Immigration drives population growth to fastest rate since 2001: Census

U.S. population growth sped up toward more "historical norms" this year following a two-decade slump, spurred by international migration.

According to U.S. Census Bureau data released Thursday, the country’s population grew by almost 1 percent this year to surpass 340 million people, marking the fastest annual growth rate since 2001.

“An annual growth rate of 1.0% is higher than what we’ve seen over recent years but well within historical norms,” said Kristie Wilder, a Census Bureau demographer, in a press release. “What stands out is the diminishing role of natural increase over the last five years, as net international migration has become the primary driver of the nation’s growth.”

Between 2023 and 2024, the country’s total population grew by 3.3 million people, 2.8 of whom were born abroad, according to the Census Bureau. The net increase from migration in 2023 was 2.3 million people and, in 2022, 1.7 million.

U.S. births minus deaths accounted for a net population increase of 519,000 people in 2024, up from a historical-low natural population increase of 146,000 in 2021.

Like other advanced economies, the United States is facing a trend of decreased natural population growth.

Population growth screeched to a halt following the coronavirus pandemic, with a 0.2 percent increase in 2021 and a 0.4 percent increase in 2022.

Growth returned to prepandemic levels in 2023 with a 0.5 growth rate, though that level still lagged behind 20th century historical norms.

From the late 1960s to the first years of the 21st century, population growth hovered around 1 percent yearly before starting to decline around 2008 and bottoming out in 2021, according to World Bank data.

Population growth in 2024 was especially high in the South, a region where about a third of all U.S. residents live.

The South has nearly 133 million residents, with a net 2024 population gain of 1.8 million people — about a 1.4 percent growth rate — 1.1 million of whom were international immigrants, while 411,004 were domestic migrants.

The West, with 80 million residents, was the next fastest-growing region with a net increase of about 688,000 people, or 0.9 percent of its population. Of that net number, a broad majority were international immigrants; the West had a net 667,794 population gain through international immigration, a net natural gain of 187,986 and a domestic migration net loss of almost 170,000 people.

The Northeast’s population growth rate was 0.76 percent in 2024, with a net gain of 435,000 people from a total population of 57.8 million. The region lost 192,109 people to domestic migration and gained a net 567,420 from international immigration, meaning the Northeast would have shrunk were it not for international immigrants.

The Midwest saw the slowest growth of any region, with a net increase of 410,000 residents — about 0.6 percent of its total population of 69.5 million. Natural growth accounted for a net gain of 52,741 people, and international migration accounted for a net gain of 406,737 people.