2021 Latino Donor Collaborative U.S. Latino GDP Report

The 2021 LDC U.S. Latino GDP Report seeks to provide a factual view of the large and rapidly growing economic contribution of Latinos living in the United States. We estimate the U.S. Latino GDP based on a detailed, bottom-up construction which leverages publicly available data from major U.S. agencies. The most recent year for which the core building block is available is 2019. Thus, this year’s report provides a snapshot of the total economic contribution of U.S. Latinos in that year. 

As a summary statistic for the economic performance of Latinos in the United States, the 2019 Latino GDP is extraordinary. The total economic output (or GDP) of Latinos in the United States was $2.7 trillion in 2019, up from $2.1 trillion in 2015, and $1.7 trillion in 2010. If Latinos living in the U.S. were an independent country, the U.S. Latino GDP would be tied for the seventh largest GDP in the world. Tied with France, the Latino GDP is larger even than the GDPs of Italy, Brazil or Canada.

While impressive for its size, the U.S. Latino GDP is most noteworthy for its growth. From 2010 to 2019, Latino real GDP grew 57 percent faster than the broader U.S. economy and 70 percent faster than the Non-Latino economy. The growth of U.S. Latino GDP even compares favorably on the world stage. From 2010 to 2019, the U.S. Latino GDP is the third fastest growing among the 10 largest GDPs, while the broader U.S. economy ranks fourth.  

The $2.7 trillion U.S. Latino economy is both deep and wide. The U.S. Latino GDP’s top industry sector is Education & Healthcare, totaling $446 billion or 16.4% of the U.S. Latino GDP. This is followed by Professional & Business Services at $327 billion (12.0% of Latino GDP) and Finance & Real Estate at $252 billion (9.3% of Latino GDP). 

As noted in previous reports, the single largest component of Latino GDP is personal consumption. In 2019, Latino consumption stood at $1.85 trillion. U.S. Latinos represent a consumption market that is nearly identical in size to the entire economy of Texas. From 2010-19, Latino real consumption grew 123 percent faster than Non-Latino, driven by large gains in personal income, which flow from rapid gains in educational attainment and strong labor force participation.