[7] Indianapolis, Minneapolis-Saint Paul, and Fort Wayne are home to the largest Burmese American populations.

[11] The first major wave of immigrants from Burma (now Myanmar) occurred from the 1960s to the late 1970s, after Ne Win established military rule in 1962, following the 1962 Burmese coup d'état.

[13] The Burmese Chinese were the first major group of Theravada Buddhists to immigrate to the United States and were largely educated professionals, business entrepreneurs and technically skilled workers.

[16] Burmese in far smaller numbers continue to immigrate to the United States today mainly through family sponsorships and the "green card lottery".

The Burmese American population has significantly increased since the beginning of the 21st century, due to an ongoing wave of immigration, and changes in self-identification.

Many Burmese join already large immigration populations in mid-sized cities, especially those in the Rust Belt and Great Plains.

Burmese Christian churches consisting mainly of ethnic Karen, Chin, Kachin, and Anglo-Burmese congregations can also be found in large metropolitan areas.

[14] Others from more recent waves of Burmese migration tend to struggle in English, due to lack of exposure, especially refugees from more remote communities.

[14] More recent immigrants tend to speak ethnic minority languages, not Burmese, as their primary mother tongue.