The population in U.S. metropolitan areas grew faster than the nation as a whole between July 1, 2023, and July 1, 2024, rising almost 3.2 million, or about 1.1 percent, to reach 293.9 million. The national population increased nearly 1 percent to a little more than 340 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
“Increasingly, population growth in metro areas is being shaped by international migration,” said Kristie Wilder, a demographer in the Census Bureau’s Population Division. She noted that births still add people, but higher net international migration is offsetting ongoing net domestic outmigration.
Net international migration contributed nearly 2.7 million residents to metro areas, up from 2.2 million the year before. Natural increase—births minus deaths—added about 600,000….