Illinois population grows in 2024 despite 56K residents leaving for other states

A massive influx of 112,955 international migrants boosted Illinois population in 2024, new Census Bureau data shows. Buses from Texas likely grew Illinois’ population.

Illinois’ population grew by 67,899 residents from July 2023-June 2024, according to estimates released Dec. 19 by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Illinois may have Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to thank: He shipped migrants by bus and plane to Chicago and other sanctuary cities to relieve the border crisis.

This marks the first time in 11 years the Census Bureau has estimated the population has grown for the state of Illinois – though this data release revised previous figures for 2023 to show growth that year as well.

The new data shows after nine consecutive years of population decline, Illinois’ population grew in 2023 and 2024.

The reason Illinois was able to buck the near-decade trend of population decline was because of a massive influx of international migrants in 2023 and 2024. Chicago counted over 51,000 migrants being sent to the city, with total statewide international migration over double that figure in the census estimate.

Illinois continues to see a natural increase in population as births outpace deaths, but by an increasingly narrow margin – adding only 11,012 residents during the year. International migration added 112,955 new residents – 10 times more than what the state received in 2021 and nearly five times what the state gained on average from 2010-2020 before the pandemic.

Domestic migration saw the state shed 56,235 residents as the state continues to push people to other states with high taxation, a poor job market and housing issues.

During the past two years, Illinois has received a massive influx of immigrants, particularly in Chicago. The city has been the center of heated political debate between public leaders and residents over financial and other resources being used for newcomers after local minority and low-income residents have said their needs have been neglected for decades. The latest Census Bureau estimates confirm the extent of international migration to the state during the past several years, while raising questions of the sustainability of this trend.

Previous trends of domestic migration continue to hold in Illinois. The state is pushing more of its own residents to other places in the country than virtually any other state, ranking 48th in losses because of moves to other states.

When comparing all 50 states’ 2024 domestic migration figures, Illinois’ loss of 56,235 is only beaten by California, losing 239,575, and New York, losing 120,917. Even when considering population size, Illinois ranks 46th in domestic migration with only Alaska, California, New York and Hawaii losing residents to other states faster.

Surveys of those who have left the state – where taxes are not a response option – showed the major reasons Illinoisans have chosen to leave have been for better housing and employment opportunities, both of which have been made worse by poor public policy in Illinois.

High taxes were the No. 1 reason why Illinoisans considered leaving the state. Polling from NPR Illinois and the University of Illinois found 61% of Illinoisans thought about moving out of state in 2019, and the No. 1 reason was taxes. The Paul Simon Public Policy Institute found 47% of Illinoisans wanted to leave the state, and “taxes are the single biggest reason people want to leave” with 27% of respondents citing taxes as the motive for departing in 2016. More recent polling conducted by Echelon Insights in 2023 substantiated those sentiments.

While Illinois’ population growth is welcome news, we cannot ignore the underlying trends and the reasons for this sudden change. Another year of residents fleeing for other states should be a wake-up call to the state’s leaders, who refuse to adopt policies that would make it easier for residents to stay in Illinois. Reforms that would ease Illinoisans’ tax burden or reduce arduous business regulations are needed to make the state more affordable and stop the departures.