WA’s population growth is decelerating, state estimate shows
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Washington's population grew by 79,400 as of April 2025, marking a slowing growth trend.
- Net migration fell to 61,700 in 2025, the lowest since 2013 excluding 2021.
- Birth rates continued to decline due to fewer young mothers, mirroring U.S. trends.
Washington state’s population is still increasing — just not as quickly as it has in previous years.
That’s according to recently released annual estimates from the state Office of Financial Management (OFM), which found that the population grew about 79,400 in the past year, up to more than 8.1 million people, as of April 1.
By contrast, from 2010 to 2020, that growth number was 98,200 more people per year, on average.
The population has risen 408,790 in the five years since April 2020, a bump of 5.3%.
OFM notes that, with an unadjusted growth rate of 1%, the population is climbing at a slower clip than last year.
The largest factor? Net migration, or people exiting the state versus people moving in.
Declining birth rates in WA
Reasons for Washington’s current relatively slow growth vary.
Accounting for 22% of the yearly population hike: natural change, or births minus deaths, representing 17,700 people, OFM says. This continues an overall downward birth trend seen statewide since 2017 that’s largely thanks to drops in fertility rates among young women in their teens and early 20s.
State demographer Mike Mohrman said this is consistent with the broader national trend of lower birth rates.
The opposite side of the natural-change coin — deaths — has been trending upward both pre- and post-pandemic, OFM states in a June 27 news release.
“The number of deaths has been increasing, which has been expected because the Baby Boomer population is aging,” Mohrman told McClatchy.
WA net migration
Net migration, the biggest population-growth driver, accounts for 78% of the state’s latest population growth, according to OFM. From 2024 to 2025, net migration totaled more than 61,700 people, which is down 7,500 from the previous year.
Not counting 2021, a pandemic year, this year’s net-migration level is the lowest since 2013, according to OFM.
Mohrman said the latest net-migration number partly reflects trends in data, including related to jobs, enrollment changes and driver’s license issuances. He doesn’t think there’s cause to panic.
“There are ups and downs, but largely, Washington’s history has been a history of growth,” he said.
“Can we expect to grow non-stop? I don’t know. I mean, one would think there has to be a ceiling somewhere, but whether we’re there or not, our models aren’t showing that.”
OFM also says that the state’s housing growth continues to be strong. Over the past 12 months Washington added nearly 48,000 housing units, although that’s about 4,300 fewer than the prior year. Most of these latest units, 68%, were multi-family units.
Domestic migration
Of note: Impacts from changes to federal immigration policy and other Trump administration shifts will mostly be reflected next year, Mohrman said.
Domestic migration — that is, people moving to different states within the U.S. — has played a role in recent Washington population trends, according to the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.
In 2023, the Evergreen State on net lost 15,276 residents due to domestic migration but gained 43,779 people via natural change and immigration, according to the center. From 2013 to 2020, Washington state’s net domestic migration rate was in the positive, but starting in 2021 and through 2023, that trend had reversed.
Population trends by WA county
The latest OFM estimates split up population change by county. Pierce County gained 7,300 people in 2024-25, while Whatcom County gained 2,500.
The Tri-Cities area also increased, with Benton and Franklin counties growing by 1,775 and 950 people, respectively.
Thurston County, meanwhile, saw 2,100 more folks.
Michael Ambrogi, senior planner with the Thurston Regional Planning Council, said the state-level trends track with what’s happening in Thurston County.
There’s also been a local population-growth slowdown, he said, citing an aging population and declining birth rates.
Each year the council tracks building permits from its different local jurisdictions, Ambrogi noted. There hasn’t been much of a change in that regard within the past five years.
“They’ve been pretty steady, so I think the housing trends have been somewhat stable, at least on that front,” he said.
Reaction to WA’s slower population growth
Deputy House Minority Leader Chris Corry said the growth trend from OFM doesn’t surprise him.
“I think there’s a lot of people that are quiet-quitting the state,” the Yakima Republican said.
Corry referenced Amazon founder Jeff Bezos moving away from Washington state. He said he’s also heard from constituents who are leaving as the state becomes less affordable.
Case in point: The recent 6-cent-per-gallon hike in the state’s gas tax. Washington is reportedly the only state to have higher gas prices than the previous year.
Social media makes it easier than ever for residents to see lower costs in other states, Corry said: “It’s kind of a wake-up call for them.” Meanwhile, some businesses are planning to leave for opportunities elsewhere in the U.S.
“I want to see population numbers growing because we’re a competitive place to live that has opportunities for people,” Corry said. “And right now, we are going in the exact opposite direction.”
This story was originally published July 17, 2025 at 5:00 AM with the headline "WA’s population growth is decelerating, state estimate shows."
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