Californias population is shrinking one of just 5 states losing residents

Californians are ditching the Golden State.A new research revealed that nearly 10,000 residents left California in 2025, reducing the state’s population by 0.02%.SmartAsset analyzed year-over-year population changes in 50 states across the US and found that only five states lost residents in 2025 as compared to the year before that.

With 39,355,309 residents, California remains the most populous state in the US, despite a slight year-over-year decline.The state had a population of 39,364,774 in 2024.

The state has shown persistent decline in population in the past decade and a half.Between 2010 and 2024, nearly 10 million Californians left for other states while just over 7 million moved in, according to a report by CalMatters.

The downward momentum reached its sharpest point between 2020 and 2021, when California lost a record 374,900 residents in a single year.Among the five states that recorded decreases in population, Vermont lost the largest share of its residents at roughly 0.3%, followed by Hawaii at 0.2%.The report revealed that South Carolina and North Carolina were among the nation’s biggest population gainers with a growth of 1.46% and 1.32%, respectively.“The U.S.

population continues to grow, but that growth has slowed dramatically, with the year-over-year increase now below 1%,” according to SmartAsset.Utah emerged as the nation’s youngest state in the research, with a median age of 33.

The Beehive State also has the highest share of kids under 5 (6.5%) and the lowest proportion of seniors 65 and older (13%).By contrast, Northern New England has the oldest population.Maine leads the country with a median age of 45 and the highest share of seniors, while Vermont and New Hampshire closely follow with median ages of 44.“A growing population can increase labor availability and expand the consumer base, supporting economic growth.

At the same time, negative population growth may reduce pressure on housing and infrastructure, potentially im...