The U.S. population grew by 2.7% over the past five years, from about 327 million in 2016 to almost 332 million people in 2021. But in recent years, urban populations in much of the country have swelled even more rapidly.

Nearly two hundred U.S. metro areas reported population growth on pace with the national population change or faster. In any area, population change is the result of migration and natural change. Migration refers to the net change in people moving to and from an area, while natural change is the difference between births and deaths.

Due to these factors, the Coeur d’Alene metro area in Idaho reported 16.5% population growth in the last five years, the 14th most among 381 U.S. metro areas with available data. The latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey shows that Coeur d’Alene’s population grew to 179,789 from 154,311 in 2016.

Economic opportunity is one of the most common reasons people move within the United States, and areas with strong job markets can provide better economic stability for new families. Over the last five years, unemployment in the metro area has fallen considerably. As of the end of 2021, 3.0% of the Coeur d’Alene labor force were out of work, down from 4.2% at the end of 2016, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

 

Rank	Metro area	2016-2021 Pop. change (%)	2021 population	2016 population	Dec. 2021 unemployment (%)	Dec. 2016 unemployment (%)
1	Jackson, TN	39.6	180,799	129,527	3.7	4.8
2	Manhattan, KS	38.1	133,932	97,004	2.5	3.4
3	Fayetteville, NC	37.9	524,588	380,389	5.5	6.3
4	Longview, TX	32.4	287,868	217,446	5.4	6.3
5	Ames, IA	30.0	126,195	97,090	2.0	2.2
6	Sumter, SC	26.4	135,782	107,396	4.0	5.5
7	Morristown, TN	22.6	143,855	117,320	3.8	5.0
8	Wausau-Weston, WI	22.6	166,189	135,603	2.2	3.3
9	Gainesville, FL	22.4	344,881	281,796	3.6	4.2
10	Columbia, MO	20.5	212,796	176,594	2.2	3.0
11	St. George, UT	19.3	191,226	160,245	1.8	3.5
12	Clarksville, TN-KY	16.9	329,864	282,075	4.1	5.4
13	Durham-Chapel Hill, NC	16.9	654,012	559,535	3.1	4.4
14	Coeur d’Alene, ID	16.5	179,789	154,311	3.0	4.2
15	Boise City, ID	16.1	801,470	690,214	2.3	3.5
16	Hattiesburg, MS	15.9	172,507	148,803	3.3	4.9
17	Pocatello, ID	15.7	97,645	84,377	2.4	3.4
18	Provo-Orem, UT	15.6	696,699	602,543	1.5	3.0
19	Greeley, CO	15.3	340,036	294,932	4.9	2.9
20	Charleston, WV	15.2	252,942	219,579	3.8	5.4

 

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