What is Black Atlanta known for?

Black Atlanta is known for its thriving Black culture, Black-owned businesses, historically Black colleges (HBCUs), Civil Rights history, world-class nightlife, music scene, and a booming Black entrepreneurship ecosystem. Atlanta is often called the 'Black Mecca' of America. BlackAtlanta.com is your guide to all of it.

What percentage of Atlanta is Black?

Approximately 51% of Atlanta's city population identifies as Black or African American, making it one of the most Black-majority major cities in the United States. The Atlanta metro area has the second largest Black population in the country.

What are the best Black Atlanta events this weekend?

BlackAtlanta.com is the #1 source for Black Atlanta events — from nightlife and day parties to brunch, networking, concerts, and rooftop events. Visit blackatlanta.com/Scene for the latest Black Atlanta events this weekend.

Where can I find Black-owned businesses in Atlanta?

BlackAtlanta.com hosts the largest directory of Black-owned businesses in Atlanta, GA — including restaurants, bars, salons, fitness studios, professional services, real estate, and more. Visit blackatlanta.com/Guide to browse the full directory.

What neighborhoods are popular in Black Atlanta?

Popular Black Atlanta neighborhoods include West End, East Atlanta, Cascade, South Fulton, Buckhead, Midtown, Downtown, Decatur, and Camp Creek. Each has a vibrant community of Black-owned businesses and cultural events.

The index

Population & DataData Profile

Black Population Growth Nationally

The U.S. Black population reached an estimated 48.3 million people in 2023, or 14.4% of the country. A large share of the growth comes from people who identify as Black in combination with another race, which changes how the numbers should be read.

Reviewed Oct 25, 2026By BlackAtlanta Editorial2 sources cited

What to take away

1An estimated 48.3 million people in the U.S. identified as Black in 2023 — 14.4% of the total population.
2That is a 33% increase since 2000, when the figure was about 36.2 million.
3The multiracial, non-Hispanic Black population grew 269% between 2000 and 2023, to roughly 5.6 million people.
4The figures are Pew tabulations of the 2023 American Community Survey and are rounded.
5Pew issued a correction revising the 2023 multiracial, non-Hispanic Black figure to 5.6 million.

The headline figures

Pew Research Center's tabulation of the Census Bureau's 2023 American Community Survey put the total U.S. Black population at about 48.3 million people, or 14.4% of the country. That represents a 33% increase since 2000, when the figure was about 36.2 million.

Where the growth is coming from

The single most important detail in that headline is composition. The multiracial, non-Hispanic Black population grew 269% between 2000 and 2023, reaching roughly 5.6 million people. That is a different kind of growth than a single-race population increase, and it reflects how identity reporting has changed alongside the population itself.

Reading the numbers responsibly

Pew is explicit that its figures come from self-identification on a survey, and that racial and ethnic categories in U.S. census data have changed over time — question wording, formatting, and instructions all included. Pew has also published a correction to one of the charts in the fact sheet, revising the 2023 multiracial, non-Hispanic Black figure. When you cite these numbers, cite the version you actually read.

Why it matters here

Atlanta's Black population is one of the largest of any U.S. metro, so national growth trends land here with real force — and so do the questions about how multiracial identity is counted in a city whose Black identity is unusually visible.

Where this still needs work

Pew's fact sheet notes that immigrants are underrepresented in official population estimates, so immigrant and total figures from the 2023 ACS run slightly smaller than the newest Census Bureau estimates. Cite the ACS vintage explicitly.

Sources

1
Facts About the U.S. Black Population
Pew Research Center · 2025-01-23
2
Pew Research Center Reports on the Growing Black Population in the United States
Journal of Blacks in Higher Education · secondary source

Reviewed Oct 25, 2026 · BlackAtlanta Editorial

Something here is wrong, out of date, or missing a source? An editor checks every correction.

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