California’s population has continued to decline, as the negative impacts of traffic, the cost of housing and the ability to work remotely has outweighed the state’s many benefits over the last couple of years. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Golden State’s population has decreased by more than 500,000 people since July 2020.

According to the LA Times, net migration out of California surpassed that of #2 New York by about 143,000 people, prompting neighboring states like Utah and Nevada to shun the new residents. Los Angeles County lost 113,000 people between July of 2021 and July of 2022, which was nearly half of the state’s full total during that time period.

Paul Ong, director of the Center for Neighborhood Knowledge at UCLA told the LA Times that the lower housing costs in other states has driven the exodus, along with COVID fears in denser urban cores and the ability to work remotely. Which states have seen the highest population increases since July 2020? Texas and Florida, which gained 884,000 and 707,000 people respectively.