Los Angeles, Miami and San Diego post population declines as international migration slows in new estimates

New estimates show major metro cores losing residents as migration patterns shift

Los Angeles, Miami and San Diego recorded population declines in the most recent annual estimates covering the year ending in mid-2025, a period marked by a broad slowdown in international migration and continued domestic out-migration from several large urban counties. The new figures show that changes in migration—rather than births exceeding deaths—are increasingly determining whether large metro cores grow or shrink.

Across the United States, the average growth rate for metropolitan areas fell from 1.1% in 2024 to 0.6% in 2025. Demographers note that as natural increase has weakened with lower birth rates and an aging population, migration has become the decisive factor for many big counties that routinely lose residents to other parts of the country.

International migration remained concentrated in gateway counties, but at lower levels

Even as overall international migration slowed, large gateway areas continued to receive substantial inflows. Counties anchored by Houston, Miami and Los Angeles remained among the leading destinations for immigrants in absolute numbers in 2025. However, the national decline in net international migration reduced the extent to which immigration could offset domestic out-migration and natural decrease in some places.

• Metro-area population growth slowed broadly in 2025 compared with 2024.
• Large gateway counties continued to attract immigrants, but the reduced pace changed net outcomes.
• Where domestic out-migration persisted, slower international inflows translated into flat or negative totals.

Border-region volatility illustrates how quickly annual estimates can shift

The same set of estimates highlights steep slowdowns in several metro areas along the U.S.-Mexico border after a year in which migration surges had temporarily boosted growth. In multiple border communities, growth rates dropped sharply from 2024 to 2025, including some that moved from positive growth to population decline within a single year.

In areas with limited natural increase, year-to-year migration shifts can quickly change whether an area grows or declines.

What the trend means for large metro cores

For large urban counties such as those centered on Los Angeles, Miami and San Diego, the estimates underscore a structural challenge: domestic out-migration has been persistent in many large metros, while the ability of international migration to compensate can vary significantly from year to year. When international inflows cool, the result can be a net population decline even in regions that remain major destinations for newcomers from abroad.

The figures also reinforce that annual population estimates are sensitive to changing migration conditions and administrative data inputs. Still, the direction of travel is clear in the latest release: slower international migration in 2025 coincided with reduced growth across metropolitan America and population losses in several large, high-profile metro cores.