Here’s how many people live in Idaho now — and who beat us for fastest-growing state
Idaho narrowly missed taking the No. 1 spot for state population growth over the last decade, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released Monday.
Though Idaho has been at the top of census estimates for population growth for several years, its 17.3% growth in population over the last decade wasn’t enough to take the top spot, results from the 2020 Census showed. Instead, Idaho came in at a close second to Utah’s 18.4% population growth since 2010.
Census officials said Idaho added 271,449 residents in the last decade — 52,041 of them in the last year — bringing the state’s total population to 1,839,106. In the 2010 Census, the agency counted 1,567,657 Idahoans.
Last year, the Bureau estimated the state’s 2019 population was 1,787,065, a 2.1% increase over the previous year. For the last several years, Idaho has hovered around 1.5% to 2% growth each year. Last year’s growth rate ramped up to 2.8%.
Idaho’s growth rate for the last decade dwarfed the national average of 7.4%.
Texas (15.9%), North Dakota (15.8%) and Nevada (15%) rounded out the top five states with the most growth in the past decade. Idaho remains one of the least-populated states in the country, with a population larger than 12 other states.
That Idaho is one of the fastest-growing states in the nation comes as no surprise as Idahoans see the effects of growth, including one of the toughest housing markets in the country.
In the last 20 years, Ada and Canyon counties have seen about 75% growth in their populations, according to data released recently by the Community Planning Association of Southwest Idaho (COMPASS). And a study released earlier in the month by Boise State University researchers found nearly 80% of Treasure Valley residents feel the area is growing too quickly.
This story was originally published April 26, 2021 at 3:13 PM.
