The current population growth rate of 0.1% is the lowest on record in the history of the U.S. And while COVID and other recent factors have contributed to the decline, the rate of population growth has been trending downward for years. Population growth fell off in the 1960s with the end of the Baby Boom. After a brief increase in the early 1990s, growth has been trending downward ever since.
One primary reason is a long-term decline in the fertility rate, a phenomenon common in high-income, developed economies. The U.S. fertility rate—calculated as the expected number of births per woman over a lifetime—sits at 1.6, which is below the rate of over 2.0 needed to sustain the population.
However, population trends in the U.S. vary along demographic and geographic lines. For example, nonwhite racial and ethnic groups—especially Hispanic and Latino Americans—still have relatively high rates of growth thanks to higher birth rates. And while international migration to the U.S. has declined overall, states like Florida, Texas, New York, and California continue to report large numbers of international immigrants.
