Objective: Despite a health care system that is free at the point of delivery, ethnic minorities may not always get care equitable to that of White patients in England. We examined whether ethnic differences exist in joint replacement rates and surgical practice in England. Design: 373,613 hip and 428,936 knee National Joint Registry (NJR) primary replacement patients had coded ethnicity in Hospital Episode Statistics (HES). Age and gender adjusted observed/expected ratios of hip and knee replacements amongst ethnic groups were compared using indirect standardisation. Associations between ethnic group and type of procedure were explored and effects of demographic, clinical and hospital-related factors examined using multivariable logistic regression. Results: Adjusted standardised observed/expected ratios were substantially lower in Blacks and Asians than Whites for hip replacement (Blacks 0.33 [95% CI, 0.31–0.35], Asians 0.20 [CI, 0.19–0.21]) and knee replacement (Blacks 0.64 [CI, 0.61–0.67], Asians 0.86 % [CI, 0.84–0.88]). Blacks were more likely to receive uncemented hip replacements (Blacks 52%, Whites 37%, Asians 44%; P