An average of about 34.3 million Americans packed up and moved each year over the last decade. Some did so to be in a better neighborhood, while others moved for job opportunities or another reason. And some U.S. cities have proven to be much better than others at drawing in new residents and appealing to those who are starting families.
Using metropolitan area level data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community survey, 24/7 Wall St. identified America’s fastest growing cities. We ranked metro areas based on population change from July 2010 to July 2019. Each metro area on this list has reported a population growth of at least 19% over that period.
We also considered supplemental data on median household income and median home value from the Census’ ACS. Data on annual unemployment rate and employment changes came from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Population change is the product of two factors — net migration and natural growth. Natural growth is the number of births over a given period less the number of deaths. Net migration is the difference between the number of new residents — either from other parts of the country or from abroad or the number of residents who have left the area.
There were nearly 72,000 more people living in the Greeley, Colorado, metro area in 2019 than there were in 2010. The increase, driven primarily by inbound migration, has likely contributed to a nation-leading increase in home values. The typical home in Greeley is worth $366,800, more than double the median value in 2010.
One of the primary reasons Americans move is for job opportunities, and in Greeley, unemployment is low. Just 2.5% of the labor force were out of work in 2019, well below the 3.7% national unemployment rate.
| Rank: | Metro area: | Pop. change; 2010-2019: | Median home value change; 2010-2019: | Unemployment rate; 2019: | Total 2019 pop.: |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Villages, FL | +41.7% | +49.4% | 4.6% | 132,420 |
| 2 | Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC-NC | +32.0% | +31.5% | 4.0% | 496,901 |
| 3 | Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, TX | +29.8% | +69.7% | 2.7% | 2,227,083 |
| 4 | Midland, TX | +28.9% | +74.5% | 2.1% | 182,603 |
| 5 | St. George, UT | +28.6% | +48.9% | 3.0% | 177,556 |
| 6 | Greeley, CO | +28.3% | +101.0% | 2.5% | 324,492 |
| 7 | Bend, OR | +25.3% | +58.6% | 3.9% | 197,692 |
| 8 | Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL | +24.5% | +63.7% | 3.1% | 770,577 |
| 9 | Provo-Orem, UT | +23.0% | +61.7% | 2.4% | 648,252 |
| 10 | Raleigh-Cary, NC | +23.0% | +37.4% | 3.4% | 1,390,785 |
| 11 | Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL | +22.5% | +26.7% | 2.7% | 223,234 |
| 12 | Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | +22.2% | +51.2% | 3.0% | 2,608,147 |
| 13 | Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR | +21.5% | +34.2% | 2.6% | 534,904 |
| 14 | Boise City, ID | +21.5% | +69.6% | 2.7% | 749,202 |
| 15 | Odessa, TX | +21.2% | +86.5% | 2.6% | 166,223 |
| 16 | Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL | +20.7% | +33.6% | 2.7% | 284,809 |
| 17 | Charleston-North Charleston, SC | +20.7% | +38.2% | 2.4% | 802,122 |
| 18 | Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | +20.4% | +47.3% | 3.7% | 724,777 |
| 19 | Naples-Marco Island, FL | +19.7% | +45.1% | 3.1% | 384,902 |
| 20 | Coeur d’Alene, ID | +19.7% | +56.9% | 3.6% | 165,697 |
| 21 | Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | +19.4% | +55.6% | 3.8% | 7,066,141 |
| 22 | North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, FL | +19.2% | +58.1% | 3.1% | 836,995 |
| 23 | Fort Collins, CO | +19.1% | +69.7% | 2.4% | 356,899 |
| 24 | San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | +19.1% | +50.0% | 3.1% | 2,550,960 |
| 25 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | +19.0% | +68.8% | 3.3% | 7,573,136 |
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