“Increasingly, population growth in metro areas is being shaped by international migration,” said Kristie Wilder, a demographer in the Census Bureau’s Population Division. She noted that births still add people, but higher net international migration is offsetting ongoing net domestic outmigration.
Net international migration contributed nearly 2.7 million residents to metro areas, up from 2.2 million the year before. Natural increase—births minus deaths—added about 600,000.
Key facts from the latest data revealed that 60 percent of individual metro areas experienced “natural increase” and approximately 59 percent had net domestic in-migration—though U.S. metro areas overall experienced net domestic outmigration.
Of the 10 fastest-growing metro areas year to year, nine were in the South and one was in the West. The two fastest-growing metros were both located in Florida. Seven of the 10 fastest-growing micro areas (populations of 10,000 to 49,999) were in the South, with the two fastest growing over the period located in Georgia and Florida.
Nearly 90 percent of the nation’s 387 metro areas gained residents, up from 82 percent the previous year. Places that lost population during the pandemic, including New York-Newark-Jersey City, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, and San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, returned to growth.
By sheer numbers, the largest metro gains were New York-Newark-Jersey City (213,403), Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands (198,171), Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington (177,922), Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach (123,471), and Washington-Arlington-Alexandria (90,608).
Measured by growth rate, the leaders were Ocala, Fla., 4 percent; Panama City-Panama City Beach, 3.8 percent; Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, 3.8 percent; Lakeland-Winter Haven, Fla., 3.5 percent; and Provo-Orem-Lehi, Utah, 3 percent.
Counties showed a similar pattern: 65.3 percent of the nation’s 3,144 counties grew in population. Large counties, defined as those with more than 100,000 residents, grew an average 1.1 percent, while the smallest counties on average lost residents.
The 10 most-populous counties in the nation as of July 1, 2024, were Los Angeles County (9,757,179); Cook County, which includes Chicago (5,182,617); Harris County, which includes Houston (5,009,302); Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix (4,673,096); San Diego County (3,298,799); Orange County, California (3,170,435); Miami-Dade County (2,838,461); Dallas County (2,656,028); Kings County, New York (2,617,631); and Riverside County, California (2,529,933).
Harris County recorded the largest numeric gain of 105,852, followed by Miami-Dade County (64,211); Maricopa County (57,471); Collin County, Texas (46,694); and Clark County, which includes Las Vegas (44,586).
The counties with at least 20,000 people with the highest percentage increase in population were Dawson County, Georgia, (6.4 percent), Kaufman County, Texas, (6 percent), Jasper County, South Carolina, (5.9 percent), Jackson County, Georgia, (5.8 percent), and Pinal County, Arizona, (5.6 percent).
Not every area grew. Shelby County, Tennessee, which includes Memphis, lost the most residents at 3,379, while Yazoo County, Mississippi, saw the steepest percentage of loss at 6.4 percent.
The Census Bureau plans to publish July 1, 2024, population estimates for individual cities and towns in May, offering a closer look at how post-pandemic migration and birth trends continue to reshape local communities.
