The US Census Bureau report estimates that Delaware’s population growth rate is now outpacing North Carolina and Arizona.
In a recent report. the bureau estimated that Delaware gained more than 13,000 residents between 2021 and 2022. The population gain in Delaware since the 2020 Census is the near equivalent of the combined populations of Middletown and Laurel.
Delaware fell just short of one million residents in the 2020 Census.
Fastest growing states in the percentage of population growth
| Rank | State | April 1, 2020 (Estimates Base) | July 1, 2021 | July 1, 2022 | Growth |
| 1 | Florida | 21,538,226 | 21,828,069 | 22,244,823 | 1.9% |
| 2 | Idaho | 1,839,092 | 1,904,314 | 1,939,033 | 1.8% |
| 3 | South Carolina | 5,118,429 | 5,193,266 | 5,282,634 | 1.7% |
| 4 | Texas | 29,145,428 | 29,558,864 | 30,029,572 | 1.6% |
| 5 | South Dakota | 886,677 | 896,164 | 909,824 | 1.5% |
| 6 | Montana | 1,084,197 | 1,106,227 | 1,122,867 | 1.5% |
| 7 | Delaware | 989,957 | 1,004,807 | 1,018,396 | 1.4% |
| 8 | Arizona | 7,151,507 | 7,264,877 | 7,359,197 | 1.3% |
| 9 | North Carolina | 10,439,414 | 10,565,885 | 10,698,973 | 1.3% |
| 10 | Utah | 3,271,614 | 3,339,113 | 3,380,800 | 1.2% |
Much of the growth in population has taken place in Sussex County. The Census Bureau did not issue county population estimates.
Estimates between 2020 and 2021 indicated that New Castle County saw only a two-tenths of one percent gain in population during that one-year period. Kent County saw a 1.3% gain during the same period, with Sussex seeing a 3.6% jump.
States bordering Delaware saw population declines as residents moved to Sun Belt states and in some cases, Delaware.
Southern and Central Delaware are believed to be attracting new residents due to Delaware’s low property taxes and no sales tax. Delaware also offers lower tax rates for retirees than some states. The retiree boom has also led to more migration by those in health care and other sectors of the economy.
The three fastest-growing states in the percentage of population growth were Florida, Idaho, and South Carolina.
Illinois, New York, and West Virginia have seen some of the biggest population losses.
The population of West Virginia reached its peak population of two million in 1950 and has since dropped to about 1.8 million. During the same period, the population of the U.S. has more than doubled to more than 330 million.
Delaware saw the in- migration of West Virginia residents after World War II.
The decline of the coal and chemical industries was a big factor in the population decline.
