States Losing the Most Residents to Other States
California lost over 1.2 million residents to other states between 2020 and 2024 — the largest domestic exodus of any state. New York, Illinois, New Jersey and Massachusetts also saw major population losses as Americans left high-cost blue states for the South and West.
Data
| # | State | Net Migration |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | -1,234,030 |
| 2 | New York | -966,209 |
| 3 | Illinois | -418,056 |
| 4 | New Jersey | -192,209 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | -162,751 |
| 6 | Louisiana | -129,488 |
| 7 | Maryland | -120,435 |
| 8 | Michigan | -67,785 |
| 9 | Hawaii | -50,754 |
| 10 | Pennsylvania | -49,031 |
| 11 | Minnesota | -47,930 |
| 12 | Ohio | -38,018 |
| 13 | Virginia | -34,497 |
| 14 | Connecticut | -24,206 |
| 15 | Kansas | -23,923 |
Note: The States Losing the Most Residents Are Mostly High-Cost Coastal and Great Lakes States
Who Is Losing the Most People
When demographers rank states by population loss, California is almost always at or near the top, losing more residents to other states than any other state in the country, year after year. New York, Illinois, and other Northeast and Great Lakes states follow closely behind. These states lose people in two ways: they send more residents to other states than they attract, and in some cases they also post more deaths than births. Both forces push their totals down.
Why People Leave California and Other Big Losers
Cost of living is the headline reason. In California and New York, housing is so expensive that even solid middle-class incomes cannot buy much, and people with flexibility cash out and leave. High taxes are the other constant complaint, especially in states with steep income or property taxes. Crowding, traffic, and long commutes add to the push. For many leavers, the move is a purely financial decision that unlocks a bigger house and a lower bill.
Where the Leavers Go
The departures have a clear destination pattern. Californians mostly head to Texas, Arizona, Nevada, and the Pacific Northwest. New Yorkers and Northeasterners fan out to Florida, the Carolinas, and other Sun Belt states. Illinois sends a steady stream to Florida, Texas, and neighboring Indiana and Wisconsin. Some movers go just one or two states over for cheaper housing, while others go across the country for a completely different lifestyle.
Shrinking or Just Slowing
Losing residents does not always mean a state is collapsing. Some big losing states still grow overall because international immigration offsets their domestic losses, as happens in New York. Others, like Illinois, can see total population shrink for years at a time. Either way, the aging of the population makes it harder to recover, because the people who stay tend to be older, and the people who leave tend to be younger with children.
What the Trend Means for the Losing States
Prolonged out-migration has real consequences. Fewer residents means less revenue for state budgets, which lands hardest on schools and infrastructure. Losing younger workers tightens the labor market and speeds up aging. It also shifts political representation, since seats in Congress are reapportioned by population after each census. The states at the top of the loss list are not just losing people; they are gradually changing what they are.
Fun Facts
- California has led the nation in net domestic out-migration for many consecutive years.
- New York and Illinois are the other members of the big three chronic losers.
- Many leavers from California move to Texas, which gains thousands of former Californians every year.
- High housing costs are the most commonly cited reason people give for leaving the biggest losing states.
- Some losing states still post overall growth because international immigration fills the gap, New York being a prime example.
- States that lose residents tend to age faster because the people who leave are younger on average.
- Several Northeastern and Midwestern states lose more residents to other states than they gain in almost every year.