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Adult LGBT Population in the Together States
This report provides estimates of the number and percent of the U.S. adult population that identifies as LGBT, overall, as well as by age. Estimates of LGBT adults at the national, state, and regional levels are included. We rely on BRFSS data for these estimates. Pooling multiple years of statistics provides more stable estimates—particularly at the state level.
Combining BRFSS numbers, we estimate that % of U.S. adults identify as LGBT. Further, we estimate that there are almost million (13,,) LGBT adults in the U.S.
Regions and States
LGBT people reside in all regions of the U.S. (Table 2 and Figure 2). Consistent with the overall population in the United States,more LGBT adults live in the South than in any other region. More than half (%) of LGBT people in the U.S. exist in the Midwest (%) and South (%), including million in the Midwest and million in the South. About one-quarter (%) of LGBT adults reside in the West, approximately million people. Less than one in five (%) LGBT adults live in the Northeast ( million).
The perce
Glossary of Terms: LGBTQ
Definitions were drafted in collaboration with other U.S.-based LGBTQ collective organizations and leaders. Observe acknowledgements section.
Additional terms and definitions about gender identity and gender utterance, transgender people, and nonbinary people are available in the Transgender Glossary.
Are we missing a term or is a definition outdated? Email press@
*NOTE: Ask people what terms they exploit to describe their sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression before assigning them a label. Outside of acronyms, these terms should only be capitalized when used at the beginning of a sentence.
LGBTQ
Acronym for woman loving woman, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer. The Q generally stands for queer when LGBTQ organizations, leaders, and media use the acronym. In settings offering endorse for youth, it can also stand for questioning. LGBT and LGBTQ+ are also used, with the + added in recognition of all non-straight, non-cisgender identities. (See Transgender Glossary ) Both are acceptable, as are other versions of thi
LGBT Populations
This map shows the estimated raw number of LGBT people (ages 13+) living in each articulate. The data are based on a Williams Institute analysis of surveys conducted by Gallup Polling () and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC; and YRBS). For more information, see the methodology in the Williams analysis.
K - M+
K - K
50K - K
8K - 49K
Data are not currently available about LGBT people living in the U.S. territories.
Percent of Mature person LGBTQ Population Covered by Laws
*Note: These percentages reflect estimates of the LGBTQ senior population living in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Estimates of the LGBTQ adult population in the five inhabited U.S. territories are not available, and so cannot be reflected here.
This route shows the estimated percentage of each state's adult (ages 18+) population that identifies as sapphic, gay, bisexual, or transgender, based on a analysis of Gallup data by The Williams Institute.
% and greater
%%
%%
%%
Percent of Adult LGBTQ Popula Why Are People Gay? Homosexual By Choice or Is Being Gay Genetic?
Estimates as to the number of gay people in the population range from 1-in to 1-in, so why are some people gay? Are they gay by choice or is existence gay genetic?
The simplest address is to look at the definition of the word "gay." The legal title gay is a synonym for homosexual, which is defined as,1,2
"Of, pertaining to, or exhibiting sexual longing or behavior directed toward a person or persons of one's own sex."
In other words, % of people experience same-sex sexual attraction or behavior; of course, this doesn't utter to what makes people gay. No one knows for certain why any individual is gay, but the current thought is that being gay is not a choice. (read: Cure the Gay: Same-sex attracted Conversion Therapy – Authentic or Hoax?) The reasons people are gay are both physiological and psychological.
Why Are People Gay? – Physiology
Modern science is functional to show that genetics is one of the causes of being same-sex attracted, although some science conflicts in this area. According to Psychology Today,3
"In recent years, evidence has accumulated
Why Are People Gay? Homosexual By Choice or Is Being Gay Genetic?
Estimates as to the number of gay people in the population range from 1-in to 1-in, so why are some people gay? Are they gay by choice or is existence gay genetic?
The simplest address is to look at the definition of the word "gay." The legal title gay is a synonym for homosexual, which is defined as,1,2
"Of, pertaining to, or exhibiting sexual longing or behavior directed toward a person or persons of one's own sex."
In other words, % of people experience same-sex sexual attraction or behavior; of course, this doesn't utter to what makes people gay. No one knows for certain why any individual is gay, but the current thought is that being gay is not a choice. (read: Cure the Gay: Same-sex attracted Conversion Therapy – Authentic or Hoax?) The reasons people are gay are both physiological and psychological.
Why Are People Gay? – Physiology
Modern science is functional to show that genetics is one of the causes of being same-sex attracted, although some science conflicts in this area. According to Psychology Today,3
"In recent years, evidence has accumulated