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As the Latin word for their homeworld was "Terra", Humans were sometimes referred to as "Terrans", but not always. (This usage was consistent in the mirror universe.) Occasionally the term Terran was used to distinguish Humans living on Earth from those resident on colonies on other planets and moons. Some people used the adjective "Terran" to refer to subjects or institutions associated with Humanity (Terran cuisine, Terran literature, Terran art, etc.). The Borg designation for Humans was Species 5618. (VOY: "Dark Frontier")

By the 24th century, Human society had changed from what it was for most of recorded history. On Earth, hunger, war, disease, famine, and poverty had largely been eliminated. The acquisition of wealth was no longer the primary driving force in the lives of many Humans. A great deal of emphasis was placed on the importance of continued social and personal development. Thanks to the non-currency based New World Economy and the development of replicators, material needs were largely satisfied. Although money was no longer used by Humans within the Federation, they did use gold-pressed latinum and other forms of currency (such as Bajoranlitas and credits) in places where it was still needed, such as Quark's. The idea behind not using money was that rather than seeking material possessions, Humans worked to better themselves and the rest of Humanity (see Human philosophy). (DS9: "Necessary Evil", "In the Cards"; Star Trek: First Contact) It must be noted that all of this more specifically applied to Humans within the Sol system, as many Earth colonies were known to have developed vast cultural differences from other Humans and some had even fallen into chaos, most notably Turkana IV. (TNG: "The Ensigns of Command", "Legacy")

While achieving warp capability in 2063, there were Human populations on other planets prior to this. In these cases, they would usually have been brought there by alien species, who had traveled to Earth. For instance, Native Americans had been transplanted on Amerind by an unknown alien race called the Preservers some time in the 19th century. In 2268, they still lived as hunters and gatherers. CaptainKirk was adopted into one of the tribes of Amerind as the god Kirok. (TOS: "The Paradise Syndrome") In 2153, the NX classstarshipEnterprise, commanded by CaptainJonathan Archer, discovered a planet in the Delphic Expanse inhabited by 6,000 Humans whose ancestors were transplanted from the Ancient West during the late-nineteenth-century. (ENT: "North Star") The crew of the USS Voyager discovered, in 2371, another instance of Humans being kidnapped as slaves. Aliens from the Delta Quadrant, known as the Briori, abducted, in 1937, over three hundred other people (among which was Amelia Earhart whose disappearance was never explained) to be utilized as slave labor on one of their planets. The Voyager crew discovered Earhart and Noonan, along with six other Humans, in a state of suspended animation, the only abducted Humans who had been left in stasis. By this time, the Humans had long since overthrown their Briori masters, and their descendants had established a thriving community on the planet. Upon being revived by the Voyager crew, Earhart and the others, who had come to be known as "the 37's" by the Human colonists, were given the option of joining the crew on their long journey back to the Alpha Quadrant. Earhart and the others declined, however, and elected to remain on the planet with the other Human colonists. (VOY: "The 37's")

Humans were easily the most outworldly, idealistic, and expansionistic race in the United Federation of Planets, and possessed those qualities in a greater degree than many of the alien races they would encounter. Humans had no true specialty or extraordinary qualities and were average in both a technological and physical sense.

The Devore inspector Kashyk remarked that Human culture had many contradictions, violence and beauty, science and faith, all somehow mingled harmoniously, similar to the counterpoint of a musical composition. (VOY: "Counterpoint")

Because Humans were the Federation species most interested in space exploration, they made up a large majority of Starfleet. The fact that Starfleet was originally a pre-Federation Earth organization also contributed to the Human dominance of Starfleet. Humans also made up the majority of colonists on Federation colonies.

Human adaptability and their strong tradition of innovation and cooperation brought them to the forefront of the current Federation interstellar situation. It was for this very reason, however, that Human society was constantly changing and evolving. This was seen not only on the isolated colonies, where the past traditions brought by culturally and geographically homogeneous blocks of colonists compete with new cultural pragmatism demanded of frontier life, but also in the staid and settled core worlds as well. Fashion, speech, and especially political views were constantly changing.

For species that were steeped in tradition and genealogical reverence as the basis of their societies, the Human fascination with the novel experience and their unending desire to innovate and explore, to discover for the sake of discovery, were all difficult concepts to grasp.

Jazz music persisted into the 24th century and became a contribution to galactic culture, as did opera music. Humans played music collaboratively in a format known as "classical music."

Competitive sports from Human cultures also became part of Federation culture in various ways. Sports played in the 24th century included soccer (also known as "football"), fencing, and wrestling. Other Human sports included water polo, baseball, and hockey.

Humans expressed themselves through various art forms. One such art form was known as dance. (TNG: "Data's Day")

Human cuisine had a broad spectrum, and was shared widely with other cultures. Humans were omnivorous, unlike vegetarian Vulcan culture. A small sampling of Human dishes enjoyed by other species included pecan pie and chocolate. Human foods were often connected to a place, a language, or a family and were a part of a richer cultural experience, such as jambalaya and oden.

Human mating rituals sometimes involved a cultural ceremony known as a wedding to indicate a lasting commitment, as in other cultures such as Vulcan and Klingon.

Human culture evolved to eliminate war, poverty and disease by the year 2113.

In the mirror universe, Humans were known as Terrans and were the founders of the Terran Empire. They were filled with fear and suspicion when a Vulcan scout ship landed on Earth to initiate first contact in 2063. The Humans slaughtered the Vulcan crew and used the technology within to create an interstellar empire. (ENT: "In a Mirror, Darkly")

This Empire lasted centuries until it was overshadowed by the equally vicious aspirations of the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance. Although many races in the mirror universe harbored hopes of forming a peaceful alliance to protect civilization, Terrans were rarely found among these rebels due to the wealth and safety afforded by their violent expansionist policies. (DS9: "Crossover")

The Borg designation for Humans was "Species 5618". Humans were considered by the Borg to possess below-average cranial capacity, minimal redundant systems, and limited regenerative abilities. (VOY: "Dark Frontier")

The Klingon, Vulcan, and Ferengi words for Human were both spelled exactly the same ("Human"), although the Klingon was pronounced with a rough fricative, much like the "ch" in "Bach" or "Loch", and the Vulcans changed it to "Khuman". Klingons also referred to them by the name of their home planet Terra, tera'ngan, and the Ferengi changed the pronunciation of the "a" in Human, pronouncing it as "hyu-mon".

Q once stated that the Human race would one day become more powerful than the Q. (TNG: "Hide and Q")

Humans are the only species to have made an appearance in almost every episode to date of all six Star Trek series and all twelve films (except VOY: "Living Witness"). In addition, the plurality of the lead characters of every Star Trek series so far have been Human.