Slow Growth Impacts Nation’s Largest Counties Hardest

MARCH 26, 2026 - Population growth slowed in a majority of the nation's 3,143 counties and the District of Columbia between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, according to the Vintage 2025 population estimates released today by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Among the 2,066 counties that grew between 2023 and 2024, nearly 8 in 10 saw their growth slow or reverse direction in 2025. In many cases, counties already in decline saw losses accelerate.

Meanwhile, 310 of the 387 U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (metro areas) had slower growth between 2024 and 2025 than during the prior year. The three metro areas with the steepest percentage point declines in population growth rates were along the U.S.-Mexico border: Laredo, TX (from 3.2% in 2023-2024 to 0.2% from 2024 to 2025); Yuma, AZ (3.3% to 1.4%); and El Centro, CA (1.2% to -0.7%).

These shifts were largely due to lower levels of net international migration (NIM), which declined nationwide. Nine out of 10 U.S. counties experienced lower NIM levels between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025, compared to the year prior. The one in 10 counties that did not see a drop in international migration did not see an increase either.

Some of the country's most populous counties experienced the greatest impacts from lower NIM. These counties typically had more births than deaths (natural increase) as well as negative net domestic migration - more people moving out than moving in from other areas of the country. Coupled with reduced NIM, the result was slower growth or, in some cases, population decline.

"The nation's largest counties like those in the New York metro area are often international migration hubs, gaining large numbers of international migrants and losing people that move to other parts of the country via domestic migration," explained George M. Hayward, a Census Bureau demographer. "With fewer gains from international migration, these types of counties saw their population growth diminish or even turn into loss."

The Population Estimates Program uses current data on births, deaths and migration to calculate population change since the most recent decennial census (2020 Census) and produce an annual time series of population estimates. Today's release includes population totals and components of change for U.S. counties and metro areas and micropolitan statistical areas (micro areas), and total population for Puerto Rico municipios and metro/micro areas. Tables are available on census.gov/popest.