Jats are now preeminently a farming community. Jats are not a single socio-religious group, as the term is commonly understood today, Jats live in Punjab, Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi in North India. Though the common definition refers to only the Hindu Jats, a significant number of Jats are Sikhs and Muslims. The Jats are not a homogeneous ethnic group living in a particular area and speaking a single language. Rather, they are a people who live scattered around the world among several ethnic groups, yet retain their own identity. This distinction is often based on occupation and heritage.Jats speak Punjabi, Hindi, English, Haryanavi and Rajasthani languages.

Known for their military prowess, many Jats were recruited into the British-India army during World War I. A large number of Jats serve in the Indian Armed Forces and form one of the largest ethnic groups in the army. The Green Revolution brought considerable prosperity to the Jats in the late 60s and 70s, especially in the Punjab. The Jat regions in India are among the most prosperous on a per-capita basis. Today, many Jats are well read and some occupy high positions in academic and technical arenas.