TALLAHASSEE — Growing faster than almost any other state, Florida’s estimated population topped 23.3 million people this year, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Census Bureau estimated that Florida had 23,372,215 people as of July 1, up from 22,904,868 a year earlier. Florida’s increase of 467,347 people was second only to Texas, which gained 562,941.
Also, Florida’s 2 percent growth rate trailed only the District of Columbia, which had a 2.2 percent rate, according to the Census Bureau. Texas and Utah each had 1.8 percent growth rates.
The estimated national population increased 1 percent to 340.11 million.
Florida’s growth reflected two key issues in the Census Bureau data: international migration and population increases in the South.
A news release accompanying the data said net international migration “was the critical demographic component of change driving growth in the (U.S.) resident population. With a net increase of 2.8 million people, it accounted for 84% of the nation’s 3.3 million increase in population between 2023 and 2024.”
The Census Bureau said Florida, California and Texas had the largest gains from net international migration, with Florida showing a 411,322-person increase.
The news release also said the South added more people from July 1, 2023, to July 1, 2024, than all other regions combined. It said the overall population in the South increased by nearly 1.8 million people.
“The largest contributing component to this growth was international migration, which added 1.1 million people,” the Census Bureau said. “Domestic migration netted another 411,004 residents. The South was the only region with positive net domestic migration, where the number of people entering the region exceeded those leaving. Natural increase also contributed 218,567 to the growing region.”
Natural increase is a measure comparing births and deaths. While Florida saw large overall population growth, it was one of 17 states that had more deaths than births, with a 7,321 “natural decrease,” the Census Bureau said.
State economists also pointed to such a decrease in a July report that projected Florida’s population over the coming decade.
“Natural increase is expected to remain negative throughout the forecast horizon as deaths continue to outpace births,” the report by a state panel known as the Demographic Estimating Conference said.
The state report estimated Florida had a population of 23 million people on April 1, with the total estimated to increase to 25.7 million in 2034. State and Census Bureau estimates have differed in the past, at least in part because of their methodologies.
The state report estimated Florida would add 319,109 net new residents from April 2024 to April 2028, saying such increases “are analogous to adding a city slightly smaller than Orlando, but larger than St. Petersburg every year.”
The new Census Bureau data showed Florida solidly in third place behind California and Texas in overall population. Florida is followed by New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina and Michigan.
The Census Bureau said three states, Vermont, Mississippi and West Virginia, had slight population decreases from July 1, 2023, to July 1, 2024.
