Where Are People Moving To in 2025? Survey + Moving Statistics

We know moving to a new home can be one of life’s more stressful events, but it’s something most of us will have to do. In the past year alone, roughly eight million Americans moved to a new state according to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau data. We also discovered that 26.5% of Americans are definitely or very likely moving this year.

So if moving is so stressful, why do we do it? Whether in search of more affordable housing, new job opportunities, or simply better weather, we wanted to know where people are moving to in the next year and their motivation for leaving their current location.

After surveying over 1,100 Americans and referencing our internal data on self-storage market trends, we’ve learned the answers to all these questions and more in the newest report from SpareFoot. Read on to uncover the most and least popular moving destinations in 2025.

Key Takeaways

The top five states Americans are moving to in 2025 include Florida, Texas, North Carolina, Colorado, and Georgia.
One out of every four movers will go to either Florida or Texas.
The top five states Americans would least like to move to are California, New York, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and North Dakota.
This year, 26.5% of Americans are very likely or definitely moving to a new state.
An unaffordable cost of living is the #1 reason Americans are moving.
Half of movers are seeking a more affordable cost of living, while 35.87% are looking for lower tax areas.
Eighty-seven percent of Americans prefer moving to areas other than big metropolitan cities.
The majority of Americans (57.5%) move to a different state 1–4 times in their lives.

Top 5 States People Are Moving To

When asked which states people would most like to move to, we found many familiar candidates at the top of Americans’ lists, with Florida and Texas claiming the #1 and #2 most popular destinations overall.

A map of the US shows the top five states people are moving to, including Florida, Texas, North Carolina, Colorado, and Georgia.

As of 2023, Florida and Texas have experienced the largest population growth in the U.S., according to the Census Bureau’s 2023 Population Trends Report. Our findings suggest this trend is likely to continue.

When cross-analyzing self-storage and moving activity, this sentiment is also consistent with SpareFoot’s internal data, which shows that Texas has several of the most popular self-storage rental markets in the country by units reserved, including:

Houston (#2)
San Antonio (#8)
Dallas (#9)
Austin (#12)

Florida also has multiple popular self-storage rental markets, including:

Miami (#7)
Orlando (#11)
Jacksonville (#14)

Gen Zers Are Moving to Colorado

For clues into where housing markets are headed in the future, it’s noteworthy to see where the next generation of renters and young homebuyers are looking to move.

While Gen Zers similarly have their sights set on Florida and Texas, many also say moving to Colorado is their third most popular choice.

North Carolina and Tennessee were equally popular, which could explain why Charlotte, NC, is one of Zillow’s hottest housing markets.

Meanwhile, Maine was a surprising dark horse candidate as Gen Z’s 6th most desired state overall.

Gen Z’s Most Desired States To Move To
State	% Identified as #1 Destination
1. Florida	10.34%
2. Texas	9.77%
3. Colorado	9.20%
4. North Carolina	7.47%
5. Tennessee	7.47%
6. Maine	6.32%

Top 5 States People Are Avoiding

With so many folks interested in moving to a new state, we wanted to know if they’re possibly leaving or avoiding others. To get to the bottom of this, we asked which states people would least like to move to.

When asked, nearly 4 in 10 people cited California and New York — more than all the other bottom 10 states combined.

A map of the US shows the top five states people are least likely to move to, including California and New York.

Unfortunately for California and New York, this aligns with migration trends the U.S. Census Bureau has identified. Both California and New York have experienced the largest population declines over the past year, losing 75,423 and 101,984 residents, respectively.

This is particularly noteworthy for California, which has several of the most popular self-storage rental markets in the country, according to SpareFoot data:

Los Angeles (#1)
San Diego (#6)
Sacramento (#13)

Upon further exploration, we found that California is home to all of the country’s 10 most expensive self-storage rental markets by cost per month for storage unit rental, including:

Del Ray Oaks
South San Francisco
Chatsworth
Chula Vista
Rancho Cucamonga
Van Nuys
Carson
North Hollywood
Daly City
San Francisco

If self-storage costs represent cost of living, perhaps California’s high costs explain why so many of our respondents are hesitant to move to the Golden State.

87% of Americans Aren’t Prioritizing Big Metropolitan Areas

Beyond the most and least popular states, we wanted to gain more insight into the types of locations potential movers are seeking.

Data showing the types of locations people are moving to, with most considering small cities and the least considering deserts.

Our findings show that Americans are roughly 2x more likely to be looking for small metropolitan areas than big cities. In addition, people are far more likely to look for rural areas (21.97%) or proximity to the beach/ocean (21.35%) than large urban centers.

To explain these results, we needed to learn more about people’s motivations for moving.

Bar chart of the main reasons people move away from their location or home, with cost being the primary cause.

More Affordable Cost of Living is #1 Reason People Are Moving

Having determined where Americans want to move, we wanted to learn more about why they’re planning to move. We asked our respondents their top reasons for moving and the top features they’re seeking from their new home.

Based on the top responses, we’ve uncovered helpful context explaining the desirability of certain states and housing markets.

Top four features people who move look for in a new location, including affordability, weather, and bigger or upgraded homes.

The top reasons Americans are moving include high costs, poor weather, and needing more living space. This is also consistent with the main features they’re seeking in their new state/home.

Cost of Living and Taxes

According to data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, the nationwide average sales price for homes in the U.S. has risen 35% since 2020. This could explain why 50% of Americans are seeking a more affordable cost of living, and 30% want to move due to their current location’s expense.

Comparing the cost of living partially explains the popularity of states like Florida, Texas, North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, and Colorado relative to California and New York.

Cost of Living Comparison: Most and Least Popular States
Most Popular	Cost of Living	Least Popular	Cost of Living
Florida	103.1	California	145
Texas	92.4	New York	123.1
North Carolina	98.5	Louisiana	92.1
Colorado	101.8	Oklahoma	86.4
Georgia	91.3	North Dakota	92.8
Scale: 83.8 or less = least expensive, 125 or more = most expensive Source: Missouri Economic Research and Information Center

Given that 35.87% of Americans are also looking for states with lower taxes, it makes sense that no-income tax states Florida, Texas (and Tennessee among Gen Zers) are so popular.

Better Weather

The desire for better weather or proximity to the beach/ocean further explains the popularity of certain states, with 21.61% of Americans citing their current location’s weather as the #2 reason they’d like to move.

In addition to their favorable costs of living, Texas (#4), Colorado (#6), and Florida (#10) are also among the 10 sunniest states in the U.S., according to DataPandas.

More Space

More than 1 in 3 (35.61%) Americans feel their current location is too crowded or doesn’t have enough space for their families, and 32.24% are seeking bigger or better homes as a result.

This could explain why 48.19% of Americans are looking for either small metropolitan or rural areas, while just 13.46% are considering moving to a big city as their first choice.

Millennials are on the Move, Baby Boomers Staying Put

With so much interstate moving activity, the demographics of the most and least popular states could change dramatically. So, we wanted to better understand who’s likely to be moving within the next year.

We found that younger people much more commonly stated they are definitely or very likely moving within the next year, compared to our oldest respondents.

Age Group	Definitely Moving	Very Likely Moving
18–29 years old	14.94%	12.64%
30–44 years old	17.62%	14.51%
45–60 years old	18.32%	12.11%
60 years old	7.29%	4.86%

While the Gen X cohort has the most definitive plans to move, millennials are the most likely demographic to plan to move to a new state this year (32.13%).

Comparatively, baby boomers were overwhelmingly the most likely to say they have no plans of moving, with 54% confirming.

While we had assumed those nearest retirement age would be more likely to consider relocating, we found we were incorrect.

When asked how often they’ve considered moving to a new state this year, 47% of baby boomers (age 60+) say they’ve never considered moving. For comparison, this was just ten percentage points less than all younger generations combined.

Bar graph shows the ages of individual who don’t plan to move this year, with Boomers the least likely to move.

Moving Trends for 2025 and Beyond

Among our respondents, we found that the majority of Americans (57%) have moved to a new state 1–4 times in their lives. This trend seems likely to continue, given the strong demand for more affordable housing, more and better living space, or better weather.

A few other key trends that the moving industry should keep an eye on:

Americans are most likely to estimate an interstate move will cost $5,000–$5,999 on average.
1 in 3 people will hire professional movers to assist with their move, while 23.5% plan to rent a truck and DIY their move.

If you’re one of the many Americans planning to move this year, SpareFoot can provide in-depth guidance on your next moving destination. With more than 20,000 storage facilities in all 50 states, we can also help you find the perfect storage space to fit your needs.

Methodology

The survey of 1,129 adults ages 18 and over was conducted via SurveyMonkey Audience for SpareFoot, LLC on August 5, 2024. Data is unweighted and the margin of error is approximately +/-3% for the overall sample with a 95% confidence level.