New York City has been described as the gay capital of the world and the central node of the LGBTQ sociopolitical ecosystem. It is home to the most prominent and one of the world's largest LGBTQ populations. LGBTQ Americans in New York City constitute the largest self-identifying lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer communities by a significant margin in the United States. Greenwich Village in Lower Manhattan was the site of the 1969 Stonewall uprising, and then spawned several foundational organizations in the emerging gay liberation movement. These events are widely considered to be crucial to the founding of the modern gay rights movement in the United States, as well as having worldwide impact. As of 2005, New York City was home to an estimated 272,493 self-identifying gay and bisexual individuals. The New York metropolitan area had an estimated 568,903 self-identifying LGBTQ residents. New York City is also home to the largest transgender population in the United States, estimated at 50,000 in 2018, concentrated in Manhattan and Queens.

Brian Silverman, the author of Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day, writes that the city has "one of the world's largest, loudest, and most powerful LGBTQ communities", and "Gay and lesbian culture is as much a part of New York's basic identity as yellow cabs, high-rises, and Broadway theatre".Silverman, Brian. Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day (Volume 7 of Frommer's $ A Day). John Wiley & Sons, January 21, 2005. , 9780764588358. p. 28. LGBTQ travel guide Queer in the World states, "The fabulosity of Gay New York is unrivaled on Earth, and queer culture seeps into every corner of its five boroughs". In 2022, LGBTQ advocate and entertainer Madonna stated metaphorically, "Anyways, not only is New York City the best place in the world because of the queer people here. Let me tell you something, if you can make it here, then you must be queer". Comedian Jerrod Carmichael joked, "That's actually why I live here... if you say you're gay in New York, you can ride the bus for free and they just give you free pizza; if you say you're gay in New York, you get to host Saturday Night Live. This is the gayest thing you can possibly do. We're basically in an Andy Warhol fever dream right now." In 2022, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced a billboard campaign to woo Floridians to a significantly more supportive environment for LGBTQ residents in New York.

The following represents a partial list of notable LGBTQ New Yorkers: List of LGBTQ New Yorkers

Academia and research Andrew Dolkart – co-founder, NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project; professor, historic preservation, Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP) Kevin Nadal – professor of psychology and researcher at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and The Graduate Center of the City University of New York

Architecture Charles Renfro – architect, partner at Diller Scofidio + Renfro, faculty member at School of Visual Arts

Aviation and military Robina Asti – late Navy pilot who ran reconnaissance missions out of Midway Island in World War II; born in Queens and longtime Manhattan resident; transitioned post-war, and remained a pilot her whole life; Guinness world record holder for oldest active flight instructor in 2020, when she was 99

Dance Bill T. Jones – dancer and choreographer Shen Wei – choreographer, artist, and director

Entrepreneurship and technology Bradford Shellhammer – entrepreneur and designer, founding editor of Queerty Joel Spolsky – software engineer

Fashion Design Andrew Bolton – fashion curator for the Costume Institute wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Thom Browne – fashion designer Drew Elliott – creative director and consultant Prabal Gurung – fashion designer Marc Jacobs – fashion designer Calvin Klein – fashion designer Michael Kors – fashion designer Derek Lam – fashion designer Humberto Leon – fashion designer Phillip Lim – fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi – fashion designer Todd Oldham – fashion designer Zac Posen – fashion designer Christian Siriano – fashion designer Alexander Wang – fashion designer Jason Wu – fashion designer

Modeling J. Alexander – model and fashion designer Leyna Bloom – fashion model and transgender activist Cara Delevingne – supermodel and actress Peche Di – transgender model; started the first transgender modeling agency in the U.S., in New York City Dilone – model Rain Dove – model and activist Shay Neary – transgender model, first transgender plus-size model featured in a major fashion campaign Yasmine Petty – transgender model Aariana Rose Philip – transgender model Teddy Quinlivan – transgender model Miriam Rivera – late transgender model and first openly trans reality television star Geena Rocero – supermodel and transgender activist Abby Stein – transgender model and rabbi

Film and television Desiree Akhavan – film director, producer, and screenwriter Ted Allen – television personality and author Casper Andreas – director, writer, and actor Brian Balthazar – co-executive producer, The View Sandra Bernhard – actress, singer, and author Matt Bomer – actor and director Joel Kim Booster – actor, comedian, producer, and writer Jerrod Carmichael – actor, comedian, and filmmaker Candis Cayne – transgender actress Bill Condon – director, screenwriter, and producer Laverne Cox – transgender actress Lee Daniels – director, screenwriter, and producer Casey Donovan – late gay pornography actor Fredrik Eklund – real estate broker, co-star of Million Dollar Listing New York Rodney Evans – director and screenwriter Tim Gunn – fashion consultant, television personality and actor Dominique Jackson – transgender actress and model Punkie Johnson – actress, comedian, writer, Saturday Night Live Jari Jones – transgender filmmaker and producerJari Jones Face Calvin Klein Pride Campaign Celebrates Massive Billboard Accessed June 28, 2020. Michael Patrick King – director, writer, and producer Carson Kressley – television personality, former host of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy John Krokidas – director, writer, and producer James Charles - influencer Jennie Livingston – documentary filmmaker Chella Man – artist, actor, and transgender model Rob Marshall – director, choreographer and producer Kate McKinnon – comedian, actor John Cameron Mitchell – director, writer, and actor Janet Mock – TV host, writer, and transgender rights activist Indya Moore – transgender actor and model Lauren Morelli – screenwriter Cynthia Nixon – actress Wolé Parks – actor Stacie Passon – director, screenwriter, and producer Sarah Paulson – actress Kal Penn – actor Patrik-Ian Polk – director, screenwriter, and producer Antoni Porowski – television personality, cook, actor, model, and author Zachary Quinto – actor and producer Dee Rees – director, screenwriter, and producer Erik Rhodes (James Elliott Naughtin) – late gay pornography actor, amateur bodybuilder Yoruba Richen – documentary filmmaker Michaela Jaé Rodriguez – transgender actress Harmony Santana – transgender actress Greta Schiller – documentary filmmaker Jonathan Van Ness – non-binary television personality Rutina Wesley – actress Samira Wiley – actress and model Bowen Yang – writer and actor, Saturday Night Live

Law Roy Cohn – late closeted lawyer who prosecuted those accused of being homosexuals and communists during the Lavender scare and Second Red Scare Paul Feinman – first openly gay judge confirmed to the New York State Court of Appeals, in June 2017

Literature Hilton Als – writer and theater critic Ellis Avery – late author James Baldwin – late novelist, playwright, essayist, poet, and activist James Beard – late culinary author and chef Bruce Benderson – author Jennifer Finney Boylan – trans author and journalist Augusten Burroughs – author, memoirist Regie Cabico – poet and spoken-word artist Michael Cunningham – author Samuel R. Delany – author Nicole Dennis-Benn – author Thomas M. Disch – late author Mark Doty – poet and memoirist Martin Duberman – biographer and historian Cyrus Grace Dunham – author David Ebershoff – author and editor Allen Ginsberg – late poet, philosopher, and writer Paul Lisicky – author and memoirist Jaime Manrique – poet, essayist, and translator Eric Marcus – author Lesléa Newman – author and editor Frank O'Hara – late New York School poet Rakesh Satyal – author Ariel Schrag – cartoonist and television writer Sarah Schulman – author Charles Silverstein – author, therapist, and gay activist Susan Sontag – late writer, filmmaker, philosopher, teacher, and political activist Colm Tóibín – author, journalist, critic Edmund White – author, critic, and memoirist

Media

Jack Anderson – late dance critic and author Rose Arce – journalist and producer Michael Ausiello – journalist, multiple media platforms Josh Barro – journalist and senior editor, Business Insider Keith Boykin – syndicated columnist Ben Brantley – journalist and chief theater critic, The New York Times Kristen Browde – journalist, formerly of NBC 4 News and CBS News, and attorney Frank Bruni – journalist and op-ed columnist, The New York Times Sam Champion – meteorologist and television weather anchor Sewell Chan – senior fellow at the Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership & Policy Andy Cohen – television personality Anderson Cooper – journalist and television anchor, CNN Angela Dimayuga – food critic for The New York Times, chef George Dorris – editor and writer David W. Dunlap – journalist, The New York Times Ronan Farrow – journalist and lawyer Stephanie Gosk – journalist, NBC News Mark Harris – journalist, multiple media platforms Perez Hilton – blogger Charles Kaiser – journalist and author Sally Kohn – journalist, political commentator Steve Kornacki – writer and political correspondent with NBC News Don Lemon – journalist and television anchor, CNN Bryan Llenas – journalist, Fox News Michael Lucas – journalist, The Advocate and HuffPost; director, businessman, actor, and activist Rachel Maddow – journalist and television anchor, MSNBC Stephen Morgan – meteorologist, Fox Weather Adam Moss – writer and editor, New York magazine Michael Musto – journalist Rosie O'Donnell – television personality Richard Quest – journalist, CNN InternationalCNN. Quest: I'm honest about who I am Retrieved April 20, 2020. Robin Roberts – journalist and television anchor, Good Morning America Thomas Roberts – TV journalist and news anchor Steven Romo – anchor, NBC News, MSNBC Nate Silver – writer, statistician, and founder/editor of FiveThirtyEight Shepard Smith – journalist and anchor, formerly of FOX News and CNBC André Leon Talley – late fashion journalist, Vogue Andy Towle – blogger, political commentator, and founder of Towleroad Jann Wenner – co-founder and publisher, Rolling Stone Jenna Wolfe – journalist and TV news host

Music Adult Mom – singer and songwriter Michael Alig – late musician, club promoter, convicted murderer Mykki Blanco – transgender rapper, performance artist, poet, and activist Mal Blum – singer and songwriter Dai Burger – rapper Cakes da Killa – rapper Cazwell – rapper Jayne County – glam-rock musician Angel Haze – rapper and songwriter House of Ladosha – rap duo (Antonio Blair and Adam Radakovich) and artistic collective Dev Hynes – musician DJ Keoki – electronic musician Lady Gaga – singer and songwriter Le1f – rapper and producer Larry Levan – late, pioneering house DJ and producer Stephin Merritt – musician and songwriter with The Magnetic Fields, writer of the music and lyrics of Coraline Jonte' Moaning – singer, songwriter, dancer, and choreographer Princess Nokia – rapper and musician Lou Reed – late musician Moi Renée – late singer and performer, known for the house music single "Miss Honey" (1992) Arthur Russell – late avant-garde musician