These US counties are shrinking fastest, new census data shows

(NEXSTAR) – Most of the country saw population growth slow down or even reverse in 2025, new data from the U.S. Census Bureau reveals.

Of the country’s more than 3,000 counties, about 80% saw declining population or slower growth between July 2024 and July 2025. Counties that were already shrinking also saw that trend accelerate.

One major reason for the drop, according to the agency, was a significant decline in international immigration to the U.S. in the first year of President Donald Trump’s second term. The biggest swings were along the U.S.-Mexico border. Laredo, Texas; Yuma, Arizona; and El Centro, California, all saw big drops in population growth.

The change was noticeable in large metro areas as well, even if they are far from the southern border.

“The nation’s largest counties like those in the New York metro area are often international migration hubs, gaining large numbers of international migrants and losing people that move to other parts of the country via domestic migration,” said George M. Hayward, a Census Bureau demographer. “With fewer gains from international........

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