Census Race Categories: 2024 Updates and Seven New Groups

The U.S. Census uses seven race and ethnicity categories: American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Middle Eastern or North African, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and White. These seven appear together on a single combined question under the Office of Management and Budget’s revised Statistical Policy Directive No. 15, published on March 28, 2024. It is the first overhaul of federal race and ethnicity standards since 1997, and it replaces a two-question format that had asked about Hispanic ethnicity separately from a shorter list of five race categories.¹²

The Seven Categories and What They Cover

The 2024 standard treats all seven categories as co-equal on one question that asks, “What is your race and/or ethnicity?” Respondents may select every category that applies, and a person who selects only Hispanic or Latino has given a complete response.³ The category definitions come from OMB and read as social and political groupings rather than biological ones.⁴

American Indian or Alaska Native: Individuals with origins in any of the original peoples of North, South, or Central America who maintain a tribal affiliation or community attachment.
Asian: Individuals with origins in the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including groups such as Chinese, Asian Indian, Filipino, Vietnamese, Korean, and Japanese.
Black or African American: Individuals with origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa, including groups such as African American, Jamaican, Haitian, Nigerian, Ethiopian, and Somali.
Hispanic or Latino: Individuals with Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, Salvadoran, Dominican, Guatemalan, South or Central American, or other Spanish cultural roots.
Middle Eastern or North African: Individuals with origins in any of the original peoples of the Middle East or North Africa, including Lebanese, Iranian, Egyptian, Syrian, Iraqi, and Israeli backgrounds.
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander: Individuals with origins in the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
White: Individuals with origins in any of the original peoples of Europe.

Self-identification governs the whole system. The government does not assign anyone a category, and since the 2000 Census respondents have been able to select more than one.⁵

What Changed in 2024

Three shifts define the new framework. The first is structural: race and ethnicity are no longer asked as two separate questions. Under the old rules, forms asked first whether a person was Hispanic or Latino, then asked separately about race. Many Hispanic and Latino respondents did not see themselves in the five race options and picked “Some Other Race,” which became one of the fastest-growing responses on the census. Merging the questions and placing Hispanic or Latino among the race options is meant to close that gap.

The second is the addition of Middle Eastern or North African as its own category. Under the 1997 rules, people from these communities were counted as White and had no distinct option. The new MENA category gives them a dedicated line for the first time.⁴

The third is the narrowing of the White category. It now covers only individuals with origins in the original peoples of Europe. Middle Eastern and North African origins have been removed from the White definition and moved into the MENA category. Terminology was also tightened elsewhere: “Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander” became “Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander,” and the multiple-response label “Two or More Races” was replaced with “Multiracial and/or Multiethnic.”⁶

The Five Categories the New Rules Replaced

From 1997 through early 2024, the census used five race categories: White, Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. Hispanic or Latino was not among them. It was treated as an ethnicity and asked in a separate question that came before the race question. The White category under the old rules included people with origins in Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa, a definition that drew steady criticism from people in those Middle Eastern and North African communities who did not identify as White.⁵

Detailed Subgroups Below the Main Categories

Under the 1997 rules, the five categories were a floor and finer detail was optional. The 2024 rules flip that default. Federal agencies must now collect detailed subgroup information beneath each of the seven categories unless they get an exemption from the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.²

The specified subgroups for each category are:

Asian: Chinese, Asian Indian, Filipino, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, and a write-in field for groups such as Pakistani, Hmong, or Afghan.
Black or African American: African American, Jamaican, Haitian, Nigerian, Ethiopian, Somali, and a write-in field for groups such as Ghanaian or Congolese.
Hispanic or Latino: Mexican, Puerto Rican, Salvadoran, Cuban, Dominican, Guatemalan, and a write-in field for groups such as Colombian or Honduran.
Middle Eastern or North African: Lebanese, Iranian, Egyptian, Syrian, Iraqi, Israeli, and a write-in field for groups such as Moroccan or Yemeni.
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander: Native Hawaiian, Samoan, Chamorro, Tongan, Fijian, Marshallese, and a write-in field.
White: English, German, Irish, Italian, Polish, Scottish, and a write-in field.
American Indian or Alaska Native: No fixed subcategories, but a write-in field with examples such as Navajo Nation, Blackfeet Tribe, or Native Village of Barrow Inupiat Traditional Government.

How People Who Pick More Than One Category Are Counted

When respondents select multiple categories, agencies choose among three presentation approaches, and often use more than one within the same publication.⁷

Alone or in combination: Every person who selected a category is counted in that category, even if they selected others. Someone who marked both White and Black appears in both totals, and the percentages across categories add up to more than 100.
Most frequent combinations: Each observed combination is reported as its own group, such as “White and Black or African American” or “Asian and Hispanic or Latino.” Percentages add up to exactly 100 because each person appears once.
Aggregated multiracial category: People who selected a single category are reported in that category; everyone else is combined into a “Multiracial and/or Multiethnic” group. Percentages total 100, but the specific combinations are hidden, so OMB recommends pairing this with another approach.

Within any single table, agencies must apply one approach consistently. If small counts force groups to be combined, the combined line must be labeled with the actual group names rather than a generic “other.”⁸

When the New Categories Appear on the Census

The 2024 standards took effect immediately for new federal data collections created after March 28, 2024. Existing programs have until March 28, 2029, to bring their forms and reporting into line.²

The Census Bureau has announced plans to use the updated question in the 2027 American Community Survey and the 2030 Census.¹ In late 2025, OMB announced a six-month extension of the 2029 compliance deadline while the current administration reviews the standards. OMB stated that the 2024 revisions remain in effect during the review, but the scope and pace of implementation could change.

How Your Answers Are Protected

Individual race and ethnicity responses given to the Census Bureau are confidential under Title 13 of the U.S. Code. The Bureau and its employees may use the information only for statistical purposes, may not publish anything that identifies a specific person or business, and may not share individual responses outside sworn Census Bureau staff.⁹ Individual responses cannot be subpoenaed and cannot be handed to law enforcement, tax authorities, or immigration agencies.¹⁰

1
United States Census Bureau. Updates to Race/Ethnicity Standards for Our Nation
2
Federal Register. Revisions to OMBs Statistical Policy Directive No 15 Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity
3
Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Question Format – SPD 15
4
Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Categories and Definitions
5
Office of Management and Budget (OMB). 1997 Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity
6
United States Census Bureau. What Updates to OMBs Race/Ethnicity Standards Mean for the Census Bureau
7
Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Presentation of Data on Race and Ethnicity
8
Office of Management and Babel (OMB). Presentation of Data on Race and Ethnicity
9
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 13 US Code 9 – Information as Confidential; Exception
10
United States Census Bureau. Title 13 – Protection of Confidential Information