IDCDCiranians.globalIDCDCResearch
Search
Account

Research

Observatory

Figures by country. Different measures are never added together. Where no official statistic counts Iranians, the page says so.

Before you begin The Iranian Diaspora Cooperation & Development Council is a peer-to-peer network. It is not a university and acts for no government, party, corporation or faith body.

Outside sources keep their own licences. A listing or a link is not an endorsement.

How this page handles evidence

Every figure carries its measure, year, source and label. Unknown is shown as unknown.

Verified
A label: the item matches its primary record, such as the official table or the Crossref entry.
Secondary source
A label: the figure comes from a reliable report about the source, not from the source itself.
To verify
A label: the item is listed as found and still needs checking against its source.

Sources

Open scholarly records on this subject, from approved indexes. Listed for reference, not yet reviewed.

  1. Mehdi Gharakhlou, Andre Langlois (2006). Spatial Distribution Of Iranian Population In Canada: A Portrait Using The 2001 Census Data. University of Tehran, Faculty of Economics. DOI 10.22059/ier.2006.32637
  2. M Bozorgmehr, G Sabagh (1988). High Status Immigrants: A Statistical Profile of Iranians in the United States. Iranian Studies. DOI 10.1080/00210868808701715

Cite this page

Report an error What we are and are not

01Born in Iran, by country

Born in Iran (stock), 2024. Source: UN DESA International Migrant Stock 2024 (verified). One measure for every country; descendants and other definitions are not included, so these are not community sizes.

  1. 01United States431,405
  2. 02Germany283,454
  3. 03Canada205,304
  4. 04Türkiye199,735
  5. 05United Kingdom124,200
  6. 06Australia88,697
  7. 07Israel61,572
  8. 08Austria29,559
  9. 09Italy23,973
  10. 10Switzerland17,038
  11. 11Belgium15,212
  12. 12Iraq14,747
  13. 13Finland8,959
  14. 14Armenia6,793
  15. 15New Zealand5,632
  16. 16Greece4,976
  17. 17Hungary4,866
  18. 18Japan4,201
  19. 19Kazakhstan3,012
  20. 20Pakistan2,148
  21. 21India1,810
  22. 22China1,331
  23. 23Brazil815
  24. 24Azerbaijan710
  25. 25South Africa499
  26. 26Mexico401
  27. 27Malaysia358community claims higher
  28. 28Argentina227
  29. 29Georgia124likely undercount
  30. 30Venezuela80
Not published by this source: France.

02City index

69 city pages in 49 country programmes, indexed on the H3 hexagonal grid (resolution 2, cells of about 87,000 square kilometres). A count of the platform’s own pages, not of people.

The map needs JavaScript. The layers it shows are listed beside it.

Layers

Places on this map (69)

Map: OpenFreeMap, OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Boundaries: Natural Earth. Places: the platform’s own pages.

Grid: H3 (Apache-2.0). Map: OpenStreetMap via OpenFreeMap.

All 57 cells
H3 cellCities
82196ffffffffffAmsterdam, Netherlands; The Hague, Netherlands; Rotterdam, Netherlands
821f97fffffffffLyon, France; Geneva, Switzerland
821fa7fffffffffCologne, Germany; Brussels, Belgium
821f07fffffffffMalmö, Sweden; Copenhagen, Denmark
820887fffffffffStockholm, Sweden; Uppsala, Sweden
822c07fffffffffVan, Türkiye; Yerevan, Armenia
8243affffffffffDubai, United Arab Emirates; Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
8229a7fffffffffLos Angeles, United States; Orange County, United States
82608ffffffffffMumbai, India; Pune, India
822db7fffffffffJerusalem, Israel; Holon and Bat Yam, Israel
821f9ffffffffffMilan, Italy; Turin, Italy
82be0ffffffffffSydney, Australia
82be8ffffffffffBrisbane, Australia
82be67fffffffffMelbourne, Australia
82c997fffffffffPerth, Australia
8212cffffffffffCalgary, Canada
8212effffffffffEdmonton, Canada
8228dffffffffffVancouver, Canada
822b9ffffffffffToronto, Canada
822b87fffffffffOttawa, Canada
822baffffffffffMontreal, Canada
821fb7fffffffffParis, France
821f8ffffffffffMunich, Germany
821f1ffffffffffBerlin, Germany
821f17fffffffffHamburg, Germany
821faffffffffffFrankfurt, Germany
821f27fffffffffGothenburg, Sweden
822d37fffffffffAnkara, Türkiye
823f67fffffffffDenizli, Türkiye
821ecffffffffffIstanbul, Türkiye
8243a7fffffffffAbu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
82194ffffffffffLondon, United Kingdom
821957fffffffffManchester, United Kingdom
82195ffffffffffBirmingham, United Kingdom
82190ffffffffffGlasgow, United Kingdom
822837fffffffffSan Francisco Bay Area, United States
822aaffffffffffWashington DC area, United States
8244c7fffffffffAtlanta, United States
822667fffffffffChicago, United States
822a17fffffffffNew York area, United States
82446ffffffffffHouston, United States
8226cffffffffffDallas, United States
8228d7fffffffffSeattle, United States
821e07fffffffffVienna, Austria
8260b7fffffffffHyderabad, India
821e87fffffffffRome, Italy
822f5ffffffffffTokyo, Japan
826507fffffffffKuala Lumpur, Malaysia
82099ffffffffffOslo, Norway
82bcc7fffffffffJohannesburg, South Africa
82ad37fffffffffCape Town, South Africa
821f87fffffffffZurich, Switzerland
82a817fffffffffSão Paulo, Brazil
822c27fffffffffBatumi, Georgia
822c2ffffffffffTbilisi, Georgia
827b5ffffffffffLamu and Mombasa, Kenya
827b4ffffffffffZanzibar, Tanzania

03Every figure, by country

Each figure keeps its measure, year, source and label.

CountryFiguresHow statistics see the community
Australia70,899 (born in Iran, 2021) verified
88,697 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verified		The census asks about ancestry and the language spoken at home, so the community is visible.
Canada205,304 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verified
213,160 born in Iran; 200,465 ‘Iranian’ and 80,340 ‘Persian’ ethnic origin (overlapping) (birth and ethnic origin, 2021) to verify		The census asks about ethnic origin and mother tongue, so the community is visible.
Francenot published (France records no Iran-origin breakdown in UN DESA, 2024) verified
5,467 refugees, 335 asylum-seekers (UNHCR, Iranian origin, 2025) verified		France keeps no ethnic statistics and records only country of birth.
Germany324,000 (255,000 immigrants) (Iranian migration background, 2024) secondary
162,000 (Iranian citizens, 31 Dec 2024, 2024) secondary
283,454 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verified		The Mikrozensus records a migration background, so Iranians and their children are visible.
Netherlands65,721 (50,646 born abroad, 15,075 born in the Netherlands) (Iranian origin, 2026) verifiedCBS records origin over two generations, so the community is visible.
Sweden87,115 (born in Iran, 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Türkiye199,735 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verified
about 96,000 (Iranian citizens, 2024) secondary		Residence permits are counted by citizenship, so Iranian citizens are partly visible.
United Arab Emirates400,000 to 500,000 (community and media estimates; no official figure, 2023 to 2026) secondaryOfficial statistics do not record Iranian origin.
United Kingdom109,168 (born in Iran, England and Wales, 2021) verified
124,200 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verified		The census records country of birth, ethnic group write-ins and main language, so the community is visible.
United States750,000 (445,000 immigrants, 310,000 US-born) (Iranian Americans, Pew definition (born in Iran, ancestry or parent), 2024) verified
431,405 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verified
518,792 (ACS Iranian/Persian ancestry, ACS 2020-24) secondary		The American Community Survey asks about ancestry and the language spoken at home, so the community is visible.
Armenia6,793 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Austria29,559 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Bahrain48,000 to 225,000 (citizens of Iranian descent (Ajam) and Iranian citizens; estimates) to verifyOfficial statistics do not record Iranian origin.
Belgium15,212 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Denmark23,418 immigrants and 5,459 descendants (origin, 2026 Q3) verifiedStatistics record origin over two generations, so the community is visible.
India1,810 (Iranian citizens and refugees, 2024) verified
Parsi and Irani communities: separate ancestry, no figure checked () to verify		Iranian heritage is partly visible in official statistics.
Iraq14,747 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Israel61,572 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verified
200,000 to 250,000 (Iranian Jews including Israel-born descendants; estimate) to verify		Iranian origin is partly visible. The CBS origin tables have not yet been found.
Italy23,973 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Japan4,201 (Iranian citizens, 2024) verifiedStatistics record citizenship, so Iranian citizens are visible.
Kuwaitabout 38,000 non-Kuwaiti Iranians plus a larger Ajam citizen community (estimate, 2021) to verifyOfficial statistics do not record Iranian origin.
Malaysia358 (community claims higher) (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Norway26,497 (immigrants and Norwegian-born to immigrant parents, 2026) verifiedStatistics record origin over two generations, so the community is visible.
South Africa499 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Switzerland17,038 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Afghanistan41 refugees, 48 asylum-seekers (UNHCR, 2025) verifiedNo official statistics source has been reviewed here yet.
Argentina227 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Azerbaijan710 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Brazil815 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
China1,331 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
CyprusNone foundStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
EgyptNone foundNo official statistics source has been reviewed here yet.
Finland8,959 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Georgia124 (likely undercount) (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Greece4,976 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Hungary4,866 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Kazakhstan3,012 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Kenyano count: historic Shirazi identity, not a migrant population () verifiedNo official statistics source has been reviewed here yet.
Mexico401 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
New Zealand5,632 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record ethnicity, so the community is visible.
NigeriaNone foundNo official statistics source has been reviewed here yet.
Oman25,000 to 100,000 (estimate) to verifyOfficial statistics do not record Iranian origin.
Pakistan2,148 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Qatarabout 30,000 (estimate) to verifyOfficial statistics do not record Iranian origin.
RussiaNone foundStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Spainnot found () to verifyStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
TajikistanNone foundNo official statistics source has been reviewed here yet.
Tanzaniano count: historic Shirazi identity () verifiedNo official statistics source has been reviewed here yet.
Venezuela80 (born in Iran (stock), 2024) verifiedStatistics record country of birth. Descendants born here are not visible.
Cite this page
APA

Iranian Diaspora Cooperation & Development Council. (2026). Observatory. iranians.global. https://iranians.global/research/observatory/

Chicago

Iranian Diaspora Cooperation & Development Council. 2026. “Observatory.” iranians.global. https://iranians.global/research/observatory/.

BibTeX
@misc{idcdc2026_research_observatory,
	author = {{Iranian Diaspora Cooperation \& Development Council}},
	year = {2026},
	note = {Licence: CC BY 4.0},
	title = {Observatory},
	url = {https://iranians.global/research/observatory/},
	howpublished = {https://iranians.global/research/observatory/},
}

Download .bib

RIS
TY  - ELEC
AU  - Iranian Diaspora Cooperation & Development Council
DA  - 2026///
PY  - 2026
ID  - idcdc2026_research_o
N1  - Licence: CC BY 4.0
TI  - Observatory
UR  - https://iranians.global/research/observatory/
ER  -

Download .ris

Licence CC BY 4.0

04Research and sources

Recent and relevant work on this page’s subject, from approved open scholarly sources. Metadata and links only. Titles stay as published. Not yet reviewed.

  1. Spatial Distribution Of Iranian Population In Canada: A Portrait Using The 2001 Census Data

    Mehdi Gharakhlou, Andre Langlois · 2006 · University of Tehran, Faculty of Economics

    ArticleOpenAIRE

  2. High Status Immigrants: A Statistical Profile of Iranians in the United States

    M Bozorgmehr, G Sabagh · 1988 · Iranian Studies

    ArticleOpenAIRE

Sources, licences and fetch dates: OpenAIRE (CC BY 4.0 (OpenAIRE Graph)), 2026-10-23.