When you don’t like where you live — because of the weather, the state of the economy, political leadership or any other reason — the clearest way to express your feelings is to move.
Thousands of residents did just that between July 2021 and July 2022, with 10 states losing between approximately 20,000 and 350,000 residents each to other states, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.
The numbers are especially striking because the overall U.S. population actually increased by more than 1.2 million people, or 0.4%, during that period.
Following are the 10 U.S. states that recently lost the most residents to another state.
10. Minnesota
Residents who moved from this state to another U.S. state between July 2021 and July 2022: 19,400
Minnesota lost more residents during this period than it had at any point in at least the last 30 years. And the pace of exits appears to be ramping up.
9. Virginia
Residents who moved from this state to another U.S. state between July 2021 and July 2022: 23,952
People are leaving the northern part of Virginia in large numbers. That is a surprise, as the area around Washington, D.C., long has generated the most significant growth in the state.
8. Pennsylvania
Residents who moved from this state to another U.S. state between July 2021 and July 2022: 39,957
Much of the loss of population in Pennsylvania is a result of large defections in Philadelphia. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the city was gaining residents. But that trend has reversed.
7. Maryland
Residents who moved from this state to another U.S. state between July 2021 and July 2022: 45,101
As far back as the summer of 2021, alarm bells rang about an ongoing loss of population in the Baltimore metro.
But the trend really reaches back many decades, with Baltimore falling from the sixth most-populated U.S. city in 1950 to No. 30 by 2020.
6. Louisiana
Residents who moved from this state to another U.S. state between July 2021 and July 2022: 46,672
Large numbers of people are flying away from the Pelican State. In late 2021, demographer Greg Rigamer noted the trend and told the Louisiana Radio Network:
“States with a prosperous economy, communities with a prosperous economy attract people. People by and large are looking for a better life.”
5. Massachusetts
Residents who moved from this state to another U.S. state between July 2021 and July 2022: 57,292
Massachusetts continues to lose residents — and as with other states on this list, that means fewer taxpayers to fund services.
Commenting on the trend, Paul Craney of Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance told a local TV station:
“Unless you slow down spending which frankly hasn’t happened in many years, maybe decades, in the State House, the vicious appetite to continue to increase spending will only become worse when more and more taxpayers leave our state.”
4. New Jersey
Residents who moved from this state to another U.S. state between July 2021 and July 2022: 64,231
New Jersey has been losing residents for a long time now.
In fact, the New Jersey State Policy Lab at Rutgers University says data from the IRS shows that between 2011 and 2019, the Garden State lost more than $23.6 billion in net adjusted gross income.
3. Illinois
Residents who moved from this state to another U.S. state between July 2021 and July 2022: 141,656
Illinois has lost residents for nine consecutive years, with no end to the trend in sight.
Half of the state’s residents have considered leaving, according to the nonpartisan group Illinois Policy. High taxes are the No. 1 factor pushing people to weigh leaving the state.
2. New York
Residents who moved from this state to another U.S. state between July 2021 and July 2022: 299,557
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is among many who are worried about a years-long trend of population loss in the Empire State.
In 2022, Hochul referred to the exodus of residents as “an alarm bell that cannot be ignored.”
1. California
Residents who moved from this state to another U.S. state between July 2021 and July 2022: 343,230
While California tops the list of states losing residents, the Golden State does offer a glimmer of hope. The state’s rate of population loss has actually slowed from the rate during the previous year.