List of Whitest States in the US: Top 10 Surprising Rankings Revealed!

In America, people are from everywhere. But in many places, most of the people are White. This includes saying that their race is White when asked in government surveys such as the U.S. Census.

The states with the greatest shares of White people are largely in the Northeast and center of the country. Those places are typically less populous, with smaller towns and fewer people moving in from other countries.

List of Whitest States in the US

Maine has one of the largest proportions of White people of any state. Almost 94 of every 100 people it is made up of say they are White. Vermont is similarly very high, at around 94%. West Virginia is close behind, with about 93%. The other states with high numbers include New Hampshire, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Iowa, Montana and Nebraska. Each of these states has a population in which 88 percent to 92 percent of people identify as White.

While populated states like California, Texas and Florida have more White people in the aggregate, they also have many residents of other races. So the proportion of White people is lower in those states.

Why are there More White People in these States

Many of the more white states are smaller, less densely populated. They have few big cities, and fewer people from other countries move there. Most of the people who live in these states have either been born in their state of residence or have lived there for a long time.

Vermont, Maine and West Virginia are sparsely populated. They don’t change quickly. People live in the same towns for decades. These states also do not tend to draw as many new people as states with big cities or a lot of jobs.

Larger states like California and New York are another story. They are megacities with the whole world among their peoples. That’s more mixed communities, and more diversity. But where there is less population growth, like in Maine and Vermont, the population stays more the same, and that’s why there’s still a high White percentage.

How People are Classified as White

Not all voters respond to questions about race in the same fashion. Some people will tell you that they are White only. Others say they are White and one other race, such as White and Black or White and Asian.

There are three popular ways to count the Whites:

• White alone refers to those who choose White as their only race.

• White alone or in combination refers to someone saying they are White and some other race.

• Non-Hispanic White means an individual who is reported as White, and is not of Hispanic or Latino origin.

All of these produce a slightly different number. If you include people who say they are White plus something else, the percentage is a little bit higher than if you only count White alone. But regardless of how you do the math, states like Maine and Vermont still sport the highest percentages.

Things are Changing Over Time

The U.S. is also getting, on the whole, more mixed over time. More people are being born in the country to parents of different races. And more people from other countries are moving in.

In 2010, America was 64 percent non-Hispanic White. By 2020, that figure was down to roughly 57%. That’s an indication of a growing diversity in the country.

In few areas, White people no longer even make up half the population. California, Texas and Hawaii all have more people from other races. And while these places are still home to lots of white people, they also serve as homes for large Hispanic, Asian and black populations.

In states like Maine and Vermont, the change is more gradual. These states still have small towns and too few people moving in. Yet even there you can see a few small changes, particularly among the very young and young families.

Top 10 Whitest States in America

Rank	State	% White (White Alone)
1	Maine	93.7%
2	Vermont	93.6%
3	West Virginia	92.8%
4	New Hampshire	92.3%
5	Idaho	92.0%
6	Wyoming	91.2%
7	Utah	90.0%
8	Iowa	89.6%
9	Montana	88.7%
10	Nebraska	87.3%

Big States vs Small States

It’s natural to assume that the states with the most White people are the largest states. But that’s not always true. There are millions and millions of White people, for instance, in a big state like California, but because the state has millions and millions of people from other groups, the percentage of Whites is lower.

A small state such as Maine may have only a million people but most of them are White. That is why it presents itself as one of the whitest states by percentage.

So, it’s not about a total number of White people living there. It’s just what proportion of the population they are.

What are the Whitest Large Cities in the U.S.

The whitest parts tend to be in New England and the middle of the country. States like Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire are inside New England. For years, these places have been overwhelmingly White and haven’t really changed.

You can see the same pattern in the Midwest and the Mountain regions think Iowa, Wyoming, Montana and Nebraska. These are not states that have a lot of big cities, and the population, from one decade to the next, has stayed about the same. Fewer immigrants are going there, and the population turns over slowly.

In those regions, people typically live in small towns or on farms. The communities are insular, and families remain in the same places over generations.

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