Background <p>Despite the established link between social support and cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes, few studies have examined racial/ethnic variation in these associations. This study utilized data from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) to investigate racial/ethnic differences in perceived social support and in the link between support and incident hard CVD events and mortality.</p> Method <p>Participants (<i>N</i> = 6,814) were 45–84 years of age who identified as White, Black, Hispanic/Latino, or Chinese without known clinical CVD at baseline (2000–2002). Racial/ethnic differences in perceived support (overall, emotional, informational, and instrumental) were tested using multiple regression with adjustments for demographic, socioeconomic, lifestyle/psychosocial, and clinical risk factors, and immigration history. Racial/ethnic differences in the association between perceived support and incident CVD events or mortality were tested using Cox proportional hazards models with progressive adjustments for the same covariates.</p> Results <p>At baseline, the mean age was 62.15 years (SD = 10.23); 38.5% identified as White, 27.8% as Black, 22.0% as Hispanic/Latino, and 11.8% as Chinese. Black and Hispanic/Latino participants reported higher levels of overall support, emotional support, and informational support than White participants (<i>p</i>’s &lt; 0.05). Chinese participants reported less informational support (<i>p</i> = .010) than White participants. Higher informational support was associated with decreased risk for hard CVD events. This association did not differ by race/ethnic group.</p> Conclusion <p>Despite racial/ethnic differences in perceptions of support, perceived informational support was protective against CVD for participants of all racial/ethnic backgrounds.</p>