The 10 Alaska Cities With The Largest Native American Population For 2026

The most Native American places in Alaska are Bethel and Ketchikan for 2026 based on Saturday Night Science.

Most Native American places in Alaska research summary. We used Saturday Night Science to research the Alaska cities with the highest percentage of Native American residents for 2026. The data comes from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 vintage, which breaks down race by origin.

The city with the highest percentage of Native Americans is Bethel. 63.58% of people in Bethel are Native Americans.

The city with the lowest percentage of Native Americans is Kenai. 4.82% of people in Kenai are Native American.

The city with the most Native Americans is Anchorage. 20,177 people in Anchorage are Native American.

The city with the fewest Native Americans is Kodiak. 293 people in Kodiak are Native American.

The United States has 1,698,432 Native Americans and is 0.51% Native American.

Which city in Alaska had the largest Native American population? The place with the largest Native American population in Alaska for 2026 is Bethel. 63.58% of Bethel identify as Native American.

1

No. 1 most Native American city in Alaska

Bethel, AK

6,312 peopleSnackAbility 7/10
7/10
Bethel, AK
Source: Public domain
63.6% Native American · 4,013 Native American residents
Map of Bethel within Alaska Located in Bethel Census Area, Alaska

Bethel is a city located near the west coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, approximately 400 miles west of Anchorage, in the Bethel Census Area. Accessible only by air and river, Bethel is the main port on the Kuskokwim River and is an administrative and transportation hub for the 56 villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.

2

No. 2 most Native American city in Alaska

Ketchikan, AK

8,078 peopleSnackAbility 6/10
6/10
Ketchikan, AK
Source: Wikipedia User | CC BY-SA 2.0
14.7% Native American · 1,188 Native American residents
Map of Ketchikan within Alaska Located in Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska

Ketchikan is a city in the Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska, United States, the southeasternmost city in Alaska. With a population at the 2010 census of 8,050, it is the fifth-most populous city in the state, and tenth-most populous community when census-designated places are included.

3

No. 3 most Native American city in Alaska

Wasilla, AK

9,720 peopleSnackAbility 5/10up 3
5/10
Wasilla, AK
Source: Wikipedia User Beeblebrox (talk). Beeblebrox | CC BY-SA 3.0
9.5% Native American · 924 Native American residents
Map of Wasilla within Alaska Located in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska

Wasilla is a city in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, United States and the sixth-largest city in Alaska. It is located on the northern point of Cook Inlet in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley of the southcentral part of the state. The city’s population was 7,831 at the 2010 census. Estimates in 2013 put the population at roughly 8,621. Wasilla is the largest city in the borough and a part of the Anchorage metropolitan area, which had an estimated population of 396,142 in 2013.

4

No. 4 most Native American city in Alaska

Fairbanks, AK

32,083 peopleSnackAbility 6/10up 4
6/10
Fairbanks, AK
Source: Wikipedia User FairbanksMike | CC BY 2.0
8.4% Native American · 2,706 Native American residents
Map of Fairbanks within Alaska Located in Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska

Fairbanks is a home rule city and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska.

5

No. 5 most Native American city in Alaska

Juneau, AK

31,794 peopleSnackAbility 8/10
8/10
Juneau, AK
Source: Wikipedia User Mark Hogan | CC BY-SA 2.0
8.4% Native American · 2,668 Native American residents
Map of Juneau within Alaska Located in Juneau City and Borough, Alaska

The City and Borough of Juneau, commonly known as Juneau, is the capital city of Alaska. It is a unified municipality located on the Gastineau Channel in the Alaskan panhandle, and it is the second largest city in the United States by area. Juneau has been the capital of Alaska since 1906, when the government of what was then the District of Alaska was moved from Sitka as dictated by the U.S. Congress in 1900. The municipality unified on July 1, 1970, when the city of Juneau merged with the city of Douglas and the surrounding Greater Juneau Borough to form the current municipality, which is larger by area than both Rhode Island and Delaware.

6

No. 6 most Native American city in Alaska

Sitka, AK

8,368 peopleSnackAbility 7.5/10down 3
7.5/10
Sitka, AK
Source: Wikipedia User | CC BY-SA 2.0
7.6% Native American · 633 Native American residents
Map of Sitka within Alaska Located in Sitka City and Borough, Alaska

The City and Borough of Sitka, formerly Novo-Arkhangelsk, or New Archangel under Russian rule, is a unified city-borough located on Baranof Island and the southern half of Chichagof Island in the Alexander Archipelago of the Pacific Ocean, in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the 2010 census, the population was 8,881. In terms of land area, it is the largest city-borough in the U.S., with a land area of 2,870.3 square miles and a total area of 4,811.4 square miles ; however, it is the smallest of Alaska’s boroughs. Urban Sitka, the part that is usually thought of as the “city” of Sitka, is on the west side of Baranof Island.

7

No. 7 most Native American city in Alaska

Palmer, AK

6,268 peopleSnackAbility 6/10down 3
6/10
Palmer, AK
Source: Public domain
7.4% Native American · 465 Native American residents
Map of Palmer within Alaska Located in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska

Palmer is a city in and the borough seat of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is part of the Anchorage Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city is 5,937.

8

No. 8 most Native American city in Alaska

Anchorage, AK

288,976 peopleSnackAbility 6/10up 2
6/10
Anchorage, AK
Source: Wikipedia User Frank K. from Anchorage, Alaska, USA | CC BY 2.0
7.0% Native American · 20,177 Native American residents
Map of Anchorage within Alaska Located in Anchorage Municipality, Alaska

Anchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the U.S. state of Alaska. With an estimated 298,192 residents in 2016, it is Alaska’s most populous city and contains more than 40 percent of the state’s total population; among the 50 states, only New York has a higher percentage of residents who live in its most populous city. All together, the Anchorage metropolitan area, which combines Anchorage with the neighboring Matanuska-Susitna Borough, had a population of 401,635 in 2016, which accounts for more than half of the state’s population.

9

No. 9 most Native American city in Alaska

Kodiak, AK

5,447 peopleSnackAbility 8/10down 2
8/10
Kodiak, AK
Source: Wikipedia User Katie Walker | CC BY 2.0
5.4% Native American · 293 Native American residents
Map of Kodiak within Alaska Located in Kodiak Island Borough, Alaska

Kodiak is one of seven communities and the main city on Kodiak Island, Kodiak Island Borough, in the U.S. state of Alaska. All commercial transportation between the entire island and the outside world goes through this city either via ferryboat or airline. The population was 6,130 as of the 2010 census. 2014 estimates put the population at 6,304.

10

No. 10 most Native American city in Alaska

Kenai, AK

7,641 peopleSnackAbility 5/10down 1
5/10
Kenai, AK
Source: Wikipedia User gilbert | CC BY 2.0
4.8% Native American · 368 Native American residents
Map of Kenai within Alaska Located in Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska

Kenai is a city in the Kenai Peninsula Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. The population was 7,100 as of the 2010 census.

The receipts

Compare the top ten

Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Alaska’s statewide median.

City % Native American vs AK
1 Bethel 0.6357731305449936
2 Ketchikan 0.1470661054716514
3 Wasilla 0.09506172839506173
4 Fairbanks 0.0843437334413864
5 Juneau 0.08391520412656477
6 Sitka 0.0756453154875717
7 Palmer 0.07418634333120612
8 Anchorage 0.06982240739715409
9 Kodiak 0.053791077657426106
10 Kenai 0.04816123544038738
City Native American residents vs AK
1 Bethel 4,013
2 Ketchikan 1,188
3 Wasilla 924
4 Fairbanks 2,706
5 Juneau 2,668
6 Sitka 633
7 Palmer 465
8 Anchorage 20,177
9 Kodiak 293
10 Kenai 368
City Population vs AK
1 Bethel 6,312
2 Ketchikan 8,078
3 Wasilla 9,720
4 Fairbanks 32,083
5 Juneau 31,794
6 Sitka 8,368
7 Palmer 6,268
8 Anchorage 288,976
9 Kodiak 5,447
10 Kenai 7,641

On the map

Where Alaska’s Native American population is concentrated

Saturday Night Science

Methodology: How We Determined The Cities In Alaska With The Largest Native American Population For 2026

We still believe in the accuracy of data — especially from the Census. So that’s where we went to get the race breakdown across Alaska.

We used Saturday Night Science to analyze the Census’s most recently available data, the 2020-2024 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 5,000 people. That left us with 10 cities.

We then calculated the percentage of residents that are American Indian and Alaska Native. The percentages ranked from 63.58 to 4.82.

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. Bethel took the distinction of being the most American Indian and Alaska Native, while Kenai was the least Native American city.

We updated this article for 2026. This article is our eleventh time ranking the cities in Alaska with the largest Native American population.

The full plate

Most Native American Places In Alaska

Click any column to sort. Search by city name.

RankCityPopulationNative American Population% Native American
1Bethel6,3124,01363.6%
2Ketchikan8,0781,18814.7%
3Wasilla9,7209249.5%
4Fairbanks32,0832,7068.4%
5Juneau31,7942,6688.4%
6Sitka8,3686337.6%
7Palmer6,2684657.4%
8Anchorage288,97620,1777.0%
9Kodiak5,4472935.4%
10Kenai7,6413684.8%

Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024, table B03002. 10 Alaska cities with more than 5,000 residents.

Summary

Summary: Native American Populations Across Alaska

If you’re looking for a breakdown of Native American populations across Alaska according to the most recent data, this is an accurate list.

The most Native American cities in Alaska are Bethel, Ketchikan, Wasilla, Fairbanks, Juneau, Sitka, Palmer, Anchorage, Kodiak, and Kenai. Not sold on Alaska? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.

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Chris Kolmar
About the author

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.

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