Latinos, but in 2023, this rate was 6.7 percentage points,” says Hayes-Bautista. In other words, that year, Latinos were 6.7% more likely to be actively working or seeking work than their non-Latino counterparts.
If Latinos in the U.S. were an independent country, their GDP would be the fifth largest in the world (2023 data), surpassing economies like India, the United Kingdom, or France.
Drivers of Growth:
Labor Force Participation: The labor force participation rate of the Latino community has consistently been higher than that of non-Latinos (in 2023, the difference was 6.7 percentage points). Education, along with employment status, has led to increased income among this population. Over the 13 years studied in the UCLA and Cal Lutheran report, real wages for Latinos have grown by 61.5%, compared to 21.4% for the non-Latino population overall. These incomes have allowed their consumption to reach a record $2.7 trillion in 2023. Again, the growth rate is higher than the rest of the country.
Health also plays an important role. After lamenting the high COVID-19 mortality rates, which were particularly painful for Latino workers, the report notes that deaths from heart disease, cancer, and other illnesses are now below those of other communities in the country.
Population Growth: Latinos accounted for more than half (56.7%) of U.S. population growth between 2010 and 2023.
Education: Latinos have made faster progress in obtaining educational degrees (the number with a bachelor’s degree or higher increased by 125.3% between 2010 and 2023). Additionally, the report reveals significant educational advances since 2010. Since that year, the number of college graduates has grown three times faster among Latinos than among the rest of the population. “Latinos who are coming of age and joining the U.S. workforce are, in large part, second- and third-generation Americans. These children and grandchildren of immigrants combine the extraordinary and selfless work ethic of their elders with a rapid increase in educational attainment to drive not only the Latino GDP but the overall growth of the U.S. GDP,” the report highlights.
Income and Consumption: Real wages for Latinos grew by 61.5% between 2010 and 2023, compared to 21.4% for the non-Latino population. Their consumption reached $2.7 trillion in 2023.
Looking ahead, Hayes-Bautista expresses cautious optimism despite the major economic and trade challenges facing the country under the Trump administration. “Any setback will affect us,” he warns. The expert recalls that Latinos were hit hard both during the 2008 Great Recession caused by the financial crisis and during the pandemic, though the community has rebounded strongly from the latter, as evidenced by continued economic growth. “What concerns me most are tariffs and the loss of consumer confidence,” he explains.
In summary, the data confirms that the Latino economy is not only a substantial part of the U.S. economy but also one of its most dynamic and fastest-growing engines.
