U.S. State Population Change Explorer
Compare U.S. state population estimates from 2020 to 2025. Rank states by population growth, growth rate, latest population, and annual change using official Census data.
Last updated: August 2026
Top 10
Bottom 10
State detail
| Year | July 1 annual population estimate |
|---|
Complete filtered ranking
| Rank | State or geography | Region | Start population | End population | Numeric change | Percentage change | Average annual change | CAGR |
|---|
How are state population changes calculated?
Numeric change subtracts the selected start-year July 1 estimate from the end-year estimate. Percentage change divides that difference by the start population. Average annual change divides by the number of years; CAGR uses compound annual growth.
What geographies are included?
The default set contains the 50 states and District of Columbia. Puerto Rico is available through a separate toggle and is identified as Puerto Rico rather than a state. National, region, and division aggregates are excluded.
How should rankings be interpreted?
Absolute growth and percentage growth answer different questions. A large state can add more residents while a smaller state grows faster proportionally. The explorer makes no political or demographic-cause claims.
Data limitations
These are Census Bureau annual population estimates for July 1, not projections, real-time values, or decennial census counts for every year. New vintages may revise earlier estimates.