Census: North Carolina Highest Domestic In-Migration State 2025

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New figures released by the US Census Bureau put North Carolina at the top of the list for domestic net migration from July 2024 to July 2025. The state saw just over 84,000 domestic residents moving in during that period, followed by Texas with 67,299, and South Carolina with 66,622. Perennial heavyweight Florida was all the way down at number eight on the list with 22,517 move-ins. On the flip side, it’s no surprise that California and New York topped the list of domestic out-migration states with 299,077 and 137,586 resident departures, respectively. Illinois, New Jersey and Massachusetts made up the balance of the top five, but with significantly smaller domestic out-migration numbers. 


International net migration fell substantially in the US, declining from 2.7 million in the year ended July 1, 2024 to 1.3 million in the year ending July 1, 2025, a 54% decline. Nevertheless, all of the states saw some international net migration in 2025, with Florida and Texas topping the list. In Florida’s case, its international net migration of 178,674 accounted for almost all of its total population growth, as its births/deaths count actually detracted 1,333 from its population count in 2025. Texas, by contrast, saw its births/deaths count add to its population by almost 158,000. California and New York also saw significant levels of international net migration.


Overall, 45 states saw combined natural and migration population growth between July 2024 and July 2025. Texas, Florida and North Carolina topped the list but again, Florida’s growth was almost entirely driven by international migration, whereas Texas and North Carolina also saw growth from both the births/deaths and domestic migration categories. We note that South Carolina saw the largest percentage increase in population during the study period, with a significant amount of that coming from domestic migration. The five states to experience population losses in 2025 were California, Hawaii, Vermont, New Mexico, and West Virginia, with the declines in California and Hawaii driven by domestic out-migration, and those in Vermont, New Mexico and West Virginia driven by the births/deaths counts.   



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