Most men are gay

Home / gay topics / Most men are gay

Central Florida continues its rapid expansion, with Osceola County growing 19.7% and Lake County increasing by 17.4%. Almost one in ten (9.1%) of those 25 to 34 years old, less than 5% of those ages 35 to 49, and less than 3% of those ages 50 and older identify as LGBT.

Regional and state-level LGBT estimates by age are provided in Appendix A2a.

Download the full report

Download the 2020 version

Download the 2019 version

For results based on the total sample of national adults, the margin of sampling error is ±1 percentage point at the 95% confidence level.

For results based on the total sample of 899 LGBTQ+ adults, the margin of sampling error is ±4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.

All reported margins of sampling error include computed design effects for weighting.

Each sample of national adults includes a minimum quota of 80% cellphone respondents and 20% landline respondents, with additional minimum quotas by time zone within region.

About 23% of Gen Z adults (born between 1997 and 2006, who were aged 18 to 27 when interviewed) and 14% of millennials (born 1981 to 1996, aged 28 to 43) are LGBTQ+, compared with about 5% or less of U.S. adults in older generations.

###Embeddable###

Ten percent of women versus 6% of men say they are LGBTQ+; the difference is mostly because women are more likely than men to say they are bisexual. Gender gaps are especially pronounced in the younger generations — 31% of Gen Z women versus 12% of Gen Z men, and 18% of millennial women versus 9% of millennial men, identify as LGBTQ+, with most of these younger women saying they are bisexual.

Strong differences in LGBTQ+ identification are also seen by ideology, with 21% of liberals, 8% of moderates and 3% of conservatives saying they are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.

Stay up to date with the latest insights by following @Gallup on X and on Instagram.

Learn more in Gallup’s2025 LGBTQ+ update.

New York has a financial capital with diverse economic sectors.

most men are gay

Less than one in five (18.5%) LGBT adults live in the Northeast (2.6 million).

The percent of adults who identify as LGBT differs by state.

In terms of the number of LGBT adults, the top states with the largest number of LGBT adults are also the states with the largest overall populations, except for Washington, which is 13th in terms of overall adult population and 10th in terms of the adult LGBT population.[footnote id=’2′]

Age

As shown in Table 5 and Figure 3, LGBT identification varies by age.

Nearly one in six young adults (ages 18 to 24) identifies as LGBT, while fewer adults identify as LGBT at the older end of the age continuum.

Population by County

New York’s population changes show dramatic urban shifts, with Bronx County experiencing the steepest decline at 10.6% since 2020. Florida has a tourism-driven economy with aerospace and agricultural sectors.

New York is a state in the Northeast region of the United States, known for the Adirondacks, Finger Lakes, and global city life.

Pooling multiple years of data provides more stable estimates—particularly at the state level.

Combining 2020-2021 BRFSS data, we estimate that 5.5% of U.S. adults identify as LGBT. The capital city is Albany. While Miami-Dade County remains the most populous with 2.7 million residents, the fastest growth is occurring in counties like St. Johns County and St.

Lucie County, which have grown by 24.9% and 21.6% respectively since 2020. About one-quarter (24.5%) of LGBT adults reside in the West, approximately 3.4 million people. The state’s largest borough, Kings County (Brooklyn), and Queens County have both lost nearly 8% of their populations.

Population by County

Florida’s population growth shows dramatic regional variations, with coastal and central counties experiencing the strongest increases.

The percentage has more than doubled since Gallup first measured LGBTQ+ identification in 2012.

###Embeddable###

Bisexual adults make up the largest share of the LGBTQ+ population at 56.3%, equivalent to 5.2% of all U.S. adults. About one in five LGBTQ+ adults say they are gay, with slightly fewer, close to 15%, identifying as lesbian.

Just under 14% of LGBTQ+ adults say they are transgender, which equates to a little over 1% of all U.S. adults.

###Embeddable###

LGBTQ+ Identification Most Common Among Young Adults

Adults in younger generations are far more likely than those in older generations to identify as LGBTQ+. The capital city is Tallahassee. Consistent with the overall population in the United States,more LGBT adults live in the South than in any other region.

Landline and cellular telephone numbers are selected using random-digit-dial methods.

In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.

Related Topics Include:

USAAll Gallup HeadlinesLGBTQ+Social and Policy IssuesThe Short Answer

Access Crucial Data for Your Research

Search, examine, compare and export nearly a century of primary data.

Learn More about Access Crucial Data for Your Research

Florida is a state in the Southeast region of the United States, known for the Everglades, white-sand beaches, and tropical keys.

More than half (57.0%) of LGBT people in the U.S. live in the Midwest (21.1%) and South (35.9%), including 2.9 million in the Midwest and 5.0 million in the South. Further, we estimate that there are almost 13.9 million (13,942,200) LGBT adults in the U.S.

Regions and States

LGBT people reside in all regions of the U.S.

(Table 2 and Figure 2). It has a population of 23,839,600, making it the 3rd most populated state in the country. Meanwhile, some upstate counties are growing, with Orange County and Saratoga County increasing by 2.1% and 1.4% respectively. We rely on BRFSS 2020-2021 data for these estimates.