Introduction
Until recently it was difficult to estimate the gay population of a state. Between laws that banned homosexuality and private stigmas toward it, many gay people would not have the possibility to disclose their sexual orientation. But as the public opinion changed, homosexuality became more accepted, less stigmatized and marginalized. Moreover, modifications in the country’s legislation also made it less challenging to measure a population’s sexual orientation. For example, the legalization of gay marriage across the country allowed for statistics to start tracking same-sex marriages.
The fight for LGBT rights was primarily engaged in the streets. However, debates in the courtroom significantly participated in changing the legislation. In 2003, the first win was in Lawrence v. Texas, where the Supreme Court overturned a Texas anti-sodomy law. After several losses in the electoral sphere, including the initial passage of California’s Proposition 8, the Supreme Court made same-sex marriage the law of the land in Obergefell v. Hodges. Most recently, the Supreme Court extended the protections of Title XI to include sexual orientation and gender expression in Bostock v. Clayton County.
See for yourself how the gay population varies by state by scrolling through the charts.
| # | State | LGBT Population | Transgender Population |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 1,859,000 | 0.49% |
| 2 | Texas | 1,053,000 | 0.43% |
| 3 | New York | 913,000 | 0.53% |
| 4 | Florida | 886,000 | 0.55% |
| 5 | Illinois | 506,000 | 0.44% |
| 6 | Pennsylvania | 490,000 | 0.55% |
| 7 | Ohio | 462,000 | 0.51% |
| 8 | Georgia | 425,000 | 0.6% |
| 9 | North Carolina | 382,000 | 0.87% |
| 10 | Michigan | 373,000 | 0.42% |
| 11 | New Jersey | 343,000 | 0.62% |
| 12 | Washington | 342,000 | 0.56% |
| 13 | Massachusetts | 335,000 | 0.67% |
| 14 | Virginia | 308,000 | 0.47% |
| 15 | Arizona | 286,000 | 0.73% |
| 16 | Indiana | 272,000 | 0.5% |
| 17 | Colorado | 234,000 | 0.6% |
| 18 | Maryland | 234,000 | 0.51% |
| 19 | Tennessee | 223,000 | 0.52% |
| 20 | Missouri | 217,000 | 0.2% |
| 21 | Minnesota | 210,000 | 0.6% |
| 22 | Oregon | 207,000 | 0.59% |
| 23 | Wisconsin | 207,000 | 0.34% |
| 24 | Louisiana | 169,000 | 0.44% |
| 25 | South Carolina | 167,000 | 0.47% |
| 26 | Alabama | 147,000 | 0.48% |
| 27 | Nevada | 145,000 | 0.34% |
| 28 | Kentucky | 144,000 | 0.51% |
| 29 | Oklahoma | 138,000 | 0.63% |
| 30 | Connecticut | 133,000 | 0.54% |
| 31 | Iowa | 106,000 | 0.29% |
| 32 | Utah | 104,000 | 0.6% |
| 33 | Mississippi | 99,000 | 0.42% |
| 34 | Arkansas | 95,000 | 0.7% |
| 35 | Kansas | 92,000 | 0.56% |
| 36 | New Mexico | 85,000 | 0.67% |
| 37 | West Virginia | 68,000 | 0.4% |
| 38 | Nebraska | 67,000 | 0.45% |
| 39 | Maine | 60,000 | 0.53% |
| 40 | Hawaii | 59,000 | 0.7% |
| 41 | New Hampshire | 59,000 | 0.57% |
| 42 | Idaho | 48,000 | 0.52% |
| 43 | Rhode Island | 44,000 | 0.66% |
| 44 | Delaware | 40,000 | 0.82% |
| 45 | Montana | 30,000 | 0.41% |
| 46 | Vermont | 30,000 | 0.53% |
| 47 | Alaska | 25,000 | 0.7% |
| 48 | South Dakota | 25,000 | 0.44% |
| 49 | North Dakota | 20,000 | 0.43% |
| 50 | Wyoming | 18,000 | 0.48% |
LGBT Population by State
Alabama
LGBT Population
147,000
Ranked in the US
#26
Ranked in the US
#34
Alaska
LGBT Population
25,000
Ranked in the US
#47
Ranked in the US
#5
Arizona
LGBT Population
286,000
Ranked in the US
#15
Ranked in the US
#4
Arkansas
LGBT Population
95,000
Ranked in the US
#34
Ranked in the US
#6
California
LGBT Population
1,859,000
Ranked in the US
#1
Ranked in the US
#33
Colorado
LGBT Population
234,000
Ranked in the US
#17
Ranked in the US
#13
Connecticut
LGBT Population
133,000
Ranked in the US
#30
Ranked in the US
#23
Delaware
LGBT Population
40,000
Ranked in the US
#44
Ranked in the US
#3
Florida
LGBT Population
886,000
Ranked in the US
#4
Ranked in the US
#21
Georgia
LGBT Population
425,000
Ranked in the US
#8
Ranked in the US
#14
Hawaii
LGBT Population
59,000
Ranked in the US
#40
Ranked in the US
#7
Idaho
LGBT Population
48,000
Ranked in the US
#42
Ranked in the US
#27
Illinois
LGBT Population
506,000
Ranked in the US
#5
Ranked in the US
#39
Indiana
LGBT Population
272,000
Ranked in the US
#16
Ranked in the US
#32
Iowa
LGBT Population
106,000
Ranked in the US
#31
Ranked in the US
#50
Kansas
LGBT Population
92,000
Ranked in the US
#35
Ranked in the US
#19
Kentucky
LGBT Population
144,000
Ranked in the US
#28
Ranked in the US
#29
Louisiana
LGBT Population
169,000
Ranked in the US
#24
Ranked in the US
#40
Maine
LGBT Population
60,000
Ranked in the US
#39
Ranked in the US
#24
Maryland
LGBT Population
234,000
Ranked in the US
#18
Ranked in the US
#30
Massachusetts
LGBT Population
335,000
Ranked in the US
#13
Ranked in the US
#8
Michigan
LGBT Population
373,000
Ranked in the US
#10
Ranked in the US
#44
Minnesota
LGBT Population
210,000
Ranked in the US
#21
Ranked in the US
#15
Mississippi
LGBT Population
99,000
Ranked in the US
#33
Ranked in the US
#45
Missouri
LGBT Population
217,000
Ranked in the US
#20
Ranked in the US
#51
Montana
LGBT Population
30,000
Ranked in the US
#45
Ranked in the US
#46
Nebraska
LGBT Population
67,000
Ranked in the US
#38
Ranked in the US
#38
Nevada
LGBT Population
145,000
Ranked in the US
#27
Ranked in the US
#48
New Hampshire
LGBT Population
59,000
Ranked in the US
#41
Ranked in the US
#18
New Jersey
LGBT Population
343,000
Ranked in the US
#11
Ranked in the US
#12
New Mexico
LGBT Population
85,000
Ranked in the US
#36
Ranked in the US
#9
New York
LGBT Population
913,000
Ranked in the US
#3
Ranked in the US
#25
North Carolina
LGBT Population
382,000
Ranked in the US
#9
Ranked in the US
#2
North Dakota
LGBT Population
20,000
Ranked in the US
#49
Ranked in the US
#42
Ohio
LGBT Population
462,000
Ranked in the US
#7
Ranked in the US
#31
Oklahoma
LGBT Population
138,000
Ranked in the US
#29
Ranked in the US
#11
Oregon
LGBT Population
207,000
Ranked in the US
#22
Ranked in the US
#17
Pennsylvania
LGBT Population
490,000
Ranked in the US
#6
Ranked in the US
#22
Rhode Island
LGBT Population
44,000
Ranked in the US
#43
Ranked in the US
#10
South Carolina
LGBT Population
167,000
Ranked in the US
#25
Ranked in the US
#36
South Dakota
LGBT Population
25,000
Ranked in the US
#48
Ranked in the US
#41
Tennessee
LGBT Population
223,000
Ranked in the US
#19
Ranked in the US
#28
Texas
LGBT Population
1,053,000
Ranked in the US
#2
Ranked in the US
#43
Utah
LGBT Population
104,000
Ranked in the US
#32
Ranked in the US
#16
Vermont
LGBT Population
30,000
Ranked in the US
#46
Ranked in the US
#26
Virginia
LGBT Population
308,000
Ranked in the US
#14
Ranked in the US
#37
Washington
LGBT Population
342,000
Ranked in the US
#12
Ranked in the US
#20
West Virginia
LGBT Population
68,000
Ranked in the US
#37
Ranked in the US
#47
Wisconsin
LGBT Population
207,000
Ranked in the US
#23
Ranked in the US
#49
Wyoming
LGBT Population
18,000
Ranked in the US
#50
Ranked in the US
#35