Biggest sources of immigrants to Des Moines

Joseph Oropel // Shutterstock

Biggest sources of immigrants to Des Moines

Nearly 14% of the United States population is composed of immigrants. But in reality, the vast majority of Americans today are here because of relatives who immigrated from other countries some time in the last several hundred years.

And while the distinctive American culture and spirit is the result of blending many diverse cultures and histories, the United States has for centuries had an up-and-down relationship with immigration.

Each era of immigration has been met with reductive ideas and resistance, whether the backlash was directed toward the Chinese, Irish, Italians, or Mexicans. Immigration laws have targeted specific groups at various times, stoking intolerance and preventing people from truly joining American society. Over time, however, as laws changed to be more equitable and immigrants found their footings, we have reaped the rewards of innovation in business, music, art, literature, dance, food, societal norms, entertainment, and sports—all while realizing a greater understanding of and respect for different cultures, religions, and ideas.

Stacker compiled a list of the countries most immigrants to Des Moines come from, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Countries are ranked by highest number of foreign-born residents who lived in Des Moines as of 2019’s five-year estimates.

Keep reading to find out more about the immigrant community in your home city.

1 / 50

Pixabay

#50. Dominican Republic

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 102
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%

National
- Number of residents: 1,118,147
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.5%
- #8 most common country of origin

2 / 50

Maryam // Wikicommons

#49. Kuwait

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 104
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%

National
- Number of residents: 33,788
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.1%
- #102 most common country of origin

3 / 50

trabantos // Shutterstock

#48. Latvia

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 118
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%

National
- Number of residents: 23,372
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.1%
- #115 most common country of origin

4 / 50

Nahlik // Shutterstock

#47. Poland

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 119
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%

National
- Number of residents: 410,841
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.9%
- #21 most common country of origin

5 / 50

Evgeniya Uvarova // Shutterstock

#46. Argentina

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 129
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%

National
- Number of residents: 194,435
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%
- #39 most common country of origin

6 / 50

Christian Vinces // Shutterstock

#45. Peru

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 130
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%

National
- Number of residents: 451,076
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.0%
- #18 most common country of origin

7 / 50

robertonencini // Shutterstock

#44. Sierra Leone

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 135
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%

National
- Number of residents: 40,991
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.1%
- #94 most common country of origin

8 / 50

Adam Jones, Ph.D. // Wikicommons

#42 (tie). Morocco

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 136
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%

National
- Number of residents: 78,439
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%
- #73 most common country of origin

9 / 50

Wangkun Jia // Shutterstock

#42 (tie). Spain

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 136
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%

National
- Number of residents: 115,113
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%
- #55 most common country of origin

10 / 50

Jontycrane // Wikimedia Commons

#41. Uganda

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 139
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%

National
- Number of residents: 31,366
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.1%
- #105 most common country of origin

11 / 50

Saqib Rizvi // Shutterstock

#40. Pakistan

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 153
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%

National
- Number of residents: 376,127
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.9%
- #25 most common country of origin

12 / 50

Elena Simona Craciun // Shutterstock

#39. Nicaragua

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 182
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%

National
- Number of residents: 251,913
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.6%
- #33 most common country of origin

13 / 50

Pixabay

#38. Italy

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 196
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%

National
- Number of residents: 332,857
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.8%
- #30 most common country of origin

14 / 50

OpenUpEd // Flickr

#37. Nigeria

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 197
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%

National
- Number of residents: 350,272
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.8%
- #26 most common country of origin

15 / 50

Subodh Agnihotri // Shutterstock

#36. Croatia

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 208
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%

National
- Number of residents: 37,176
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.1%
- #97 most common country of origin

16 / 50

Rjruiziii // Wikicommons

#35. Ghana

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 209
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%

National
- Number of residents: 178,388
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%
- #43 most common country of origin

17 / 50

Prin Adulyatham // Shutterstock

#34. Egypt

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 212
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%

National
- Number of residents: 191,452
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%
- #40 most common country of origin

18 / 50

Catarina Belova // Shutterstock

#33. Brazil

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 217
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%

National
- Number of residents: 433,479
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.0%
- #20 most common country of origin

19 / 50

Alexander Canas Arango // Shutterstock

#32. Colombia

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 229
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%

National
- Number of residents: 761,374
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.7%
- #12 most common country of origin

20 / 50

Michael Shade // Wikicommons

#31. Ecuador

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 272
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.5%

National
- Number of residents: 438,474
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.0%
- #19 most common country of origin

21 / 50

Dave Primov // Shutterstock

#30. Eritrea

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 289
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.6%

National
- Number of residents: 45,119
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.1%
- #90 most common country of origin

22 / 50

Unsplash

#29. Ukraine

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 293
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.6%

National
- Number of residents: 345,250
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.8%
- #28 most common country of origin

23 / 50

Issa Kashala // Shutterstock

#28. Democratic Republic of Congo

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 304
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.6%

National
- Number of residents: 43,723
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.1%
- #91 most common country of origin

24 / 50

neiljs // Flickr

#27. Ethiopia

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 308
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.6%

National
- Number of residents: 249,777
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.6%
- #34 most common country of origin

25 / 50

User:Colin // Wikimedia Commons

#26. United Kingdom

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 343
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.7%

National
- Number of residents: 698,612
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.6%
- #14 most common country of origin

26 / 50

Viacheslav Lopatin // Shutterstock

#25. Russia

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 351
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.7%

National
- Number of residents: 391,641
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.9%
- #22 most common country of origin

27 / 50

Vannrith Va // Unsplash

#24. Cambodia

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 367
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.7%

National
- Number of residents: 151,066
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%
- #46 most common country of origin

28 / 50

GoodFreePhotos

#23. Malaysia

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 431
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.8%

National
- Number of residents: 76,521
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%
- #74 most common country of origin

29 / 50

MDOGAN // Shutterstock

#22. Somalia

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 449
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.9%

National
- Number of residents: 98,966
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%
- #60 most common country of origin

30 / 50

Vixit // Shutterstock

#21. Nepal

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 485
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.9%

National
- Number of residents: 140,904
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%
- #49 most common country of origin

31 / 50

Irene2005 // Flickr

#20. Congo

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 558
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.1%

National
- Number of residents: 30,496
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.1%
- #106 most common country of origin

32 / 50

Unsplash

#19. Canada

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 610
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.2%

National
- Number of residents: 808,566
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.8%
- #11 most common country of origin

33 / 50

Max Pixel

#18. Germany

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 657
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.3%

National
- Number of residents: 560,368
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.3%
- #17 most common country of origin

34 / 50

Marek Poplawski // Shutterstock

#17. Honduras

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 665
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.3%

National
- Number of residents: 651,123
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.5%
- #16 most common country of origin

35 / 50

Photos By Beks // Unsplash

#16. Kenya

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 773
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.5%

National
- Number of residents: 141,751
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%
- #48 most common country of origin

36 / 50

Kys951 // Wikimedia Commons

#15. South Korea

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 918
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.8%

National
- Number of residents: 1,044,634
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.4%
- #9 most common country of origin

37 / 50

Christopher Michel // Flickr

#14. Sudan

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 921
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.8%

National
- Number of residents: 46,716
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.1%
- #87 most common country of origin

38 / 50

Kobby Dagan // Shutterstock

#13. Guatemala

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 994
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.9%

National
- Number of residents: 979,098
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.2%
- #10 most common country of origin

39 / 50

Jack Bkk // Shutterstock

#12. Thailand

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 1,013
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.9%

National
- Number of residents: 255,345
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.6%
- #32 most common country of origin

40 / 50

Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#11. China

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 1,018
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.9%

National
- Number of residents: 2,162,395
- Percent of foreign born residents: 4.9%
- #3 most common country of origin

41 / 50

USACE HQ , JIM GORDAN, CIV, USACE // Wikicommons

#10. Iraq

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 1,299
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.5%

National
- Number of residents: 225,038
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.5%
- #38 most common country of origin

42 / 50

blk24ga // Wikicommons

#9. Liberia

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 1,366
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.6%

National
- Number of residents: 87,991
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%
- #67 most common country of origin

43 / 50

Joseph Oropel // Shutterstock

#8. Philippines

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 1,486
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.8%

National
- Number of residents: 1,983,939
- Percent of foreign born residents: 4.5%
- #4 most common country of origin

44 / 50

Pascal Müller // Unsplash

#7. Laos

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 1,639
- Percent of foreign born residents: 3.1%

National
- Number of residents: 181,546
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.4%
- #42 most common country of origin

45 / 50

JMRAFFi // Wikimedia Commons

#6. El Salvador

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 1,674
- Percent of foreign born residents: 3.2%

National
- Number of residents: 1,381,008
- Percent of foreign born residents: 3.1%
- #5 most common country of origin

46 / 50

Cheng Qian // Unsplash

#5. Burma

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 2,486
- Percent of foreign born residents: 4.7%

National
- Number of residents: 147,573
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.3%
- #47 most common country of origin

47 / 50

Quangpraha // Pixabay

#4. Vietnam

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 3,094
- Percent of foreign born residents: 5.9%

National
- Number of residents: 1,336,988
- Percent of foreign born residents: 3.0%
- #6 most common country of origin

48 / 50

Kriangkrai Thitimakorn // Shutterstock

#3. India

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 3,949
- Percent of foreign born residents: 7.5%

National
- Number of residents: 2,561,906
- Percent of foreign born residents: 5.8%
- #2 most common country of origin

49 / 50

neshom // Pixabay

#2. Bosnia and Herzegovina

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 4,490
- Percent of foreign born residents: 8.6%

National
- Number of residents: 103,938
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.2%
- #57 most common country of origin

50 / 50

Jakub Hejtmánek // Wikicommons

#1. Mexico

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA Metro Area
- Number of residents: 10,254
- Percent of foreign born residents: 19.6%

National
- Number of residents: 11,250,541
- Percent of foreign born residents: 25.6%
- #1 most common country of origin

Biggest sources of immigrants to Des Moines