The 2011 census shows that at that time 17,513 Albanians lived in Croatia. This corresponds to 0.41% of the population. In 2001, the proportion of 15,082 persons had only 0.34%.

Of these, 9,594 (54.8%) are Muslims and 7,109 (40.6%) are Catholics. 17 belong to other Christian denominations and the remaining 793 (4.5%) are partly atheists, partly agnostics, give no indication with respect to religion or belong to other religions.

Albanians are concentrated in Istria (2,393), Dalmatia (1,025), Zadar (908) and in the north of the Croatian coast (2,410) as well as in the capital Zagreb (4,292). More live in smaller numbers scattered throughout Croatia.

Some of them came to Croatian lands at the time of Venetian rule because in parts of Croatia and Albania were under the rule of the Venetian Republic. Thus through the internal migration, the Albanian families also migrated, of which a large number was croatianized over the centuries to come. Internal migration has been of economic nature.

Another period is the time of liberation wars against the Ottomans when Christian Albanian families migrated to the liberated territories of Croatia.

The Arbanasi (Albanian also Arbëreshët e Zarës "Albanians of Zadar") are a small population group in Croatia still existing today. They are Catholic Albanians who fled the Ottomans between 1726 and 1733 in the Croatian coastal country, where they are still present today. In the city of Zadar they founded their own named after them district, which persists to this day. The Arbanasi traditionally speak a different dialect of Albanian.

The original Albanian inhabitants of Catholic faith Peroj (Albanian Përrua) in Pula, who fled from the Ottomans in 1657, have given up their Albanian nationality.

At the time of Yugoslavia, Albanians migrated to Croatia for economic and political reasons, especially after 1945. Albanian migrants were mainly from Kosovo and North Macedonia. Some Albanians came in as the spouses of Janjevci Croats from Kosovo.

Traditionally, Croatian Albanians have been involved with jewelry, filigree, bakery and restaurant management, such as bakeries and confectioners.

According to the Association of Volunteers of the Homeland War, 2,579 Albanian volunteers fought in the Croatian Army and various Croat paramilitary units during the Croatian War for Independence, with losses of 86 killed, 37 missing and more than 500 injured. Among the Albanians who fought during the war were the generals Rahim Ademi and Agim Çeku.^{[citation needed]}

The only political party representing Albanians in Croatia is the Union of Albanians of Croatia (Albanian: Unioni i Shqiptarëve të Kroacisë, Croatian: Unija Albanaca u Hrvatskoj, UAH), led by Ermina Lekaj Prljaskaj, who served as the representative of Albanian minority in Croatian parliament from 2015 to 2024.

• Arbanasi
• Albanian diaspora
• Albania-Croatia relations