Twentynine Palms, California had the largest estimated one-year percentage population decline among qualifying U.S. cities, falling 2.9% from July 2024 to July 2025. Key West ranked second at −2.4%, followed by Greenville, Mississippi at −2.0%.
The ranking covers incorporated places with at least 20,000 residents at the start of the period. Percentage change shows the size of the decline relative to each city’s population; it does not identify the reason.
The ten fastest-shrinking U.S. cities by percentage
Asheville lost the most residents within this percentage top ten, but its larger starting population produced a −1.7% rate. Twentynine Palms lost fewer people and ranked first because 769 residents represented a larger share of its population.
A percentage decline is a signal to investigate—not a city rating
The AP reference article pairs national results with specific city context and avoids treating one measure as the whole story. Moveline uses that balanced style while keeping conclusions within what the one-year Census estimates actually show.
Fastest shrinking is different from largest loss
New York recorded the largest numeric loss at 12,196 residents, but its percentage change rounded to only −0.1%. None of the top three cities by numeric loss appears in this percentage top ten. Use Moveline’s largest-loss ranking when total people lost is the question.
Keeping the two lists separate prevents a small city with a sharp rate and a large city with a substantial head-count loss from being treated as the same demographic event.
What a relocating household should verify
Moveline’s nationwide agent network handles more than one million moves annually. That experience keeps the practical decision focused on the household, address, date, and written price. A city percentage does not price the move, select a neighborhood, or replace a current job and housing comparison.
Declining population does not guarantee a cheaper move
Moving prices respond to the route, home size, season, company availability, labor, fuel, parking, building access, and requested services. An outbound city can still have limited capacity on a busy date, and a destination with population loss can still have difficult curb or building conditions.
Price the actual move with the Moveline calculator, then request several written estimates based on the same belongings and addresses. Include customer travel, temporary housing, deposits, storage, cleaning, and first-week purchases in the household budget. Keep a separate reserve for date changes or delayed access to the new home.
Use the latest complete release
Census estimates are revised when a new vintage is published. Compare years within the same vintage, preserve the 20,000-person threshold, and refresh the complete ranking when the next official city table becomes available for public use.
