Three States Lost Population, 2010 to 2018

The population of the District of Columbia grew 16 percent between 2010 and 2018, according to the Census Bureau's latest state population estimates, putting the nation's capital at the top of the fastest-growing list. These are the decade's fastest growing states...

FASTEST GROWING (percent change in population, 2010–18)
16.1% District of Columbia
13.9% Utah
13.7% Texas
13.0% Florida
12.8% Colorado
12.7% North Dakota
12.3% Nevada
11.9% Arizona
11.8% Washington
11.7% Idaho

At the bottom of the list, three states lost population between 2010 and 2018: West Virginia, Illinois, and Connecticut. These are the decade's slowest growing states...

SLOWEST GROWING (percent change in population, 2010–18)
1.2% Michigan
0.8% Maine
0.8% Pennsylvania
0.7% New York
0.5% Mississippi
0.3% Rhode Island
0.1% Vermont
–0.2% Connecticut
–0.8% Illinois
–2.6% West Virginia

While three states registered losses in the 2010-to-2018 time period, a larger eight states lost population in the most recent year. Between 2017 and 2018, the losing states included not only West Virginia and Illinois, but also Mississippi, Wyoming, Louisiana, New York, Hawaii, and Alaska. One reason for the spreading losses is the ongoing baby bust, according to the Census Bureau. Nationally, natural increase (the excess of births over deaths) has fallen from 1.8 million in 2008 to just 1.0 million in 2018.

Source: Census Bureau, Population and Housing Unit Estimates