Sanctuary cities in the U.S. are spread across many states, concentrated mostly in large, Democratic-leaning urban areas such as New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Boston, Seattle, Philadelphia, and Denver, along with a number of smaller cities, counties, and even a few states with broader “sanctuary” or non-cooperation policies.

What “sanctuary city” means

  • A sanctuary city is generally a city where local policies limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement (for example, limiting when local police will honor ICE detainer requests or share certain information about immigration status).
  • These policies vary widely: some are narrow (e.g., no honoring detainers without a judicial warrant), while others are broader “don’t ask, don’t share” frameworks aimed at encouraging immigrants to report crimes and use public services without fearing deportation.

Major sanctuary cities today

Many of the best-known sanctuary jurisdictions are large coastal or historically immigrant-rich cities.

  • Northeast and Mid-Atlantic:
    • New York City (NY)
    • Boston (MA)
    • Philadelphia (PA)
    • Newark and Jersey City (NJ)
  • West Coast:
    • Los Angeles, San Francisco (CA)
    • Portland (OR)
    • Seattle (WA)
  • Midwest and Southwest:
    • Chicago (IL)
    • Denver (CO)
    • Albuquerque (NM)

These cities typically have local ordinances or executive orders instructing police and city agencies to limit cooperation with immigration enforcement, within the bounds of federal law.

Beyond cities: counties and states

Sanctuary policies are not just a “big city” phenomenon; they also appear at the county and sometimes state level.

  • Numerous counties in states like California, Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, and Virginia have policies restricting notification to or detainer cooperation with ICE.
  • Several states (such as California and, in more limited ways, others like New Jersey and Oregon) have passed statewide laws restricting the ability of local law enforcement to act as extensions of federal immigration authorities.

An updated 2025 sanctuary jurisdiction list from the U.S. Department of Justice identifies a national spread of such cities, counties, and states, underscoring that this is now a nationwide patchwork, not just a handful of well-known cities.

How to see the full current list

Because local policies change with new mayors, governors, or federal rules, there is no single permanent list carved in stone.

  • Civil-society groups maintain interactive maps and lists showing sanctuary cities, counties, and states; these are updated when local policies change.
  • The U.S. Department of Justice has also published its own list of “sanctuary jurisdictions” following federal executive orders, which focuses on places deemed to impede federal immigration law enforcement.

For the most accurate “where are the sanctuary cities” snapshot at any moment, checking both an updated advocacy map and the latest federal list provides the clearest view.

TL;DR: Sanctuary cities are mainly found in large, immigrant-rich U.S. metros (NYC, LA, Chicago, SF, Boston, Seattle, Denver, Philadelphia, etc.) plus many counties and some states that limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.