Los Angeles suffered a massive population drop last year

Tens of thousands of residents are fleeing Los Angeles County, raising fresh questions about the region’s future as economic pressures mount.

The region recorded the largest population drop of any in the nation between July 2024 and July 2025, according to newly released estimates from the US Census Bureau.

The data, published March 26, shows roughly 54,000 residents left the county during that one-year period. The losses mark a continuation of a steady slide for the nation’s most populous county.

Once home to more than 10 million people in 2020, Los Angeles County’s population has now dipped to just under 9.7 million, KTLA reported.

While the raw number of departures is eye-catching, experts say the broader trend may be even more concerning: fewer people are coming in to replace those who leave.

Neighboring regions appear to be benefiting.

Riverside and San Bernardino counties together gained more than 21,000 residents over the same period, according to the data, while Las Vegas metro area also saw an influx of more than 20,000.

Despite the outflow, Los Angeles County still dwarfs every other county in the US, with nearly double the population of the second-largest, Cook County, Illinois.

The exodus is not limited to Los Angeles.

Across California, population declines are becoming more widespread — and a sharp drop in immigration is playing a major role.

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Separate reporting by the San Diego Union-Tribune, citing the same U.S. Census Bureau data, found San Diego County’s population fell by more than 5,000 residents in 2025, reversing gains from the prior year.

The shift was driven largely by a dramatic slowdown in international migration.

Census estimates show foreign arrivals into San Diego plunged by roughly 65% year over year — one of the steepest declines in more than a decade. That drop coincides with sweeping federal immigration policy changes implemented in early 2025.

Nationwide, the Census Bureau found immigration slowed in the vast majority of U.S. counties last year. Of the more than 2,000 counties that experienced growth the year before, nearly 80% saw that growth weaken or reverse in 2025.

California has been hit particularly hard.

All 58 counties recorded declines in foreign immigration, and 30 counties lost population overall — a sharp increase from 18 counties the year prior.

Demographers warn the shift could have ripple effects far beyond headline population numbers. For years, immigration helped offset declining birth rates and an aging population, particularly in high-cost regions like coastal California.

“When you pull back that inflow, the underlying weaknesses become more visible,” longtime University of Southern California demographer Dowell Myers told the Union-Tribune.

Economists say the consequences could show up in the labor market first.

A shrinking population — especially among working-age residents — can translate into worker shortages, rising costs and slower economic growth.

Some industries are already feeling the strain.

Business owners in construction and service sectors report increasing difficulty finding workers, a trend they attribute in part to the decline in immigrant labor.

At the same time, domestic out-migration remains a major factor.

Analysts note that far more Californians are leaving for other states than are moving in, often citing high housing costs and affordability challenges.

Even so, not all experts view the population dip as a sign of economic collapse.

California’s economy remains one of the largest in the world, and some researchers argue the current decline reflects policy shifts and cost pressures rather than a fundamental breakdown.

These new figures come amid a broader trend of population decline in California. Between 2010 and 2024, nearly 10 million people left the state, primarily driven by high living costs and housing affordability challenges, resulting in a net loss of more than 250,000 residents per year in recent years, according to the California Institute for Public Policy.

Among counties experiencing the largest percentage declines were Del Norte County, Calif. (-2%), Tuolumne County, Calif. (-1.9%), and Lassen County, Calif. (-1.7%). Outside California, counties with the biggest percentage losses included Taylor County, Fla. (-2.2%) and Vernon Parish, La. (-2.1%).