February 2026 Issue

As a valued U.S. Census Bureau partner and stakeholder, this newsletter is designed to keep you informed and engaged.

U.S. Population Growth Slows Due to Historic Decline in Net International Migration

Population growth in the United States has slowed significantly with an increase of only 1.8 million, or 0.5%, between July 1, 2024, and July 1, 2025, according to new Vintage 2025 population estimates recently released by the U.S. Census Bureau.

This was the nation’s slowest population growth since the early period of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the population grew by a historically low 0.2% in 2021. The slowdown also comes after a sizeable uptick of growth in 2024, when the country added 3.2 million people and grew by 1.0%, the fastest annual population growth rate since 2006.

Homeowners’ costs remained nearly unchanged from 2020-2024 compared to the previous five-year period while renters paid $100 more a month to a median $1,413, according to recently released 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

The data shows how housing costs changed in each of the nation’s 3,144 counties between two five-year periods – 2015-2019 and 2020-2024.