In the latest Census table that measures the distance of intercounty moves, 24.1% of movers traveled 500 miles or more. That represents about 2.6 million people during the 2020–2021 measurement period. Another 12.8% moved 200–499 miles, 22.7% moved 50–199 miles, and 40.4% moved less than 50 miles.
The important point is simple: Census does not publish one universal number called “long-distance moves.” It publishes distance, county, state, and annual mobility measures that answer different questions. This article shows the useful numbers and the right label for each.
How far intercounty movers traveled
Census Current Population Survey Table A-6 counted 10.644 million people who moved from one U.S. county to another in 2020–2021. The distance groups below divide only those intercounty movers. Moves within the same county are outside this table.
A reader asking “How many intercounty movers went at least 500 miles?” can use 2.6 million. A reader asking “How many Americans moved at all?” needs the newer ACS annual mobility total instead.
Interstate moves are a different measurement
The 2024 American Community Survey estimated that about 7.2 million people moved from a different state. Interstate movement is not the same as a 500-mile move: a move across a nearby state line may be short, while a move within Texas or California may be hundreds of miles.
The latest annual mover total is much larger
The 2024 ACS estimated about 39.6 million U.S. residents age one or older lived in a different home than one year earlier. That total includes moves within the same county, elsewhere in the same state, from another state, and from abroad. It cannot be substituted for the intercounty distance denominator.
For a full explanation of the annual total, see Moveline’s annual mover-count guide. The 2026 migration report separately tracks state gains and losses.
Census mobility and moving-company activity should stay separate
In this internal dataset, a “record” is a partner-network lead, not evidence of a booking, shipment, completed move, or unique person.
Moveline analyzed approximately 1.6 million internal moving records covering July 31, 2025 through July 30, 2026. These records describe activity within Moveline’s network; they are not a national population or migration estimate.
Census data supplies the population and migration measures used in this article.
One household may contain several people, complete more than one move in a year, use no professional mover, or split a relocation across several services. Keeping people, households, leads, bookings, and shipments separate makes each statistic more useful.
What the distance statistics reveal
Most intercounty movers in the latest distance table traveled under 200 miles, but nearly one in four traveled at least 500 miles. That long-distance group faces a different planning job: delivery windows, customer travel, possible storage, interstate mover registration, and more route exposure matter alongside the pickup and delivery addresses.
How the external Census article shaped this guide
The Census Bureau’s article on declining mobility puts the finding before the technical detail and explains move types beside the numbers. This guide follows that reader-first structure while adding the distance table and current ACS context.
