Population Growth Slowed Across Most States in 2025, and Utah Was Not Exempt

Written by: Staff

Most of us have heard that population growth is slowing across the United States. Many of us also know that Utah is a high-growth state. So how does Utah compare to other states?

From 2024 to 2025, population growth slowed in 48 states. Four states even saw a population decrease.1 While this means the population of most states grew, that growth is slower than in the past. Slower growth may result from lower birth rates, higher death rates, decreased in-migration, or increased out-migration.

Utah consistently finds itself among the fastest-growing states in both the short and medium term. The state ranks 5th in population growth (1.0%) for 2024-2025, and 5th in population growth (8.2%) for 2020-2025.2,3

Looking more closely, however, we can see that Utah is not exempt from the national trend of slowing growth. Utah’s annual population growth rate had been hovering around 1.6% before dipping to 1.0% in 2025.  (See the graph.) This represents the lowest growth rate since 2000.4

Much of the most recent decline – both in the U.S. and in Utah – results from the ratio of in-migration to out-migration.5 As Utah continues to monitor its changing populations, it should be noted that one year of slower migration does not create a trend.

Written by Utah Foundation Research Assistant Jaz Landeros.

 

 

1 Fall A. et al., Pew Charitable Trusts, Population Growth Slowed Across Most States in 2025, Governing, 2026, Population Growth Slowed Across Most States in 2025, https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/geo/chart/UT/PST120225 .

2 Ibid.

3U.S. Census Bureau, Population Percent Change, 2020-2025, Vintage 2025 Population Estimates,  U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Utah.

4 Fall A. et al., ibid.

5 U.S. Census Bureau, Annual population estimates, estimated components of resident population change, and rates of the components of resident population change for the United States, states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2025 (NST-EST2025-ALLDATA), https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2020s-state-total.html.

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