Texas added more residents than any other state from July 2024 to July 2025: an estimated 391,243 people. Florida was second with 196,680, and North Carolina was third with 145,907.
This guide ranks the ten largest numeric gains, then separates total gain from growth rate and explains how births, deaths, international migration, and domestic migration enter the estimate. It helps a prospective mover use the table as a research starting point rather than a verdict on where to live.
Why it matters
The ten leading states added about 1.2 million residents in one year. That scale can affect housing demand, public services, construction, traffic, and moving capacity. It also gives people considering relocation a useful first list of markets to investigate.
The list is a starting point, not a verdict on where life is best. State growth does not tell you whether a particular neighborhood is affordable, whether your profession is hiring, or whether insurance, schools, health care, climate, and daily travel fit your household.
By the numbers
Texas alone supplied nearly one-third of the combined gain in this table. Six of the ten states are in the South, three are in the West, and New Jersey is the only Northeastern state represented.
Zoom in: scale and speed produced different leaders
Texas led in the number of residents added because even a moderate percentage increase produces a large head count in a state of more than 31 million people. South Carolina added about 80,000 residents—far fewer than Texas—but its 1.5% growth rate was the fastest among the states.
North Carolina was strong on both measures: third in total residents added and among the fastest-growing states by percentage. These comparisons answer different questions. Numeric gain shows where the population expanded most; percentage growth shows how quickly the state changed relative to its starting size.
The big picture
The United States added about 1.8 million residents, or 0.5%, over the period. Census reported slower national growth as net international migration fell from the previous year. Forty-five states gained population; California, Hawaii, New Mexico, Vermont, and West Virginia declined.
The regional pattern was not uniform. The South supplied most of the states near the top of the numeric list. The Midwest was notable for recording positive net domestic migration for the first time this decade, even though no Midwestern state reached this top ten by total population gain.
Yes, but: one year cannot answer a moving decision
Annual estimates can be revised, and a statewide total can hide opposite changes within its metros, suburbs, small towns, and rural counties. Growth can create opportunity and pressure at the same time: more jobs and services in one place, tighter housing or infrastructure in another.
What the list means for someone planning a move
Use the ranking to identify places that deserve deeper research, then move from state to metro, neighborhood, address, and daily routine. Compare the real commute, housing inventory, climate exposure, insurance availability, school or care requirements, and the services you will use every week.
Moveline’s U.S. agent network is responsible for more than one million moves each year, giving its team extensive experience with inventories, city access, long-distance scheduling, and moving-day handoffs. That experience shows why a popular state does not create one standard move: the city, building, shipment, date, and delivery access still control the work.
Compare this list with Moveline’s fastest-growing states and largest city population gains. The three views show total scale, percentage pace, and where growth is landing.
Bottom line
Texas, Florida, and North Carolina added the most residents in 2025. South Carolina grew fastest by percentage. Those facts are useful and different. Let the Census numbers open the search; let your address-level costs, work, services, risks, and moving estimates decide it.
