The Han people are the largest ethnic group in mainland China. In 2010, 91.51% of the population were classified as Han (~1.2 billion).^[1] Besides the Han Chinese majority, 55 other ethnic (minority) groups are categorized in present-day China, numbering approximately 105 million people (8%), mostly concentrated in the bordering northwest, north, northeast, south and southwest but with some in central interior areas.

The major ethnic minorities in China are the Zhuang (19.6 million), Uyghurs (11 million), Hui (11.4 million), Miao (11 million), Manchu (10.4 million), Yi (9.8 million), Tujia (9.6 million), Tibetans (7 million), Mongols (6.3 million), Buyei (3.5 million), Dong (3.5 million), Yao (3.3 million), Bai (2 million), Koreans (1.7 million), Hani (1.7 million), Li (1.6 million), Kazakhs (1.5 million), and Dai (1.2 million).^[2] At least 126,000 people from Canada, the United States, and Europe are living in mainland China.^[3] In addition, there are a number of unrecognized ethnic groups which together comprise over 730,000 people.

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Officially recognized ethnic groups receive or have received certain benefits over Han Chinese under the regional ethnic autonomy system, including affirmative action, exemptions from the one-child policy, designated seats in political organs and government support to preserve their culture. Ethnic minority autonomous areas receive additional state subsidies.^[4][5] Languages of officially recognized minorities are used in official government documents.^[6]

Soon after the establishment of the People's Republic of China, 39 ethnic groups were recognized by the first national census in 1954. This further increased to 54 by the second national census in 1964, with the Lhoba group added in 1965. The last change was the addition of the Jino people in 1979, bringing the number of recognized ethnic groups to the current 56. The following are the 56 ethnic groups (listed by population) officially recognized by the People's Republic of China.^[7]

^AGB 3304－91 "Names of ethnicities of China in romanization with codes";^[8]
BThe population only includes mainland China;
^CFor ethnic groups officially recognised in 1964 or earlier, this is the year of first inclusion in the national census, which were in 1954^[9] and 1964;^[10]
1Also included are the Chuanqing;
²Also includes Utsuls of Hainan, descended from Cham refugees;
³One subset of which is also known as Hmong and other include Hmu, Xong and A-Hmao. Some of the related languages and groups of peoples are not necessarily classified under the Miao umbrella, which makes this term somewhat vague;
⁴including Amdowa and Khampa, as well as roughly half of Pumi speakers, the remainder of whom are classified as a separate Pumi ethnicity;
⁵Also known as Kam;
⁶Also included are the Sangkong;
⁷This category includes several different Tai-speaking groups historically referred to as Bai-yi. In fact, the Dai nationality consists of speakers of varieties of Shan languages. For instance, the Tai Lue and Tai Nuea peoples are actually subgroups of the Shan people. Despite this, speakers of Bumang are also included in the Dai nationality;
⁸Also included are the Mosuo;
⁹Also included are the Qago (木佬人);
¹⁰Known as Kachin in Myanmar;
¹¹Also included are the Then;
¹²They are not Tajik people but Pamiri people;
¹³The same group as Vietnamese or Kinh people in Sino-Vietnamese;
¹⁴Known as Palaung in Myanmar;
¹⁵The same group as Nanai on the Russian side of the border;
¹⁶A collective name for all Taiwanese aborigine groups in Taiwan. In fact, the numbers of Gaoshan in census covers only those who lives in mainland China (mainly in Fujian) and consists of Amis (autonym: Pangcah), Paiwan and Bunun peoples.^{[citation needed]}

The People's Republic of China government officially refers to all Taiwanese aborigines (Chinese: 原住民族; pinyin: Yuánzhùmínzú) as Gaoshan (Chinese: 高山族; pinyin: Gāoshānzú), whereas the Republic of China (Taiwan) recognizes 16 groups of Taiwanese aborigines.^[11] The term Gaoshan has a different connotation in Taiwan than it does in mainland China.^{[clarification needed]}

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The following ethnic groups living in China are not recognized by the Chinese government:

• Äynu people – classified as Uyghurs
• Altai people – classified as Mongols^[12]
• Fuyu Kyrgyz people – classified as Kyrgyz
• Gejia people – classified as Miao
• Bajia (八甲人; Bājiǎrén)
• Deng people
• Hu people – classified as Bulang
• Khmu people – classified as Bulang
• Kucong
• Mảng people
• Ili Turk people – classified as Uzbek
• Sherpa people – classified as Tibetan
• Tanka people, including Fuzhou Tanka
• Tebbu people
• Tuvans – classified as Mongols^[13]
• Waxiang people
• Jewish people
• Macanese people, mixed race Catholic Portuguese speakers who lived in Macau since 16th century of various ethnic origins
• Utsuls – classified as Hui

During the Fifth National Population Census of the People's Republic of China held in 2000, 734,438 people on the mainland were recorded as belonging to "undistinguished ethnic groups"—of these, 97% resided in Guizhou, .^[14]

Hong Kong and Macau are special administrative regions within China. The governments of Hong Kong and Macau do not use the official PRC ethnic classification system, nor does the PRC's official classification system take ethnic groups in Hong Kong and Macau into account. Minority groups such as Western Europeans (mainly English and Portuguese), and Southern or Southeastern Asians (mainly Filipinos, Indians, Indonesians, Nepalese, and Pakistanis) live in Hong Kong.^[15] Macau's main ethnic groups are of Chinese and Portuguese descent, but other ethnicities also live in the territory.^[16]

• Han
• Zhuang
• Manchu
• Hui
• Miao
• Uyghur
• Tujia
• Yi
• Mongol