Most Native American places in Montana research summary. We used Saturday Night Science to research the Montana cities with the highest percentage of Native American residents for 2024. The data comes from the American Community Survey 2018-2022 vintage, which breaks down race by origin.
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The city with the highest percentage of Native Americans is Lame Deer. 95.06% of people in Lame Deer are Native Americans.
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The city with the lowest percentage of Native Americans is Lolo. 0.00% of people in Lolo are Native American.
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The city with the most Native Americans is Billings. 4,634 people in Billings are Native American.
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The city with the fewest Native Americans is Lolo. 0 people in Lolo are Native American.
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The United States has 1,826,286 Native Americans and is 0.55% Native American.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
Which city in Montana had the largest Native American population? The place with the largest Native American population in Montana for 2024 is Lame Deer. 95.06 of Lame Deer identify as Native American.
To see where Montana ranked as a state on diversity, we have a ranking of the most diverse states in America.
And if you already knew these places were Native American, check out the best places to live in Montana or the most diverse places in Montana.
Read below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town ranked.
Cities In Montana With The Largest Native American Population For 2024
1. Lame Deer
/10
Population: 2,064
# Of Native American Residents: 1,962
% Native American: 95.06%
More on Lame Deer: Real Estate
2. North Browning
/10
Population: 3,001
# Of Native American Residents: 2,821
% Native American: 94.0%
More on North Browning: Real Estate
3. Wolf Point
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Population: 2,634
# Of Native American Residents: 1,283
% Native American: 48.71%
More on Wolf Point: Crime | Real Estate
/10
Population: 3,803
# Of Native American Residents: 1,418
% Native American: 37.29%
More on Hardin: Data | Real Estate
/10
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Population: 5,218
# Of Native American Residents: 856
% Native American: 16.4%
More on Polson: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
7. Colstrip
/10
Population: 2,327
# Of Native American Residents: 300
% Native American: 12.89%
More on Colstrip: Crime | Real Estate
/10
Population: 9,332
# Of Native American Residents: 1,167
% Native American: 12.51%
More on Havre: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
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Population: 3,058
# Of Native American Residents: 242
% Native American: 7.91%
More on Shelby: Data | Real Estate
10. Libby
/10
Population: 2,857
# Of Native American Residents: 157
% Native American: 5.5%
More on Libby: Crime | Real Estate
Methodology: How We Determined The Cities In Montana With The Largest Native American Population For 2024
We still believe in the accuracy of data — especially from the Census. So that’s where we went to get the race breakdown across Montana.
We used Saturday Night Science to analyze the Census’s most recently available data, the 2018-2022 American Community Survey data.
Specifically, we looked at table B03002: Hispanic OR LATINO ORIGIN BY RACE. Here are the category names as defined by the Census:
- Hispanic or Latino
- White alone*
- Black or African American alone*
- American Indian and Alaska Native alone*
- Asian alone*
- Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone*
- Some other race alone*
- Two or more races*
Our particular column of interest here was the number of people identifying as American Indian and Alaska Native alone.
We limited our analysis to places with a population greater than 2,000 people. That left us with 47 cities.
We then calculated the percentage of residents that are American Indian and Alaska Native. The percentages ranked from 95.06 to 0.00.
Finally, we ranked each city based on the percentage of the American Indian and Alaska Native population, with a higher score being more American Indian and Alaska Native than a lower score. Lame Deer took the distinction of being the most American Indian and Alaska Native, while Lolo was the least Native American city.
We updated this article for 2024. This article is our tenth time ranking the cities in Montana with the largest Native American population.
Summary: Native American Populations Across Montana
If you’re looking for a breakdown of Native American populations across Montana according to the most recent data, this is an accurate list.
The most Native American cities in Montana are Lame Deer, North Browning, Wolf Point, Hardin, Cut Bank, Polson, Colstrip, Havre, Shelby, and Libby.
If you’re curious enough, here are the least Native American places in Montana:
- Lolo
- Four Corners
- Columbia Falls
For more Montana reading, check out:
Most Native American Places In Montana
| Rank | City | Population | Native American Population | % Native American |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lame Deer | 2,064 | 1,962 | 95.06% |
| 2 | North Browning | 3,001 | 2,821 | 94.0% |
| 3 | Wolf Point | 2,634 | 1,283 | 48.71% |
| 4 | Hardin | 3,803 | 1,418 | 37.29% |
| 5 | Cut Bank | 3,061 | 735 | 24.01% |
| 6 | Polson | 5,218 | 856 | 16.4% |
| 7 | Colstrip | 2,327 | 300 | 12.89% |
| 8 | Havre | 9,332 | 1,167 | 12.51% |
| 9 | Shelby | 3,058 | 242 | 7.91% |
| 10 | Libby | 2,857 | 157 | 5.5% |
| 11 | Conrad | 2,640 | 127 | 4.81% |
| 12 | Great Falls | 60,373 | 2,451 | 4.06% |
| 13 | Malta | 2,121 | 84 | 3.96% |
| 14 | Billings | 117,093 | 4,634 | 3.96% |
| 15 | Dillon | 3,958 | 125 | 3.16% |
| 16 | Glasgow | 3,208 | 100 | 3.12% |
| 17 | Townsend | 2,176 | 57 | 2.62% |
| 18 | Helena Valley Northwest | 5,143 | 121 | 2.35% |
| 19 | Lockwood | 7,393 | 160 | 2.16% |
| 20 | Missoula | 74,627 | 1,514 | 2.03% |
| 21 | Lewistown | 5,988 | 112 | 1.87% |
| 22 | Malmstrom Afb | 4,281 | 78 | 1.82% |
| 23 | Anaconda-Deer Lodge County | 9,435 | 164 | 1.74% |
| 24 | Helena Valley Southeast | 9,374 | 132 | 1.41% |
| 25 | Miles City | 8,432 | 118 | 1.4% |
| 26 | Helena | 32,529 | 442 | 1.36% |
| 27 | Belgrade | 10,941 | 132 | 1.21% |
| 28 | Glendive | 4,861 | 57 | 1.17% |
| 29 | Kalispell | 25,473 | 257 | 1.01% |
| 30 | Livingston | 8,489 | 80 | 0.94% |
| 31 | Bozeman | 53,500 | 479 | 0.9% |
| 32 | Stevensville | 2,038 | 18 | 0.88% |
| 33 | Helena Valley Northeast | 4,245 | 31 | 0.73% |
| 34 | Laurel | 7,181 | 51 | 0.71% |
| 35 | Orchard Homes | 5,265 | 37 | 0.7% |
| 36 | Hamilton | 4,806 | 30 | 0.62% |
| 37 | Bigfork | 4,953 | 25 | 0.5% |
| 38 | Whitefish | 8,098 | 36 | 0.44% |
| 39 | Red Lodge | 2,321 | 8 | 0.34% |
| 40 | Montana City | 2,716 | 9 | 0.33% |
| 41 | Sidney | 6,257 | 18 | 0.29% |
| 42 | Helena Valley West Central | 8,206 | 18 | 0.22% |
| 43 | Deer Lodge | 3,030 | 3 | 0.1% |
| 44 | Evergreen | 8,514 | 4 | 0.05% |
| 45 | Columbia Falls | 5,435 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 46 | Four Corners | 5,631 | 0 | 0.0% |
| 47 | Lolo | 4,573 | 0 | 0.0% |