Historic Decline in Net International Migration Slows U.S. Population Growth

Aerial view of diverse pedestrians crossing a street with yellow painted lines.
Photo of Charlotte Wheeler, Real Estate Writer
by   Charlotte Wheeler
  Posted   March 23, 2026
  in   Demographics

The population of the U.S. recently expanded at the slowest pace in four years. From July 1, 2024 to July 1, 2025, the U.S. gained roughly 1.8 million residents, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates. That increase equated to a growth rate of just 0.5%, the slowest population growth since the COVID-19 pandemic period of 2021 when the U.S. added just over half a million people for a growth rate of 0.2%.

The nation’s recent population growth was nearly half the increase recorded a year earlier when the U.S. added 3.2 million people, growing its population by 1%, the fastest annual population expansion since 2006. For comparison, during the 2010’s decade, the nation’s population grew an average of roughly 0.7% a year.

All four U.S. census regions saw a decline in population growth from July 2024 to July 2025. The South region posted a population increase of 0.9% during that period, the first time since 2021 that the region’s population expansion registered below 1%. The Northeast recorded the steepest setback in growth, dropping from an increase of 0.8% between 2023 and 2024 to just 0.2% between 2024 and 2025. The West recorded a similar falloff in expansion, from 0.8% in 2024 to 0.3% in 2025. The Midwest was relatively more stable. That region saw population growth slow to 0.4% in 2025, down from the 0.6% expansion in 2024.

Line graph showing U.S. population change by region (2011-2025) with trends for Northeast, Midwest, South, and West.

The pullback in the nation’s overall population growth was due to a historic decline in the rate of net international migration. Net international migration peaked at 2.7 million in 2024 and dropped to 1.3 million in 2025. The recent decline in net international migration was due to a decrease in both immigration (people moving into the U.S. from other countries) and an increase in emigration (people moving out of the U.S.). Meanwhile, the nation’s natural increase in population (births minus deaths) remained relatively stable over the past two years.

Line graph showing U.S. population change components from 2020 to 2025, highlighting net migration and natural change.

The Census Bureau is projecting a further decline in net international migration to 321,000 in 2026 based on current trends. If trends continue, the U.S. will be heading toward negative net international migration for the first time in more than 50 years.

As of July 1, 2025, the nation’s total population was estimated at nearly 341.8 million.

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