Economy

The State Where Population Has Grown the Most Since the Pandemic

Douglas A. McIntyre

Published: February 22, 2022 8:30 am

The COVID-19 pandemic had a staggering effect on the growth of the U.S. population. It dropped to just 0.1% in the year that ended July 1, 2021, according to the Census Bureau. That was the slowest rate in American history. The last time the population increased by less than a million was in 1937, at the depths of the Great Depression. Other than deaths from the virus, low birth rates and slowing international migration were the largest contributing factors.

Ten states actually posted declines in population. The largest of these was the 1.6% drop in New York, which took the number of residents to 20,154,933.

More than 30 states did post population growth over the period. To identify the state that has grown the most since the pandemic, 24/7 Wall St. looked at the one-year population change from July 1, 2020, to July 1, 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Some states where the population increased during the pandemic were growing anyway as the result of the longtime trend of Americans moving out of Rust Belt states like Michigan and Ohio and Northeastern states like New York and heading to warmer climates (and places with lower taxes) such as Arizona, Florida and Texas. In addition, some people chose new states where COVID-19 mandates were nonexistent or less severe, such as South Dakota, as well as Florida and Texas.

The state with the largest increase in population was Idaho. Here are the details:

• One-year change in population: 2.9%
• Population estimate July 1, 2020: 1,847,772
• Population estimate July 1, 2021: 1,900,923
• Average new COVID-19 cases, past 7 days: 2,749

Click here to see the 31 states where populations have risen since the pandemic.