Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Houston

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1850	2,396		—
1860	4,845		102.2%
1870	9,332		92.6%
1880	16,513		77.0%
1890	27,557		66.9%
1900	44,633		62.0%
1910	78,800		76.6%
1920	138,276		75.5%
1930	292,352		111.4%
1940	384,514		31.5%
1950	596,163		55.0%
1960	938,219		57.4%
1970	1,232,802		31.4%
1980	1,595,138		29.4%
1990	1,630,553		2.2%
2000	1,953,631		19.8%
2010	2,100,263		7.5%
Est. 2015	2,296,224	[85]	9.3%
U.S. Decennial Census 2011 estimate

Map of racial distribution in Houston, 2010 U.S. Census. Each dot is 25 people: White, Black, Asian, Hispanic or Other (yellow)

Houston is multicultural, in part because of its many academic institutions and strong industries, as well as being a major port city. Over 90 languages are spoken in the city.^[86] It has among the youngest populations in the nation,^[87][88][89] partly due to an influx of immigrants into Texas.^[90] An estimated 400,000 illegal aliens reside in the Houston area.^[91]
According to the 2010 U.S. Census, whites made up 51% of Houston's population; 26% of the total population was non-Hispanic Whites. Blacks or African Americans made up 25% of Houston's population. American Indians made up 0.7% of the population. Asians made up 6% (1.7% Vietnamese, 1.3% Chinese, 1.3% Indian, 0.9% Pakistani, 0.4% Filipino, 0.3% Korean, 0.1% Japanese), while Pacific Islanders made up 0.1%. Individuals from some other race made up 15.2% of the city's population, of which 0.2% were non-Hispanic. Individuals from two or more races made up 3.3% of the city. At the 2000 Census, 1,953,631 people inhabited the city, and the population density was 3,371.7 people per square mile (1,301.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 49.3% White, 25.3% African American, 6.3% Asian, 0.7% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 16.5% from some other race, and 3.1% from two or more races. In addition, Hispanics made up 37.4% of Houston's population, while non-Hispanic Whites made up 30.8%,^[92] down from 62.4% in 1970.^[24]
The median income for a household in the city was $37,000, and for a family was $40,000. Males had a median income of $32,000 versus $27,000 for females. The per capita income was $20,000. About 19% of the population and 16% of families were below the poverty line. Of the total population, 26% of those under the age of 18 and 14% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
According to a 2014 study by the Pew Research Center, 73% of the population of the city identified themselves as Christians, with 50% professing attendance at a variety of churches that could be considered Protestant, and 19% professing Roman Catholic beliefs.^[93][94] while 20% claim no religious affiliation. The same study says that other religions (including Judaism, Buddhism, Islam, and Hinduism) collectively make up about 7% of the population

[hide]Racial composition	2010[95]	1990[24]	1970[24]
White	50.5%	52.7%	73.4%
—Non-Hispanic whites	25.6%	40.6%	62.4%[96]
Black or African American	23.7%	28.1%	25.7%,[97]
Hispanic or Latino (of any race)	43.7%	27.6%	11.3%[96]
Asian	6.0%	4.1%	0.4%