(The Center Square) – Iowa’s population grew to 3.2 million in 2023, a 0.2 percent increase from 2022, according to numbers released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Tuesday.
The Hawkeye State’s net population change from July 2022 to July 2023 is 7,311. The numbers reflect a natural change of 3,779, which measures the addition of births and the subtraction of deaths.
About 3,000 people chose to leave the state for another, but 7,112 international residents settled in Iowa, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The net migration change is 3,509.
The Midwestern region grew by 0.2% after decreasing for two years. Fewer people left the area for other states, and international migration increased. The Western states also experienced moderate growth, according to the Census Bureau.
The Northeastern states experienced a slight decline but not as much as the previous year. The region’s population declined by 43,330 in 2023, 216,576 in 2022 and 187,054 in 2021. New York State led all states for the most significant drop in population percentage-wise at -0.5%.
The largest population increase was in the South, the only region growing during the pandemic. Another 1.4 million people decided to call South home, including more than 702,000 from other states and almost 500,000 from other countries. South Carolina led the states in population percentage-wise with an increase of 1.7%, followed by Florida at 1.6%.
Overall, U.S. population trends are reverting to pre-pandemic levels, according to the Census Bureau. The U.S. added 1.6 million people in 2023, a 0.5% increase.
“U.S. migration returning to pre-pandemic levels and a drop in deaths are driving the nation’s growth,” said Kristie Wilder, a demographer in the Population Division at the Census Bureau. “Although births declined, this was tempered by the near 9% decrease in deaths. Ultimately, fewer deaths paired with rebounding immigration resulted in the nation experiencing its largest population gain since 2018.”
