Montana population growth remains well below COVID boom years

After several years of rapid expansion during the COVID-19 pandemic, Montana’s population growth rate has continued settling to a slower pace according to 2025 figures released by the U.S. Census Bureau this week.

The Census Bureau estimates Montana added 7,137 residents between mid-2024 and mid-2025 for an annual growth rate of less than one percent. That’s a modest increase from the roughly 5,900 residents added the previous year but remains far below the nearly 18,000 added in 2021, the peak of the pandemic migration surge. 

The past two years have also seen slightly slower population growth than the pre-pandemic years. Between 2011 and 2019, the state averaged around an annual population increase of 8,800 residents, an annual growth rate of 0.86%.

By comparison, the 7,137 residents added in 2025 translated to a 0.62% increase, the second-lowest growth rate in the past fifteen years after 2024.

Migration continues to be the primary factor driving Montana population change. In 2025, net migration, the number of people who moved into the state minus the number who moved away, added an estimated 7,247 residents. The vast majority, 6,348, moved from other U.S. states while just under 900 were international arrivals, the bureau estimates. 

Without migration, Montana’s population would have barely changed as the state recorded 90 fewer births than deaths in 2025, a reflection of Montana’s older population and low birthrate. While the state has typically seen a few more deaths than births in recent years, the bureau’s statistics saw that trend reverse for the first time since 2019, with 12 more births than deaths.

County-level population data slated for a March release and city-level population expected for May will let statisticians and the public evaluate growth trends specific to different parts of the state. The 2024 data indicated that Kalispell was the fastest growing urban area while Bozeman’s historic growth was slowing.

These annual estimates are part of the Census Bureau’s efforts to track population change between the once-every-ten-years decennial censuses, which is mandated by the U.S. Constitution. Each year’s figure reflects the population as of July 1, so the population growth figure for 2025 estimate measures changes from July 1, 2024, to July 1, 2025.