The number of Americans moving to Florida, driven by the height of COVID-19 lockdowns, has fallen, according to a Vintage population estimate released by the United States Census Bureau.
Newsweek reported on Saturday that net migration to Florida from other states dropped sharply from 317,923 in 2022 to 63,346 by December 2024. Despite this decline, Florida's total population grew by 467,347 over the same period, driven primarily by migrants — 411,322.
While Florida saw a massive shift in Americans moving to the Sunshine State during the height of the pandemic, census data indicates this trend is shifting, potentially due to the rising costs of living and changing priorities among Americans post-pandemic.
The U.S. Census Bureau said the net increase in population growth was vastly dictated by migrants from foreign countries.
"As the nation's population surpasses 340 million," the agency wrote, "this is the fastest annual population growth the nation has seen since 2001 — a notable increase from the record low growth rate of 0.2 percent in 2021. The growth was primarily driven by rising net international migration."
"Net international migration, which refers to any change of residence across U.S. borders (the 50 states and the District of Columbia), was the critical demographic component of change driving growth in the resident population. With a net increase of 2.8 million people, it accounted for 84 percent of the nation's 3.3 million increase in population between 2023 and 2024."
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.