Immigration fuels U.S. population growth in 2024

Wells Fargo Research Team Wells Fargo

Summary

Interstate movements normalize as immigration soars

The U.S. population grew by 1.0% in 2024, marking the strongest population expansion since 2001. An uptick from natural causes (i.e. births net of deaths) made a small positive contribution, however, immigration drove the bulk of the increase. The United States added 2.8 million international migrants on net in 2024, the highest annual total on record. Most new immigrants settled in large states such as Florida, California, Texas, New York and New Jersey. Meanwhile, domestic residents continued to leave expensive areas for more affordable locations across the Sunbelt and Mountain West. However, the pace of inter-state movement continued to normalize down from the pandemic. Overall, net domestic migration registered its slowest pace since 2013. Notably, domestic migration cooled in hotspots like Florida and Texas and was less of a drag on growth in New York and California.

Population growth ramped up in 2024

The U.S. population grew by 1.0% in 2024, marking the strongest pace of population expansion since 2001. As shown in the chart below, Washington D.C. led the nation in population growth in percentage terms during 2024. Florida, Texas and Utah registered the fastest growth among states, while Vermont, West Virginia and Mississippi ranked the lowest. Nationwide, 2024’s improvement was not the result of a material increase from natural causes. Although the number of deaths continued to moderate down from pandemic highs, births remained muted. Furthermore, 17 states experienced more deaths than births, led by Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Florida. As a result, population growth from natural causes only amounted to 519K, more than 40% below the increase in 2019.

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Wells Fargo Research Team

Wells Fargo

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