Irish diaspora: What country has the most people of Irish heritage?

America and the United Kingdom are the countries with the most Irish diaspora worldwide.

There is between 50 million and 80 million people worldwide that claim ‘some sort of Irish ancestry’ with as many as 33,000,000 Irish-Americans Stateside.

The large diaspora across the world is as a result of mass emigration which has been happening through the years as a result of a number of events and factors.

Dating back to the mid 1800s, the Great Famine is the most significant cause of large-scale emigration.

Prior to the Famine, there was poverty and unemployment which also led to emigration, while Ireland being under British rule was also a cause for Irish to leave the country as an escape.

While Ireland currently has a population of around 7 million, Brilliant Maps has estimated that there is a 10:1 ratio of Irish living outside of Ireland as in it.

USA is home to the most people claiming Irish heritage, followed by the UK at 6,000,000 and Canada at 4,600,000.

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Coming in at number four, with no surprise, is Australia, with Brilliant Maps claiming there are 2,500,000 Down Under.

Rounding up the top five is Argentina with 700,000 Irish populace.

It comes not long after it was revealed 69,000 people emigrated from Ireland in the 12 months up to April 2025 — an increase of 5,000 from the same time the year previous.

New figures from the CSO (Central Statistics Office) revealed that it was the highest emigration figure since 2015.

Almost half (48%) of those leaving Ireland were aged in the 25 to 44 years old age bracket, with the United Kingdom and Australia both proving popular destinations for expats.

Figures revealed that 15,200 and 10,600 citizens emigrated to the UK and Australia respectively.

While emigration was at a record high, so was immigration which was recorded at a 17-year high.

149,200 immigrants arrived to Ireland in the 12 month period — 30,000 were returning Irish citizens, 27,000 were EU citizens and 5,400 were UK citizens.

*This article was originally published on Extra.ie.