Americans Are Still Moving South in 2026, but the States Winning the Race Have Changed

America’s 2026 migration map has a new leader as North Carolina overtakes Texas, Florida loses momentum, and high-cost states continue shedding residents.

America is still moving south, but the moving trucks are no longer following the same route. North Carolina gained 84,064 more domestic residents than it lost between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, beating Texas at 67,299 and South Carolina at 66,622.

The bigger surprise is Florida. The state that gained an extraordinary 310,892 domestic migrants in 2022 attracted only 22,517 in the latest Census period, a decline of more than 92% from that pandemic-era peak.

That does not mean Americans have suddenly stopped choosing warm weather. Instead, the 2026 numbers suggest households are becoming more selective, comparing home prices, insurance costs, job access and daily expenses before committing to a new ZIP code.

North Carolina has become America’s new migration leader.

North Carolina’s 84,064-person domestic migration gain placed it at No. 1 nationally, slightly above the roughly 83,000 residents it gained from other states during the previous year. Its latest total was also below the approximately 104,000 domestic migrants gained between July 2020 and July 2021, showing that the state remains strong even as the national moving frenzy cools.

South Carolina delivered an equally powerful result when population size is considered. Its population climbed by 79,958 residents in one year, producing a 1.5% growth rate, the fastest of all 50 states.

Together, the 2 Carolinas gained more than 150,000 net domestic migrants during the latest estimate period. That combined total was more than twice Texas’ gain and nearly 7 times Florida’s latest domestic migration increase.

The Carolinas are not relying on 1 type of newcomer. Census analysis found that adults aged 55 and older have driven growth in coastal counties such as Brunswick County, North Carolina, and Horry County, South Carolina, for much of the past 15 years.

Jobs and suburban expansion are pulling people inland as well. Raleigh ranked No. 4 on the 2026 PODS move-in list, Greenville-Spartanburg placed No. 5, and Charlotte finished No. 6, giving the Carolinas 3 markets inside the national top 6.

The Myrtle Beach-Wilmington corridor remained PODS’ No. 1 destination for the fourth consecutive year. That coastal region’s staying power suggests Americans are not just pursuing cheap homes, but communities that combine retirement appeal, recreation and access to growing regional economies.

Florida remains popular, but its historic surge is fading.

Florida still ranked No. 2 on U-Haul’s 2025 Growth Index and placed 4 cities inside PODS’ top 20 destinations. Ocala ranked second, Sarasota ninth and Jacksonville tenth, showing that demand remains strong in several local markets.

Official Census estimates tell a more complicated story. Florida’s net domestic migration fell from 310,892 in 2022 to 183,646 in 2023 and just 22,517 during the latest period, pushing the state down to eighth place nationally.

Neighboring Alabama gained 23,358 net domestic migrants, placing it slightly ahead of Florida for the first time in the latest Census ranking. That is striking for a state whose population is less than one-quarter of Florida’s roughly 23.5 million residents.

Florida still added nearly 197,000 residents overall between July 2024 and July 2025. Its population reached approximately 23.46 million, helped heavily by 178,674 net international migrants rather than the giant domestic inflows seen earlier in the decade.

The split between Florida’s No. 2 U-Haul ranking and No. 8 Census domestic migration ranking is not necessarily a contradiction. U-Haul analyzes more than 2.5 million one-way equipment transactions, while the Census Bureau estimates every move into and out of each state using a broader population model.

U-Haul reported that arrivals represented 50.6% of its one-way Florida traffic, compared with 49.4% for departures. That margin is positive, but it also shows how a state can rank highly in a commercial moving index even when the difference between arrivals and departures is only 1.2 percentage points.

Texas is still a giant, but smaller markets are gaining ground.

Texas regained the No. 1 position on U-Haul’s index for the seventh time in 10 years. Incoming customers accounted for 50.7% of the company’s Texas traffic, while outgoing customers represented 49.3%.

The Census Bureau, however, placed Texas second for domestic migration with a gain of 67,299 residents. That was roughly 17,000 fewer than North Carolina and below Texas’ gain of 85,267 during the previous estimate period.

Texas still added more people overall than any other state. Its population increased by approximately 391,000 in 1 year, rising from about 31.32 million to 31.71 million by July 1, 2025.

Dallas-Fort Worth also climbed from fifth to third on PODS’ 2026 destination list. Its 2-position rise challenges the idea that Americans are abandoning large metropolitan areas altogether.

The real movement may be occurring around the edges of those metros. Among counties with at least 20,000 residents, 9 of the 10 fastest-growing counties and 45 of the top 50 were located in the South.

Texas counties outside major urban centers have repeatedly captured that demand. Kaufman County, east of Dallas, recorded the nation’s highest domestic migration rate from 2021 through 2023, while outer counties near Austin and San Antonio also ranked prominently during earlier years.

The biggest counties are losing residents to smaller communities.

The most revealing migration divide may not be North versus South. It may be the difference between America’s 50 largest counties and the thousands of smaller counties surrounding them.

Counties with at least 1 million residents collectively lost 637,634 people through domestic migration during the latest period. Counties with populations between 50,000 and 999,999, by contrast, gained a combined 533,766 domestic residents.

Medium-sized counties with populations between 15,000 and 49,999 gained another 95,095 residents from domestic migration. Even counties with fewer than 15,000 people recorded a small net gain of 8,773.

The pattern does not mean metropolitan America is collapsing. Metro areas gained more than 1.7 million residents overall, even though they recorded a domestic migration loss of 119,205.

International migration of approximately 1.21 million and natural population growth of about 613,743 more than offset that domestic outflow. In other words, a metro can lose residents to other states and still post a significant total population increase during the same 12-month period.

Jasper County, South Carolina, illustrates how quickly an overlooked location can rise. The county climbed from 17th in 2022 to 11th in 2023, third in 2024 and first nationally for its domestic migration rate in 2025.

California and New York are losing residents, but the full picture matters.

California recorded the country’s largest domestic migration loss at 229,077 residents. New York lost 137,586, Illinois lost 40,017, New Jersey lost 37,428, and Massachusetts lost 33,340.

Moving-company data reflected the same pressure. California placed last on U-Haul’s index for the sixth straight year, while Illinois ranked 49th, New Jersey 48th, New York 47th and Massachusetts 46th.

PODS also placed Los Angeles at No. 1 on its move-out list for the fifth consecutive year. South Florida ranked second, Northern California third, Washington, D.C., fourth and Long Island fifth.

Yet the phrase “Americans are fleeing” can hide an important distinction. California lost more than 229,000 domestic residents, but its total population declined by only 9,465, leaving the state with approximately 39.36 million people.

New York provides an even sharper example. Despite losing nearly 138,000 residents to other states, its total population increased by approximately 1,000, supported partly by 95,634 net international migrants.

Illinois also gained 16,108 residents overall even after losing 40,017 through domestic migration. Its outflow was reportedly the state’s lowest in 15 years, showing that a state can remain a major outbound market while its losses are slowing.

America’s migration map is more complicated than politics.

Eight of U-Haul’s top 10 growth states were in the South, while Washington ranked sixth and Oregon jumped 23 positions to No. 11. Those exceptions make it difficult to explain every relocation decision through a single political narrative.

The Midwest also recorded positive net domestic migration for the first time in the 2020s. Although Illinois remained an outbound state, gains elsewhere helped the region post a domestic increase of roughly 16,000 residents.

Overall, 31 states gained more domestic residents than they lost, compared with 27 states during the previous year. Only 5 states experienced an overall population decline, proving that domestic outmigration does not automatically translate into total population loss.

The U.S. population grew by approximately 1.8 million, or 0.5%, to reach 341.8 million by July 1, 2025. That was almost half the previous year’s increase of 3.2 million, largely because net international migration dropped by 53.8%.

What the 2026 migration race really reveals

The 2026 winners are not simply the warmest states or those with the lowest taxes. They are increasingly the places that offer a workable combination of housing, jobs, healthcare, recreation and access to a major economic center.

PODS found that Sun Belt locations represented 80% of its top destination markets, up from 75% the previous year. Florida and Tennessee each placed 4 cities in the top 20, while the Carolinas controlled 4 of the top 6 positions when their shared coastal market was included.

At the same time, the national median sales price for a newly built home reached $424,900 in May 2026. With housing near that level, even a 10% difference in price can represent more than $42,000 for a household deciding where to settle.

That financial pressure helps explain why Americans are looking beyond famous city centers toward outer suburbs, coastal retirement communities and growing mid-sized metros. The moving truck may still be headed south in 2026, but affordability is increasingly deciding exactly where it stops.

This version uses 29 data-led paragraphs, with at least one numeric hook in each paragraph while distinguishing Census population estimates from private moving-company rankings.