Florida’s population passes 23 million for the first time

ORLANDO, Florida — Florida’s population surpassed 23 million for the first time this year, according to state demographic estimates, thanks to an influx of people from other states.

According to estimates released earlier this month by the state’s Demographic Estimating Conference, Florida’s population as of April 1 of this year was 23,002,597.

Florida is the third most populous state in the US, after California (39.5 million inhabitants) and Texas (30.5 million inhabitants).

Last year, Florida added nearly 359,000 people, and estimates suggest the population will grow by 350,000 to 375,000 each year this decade.

Population growth is estimated to peak this year and then decline annually for the remainder of the 2020s as the last batch of retiring baby boomers grows smaller.

By the early 2030s, Florida’s growth will be below 1%, up from 1.6% growth expected this year.

Since shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic began in early 2020, all of Florida’s growth has come from people moving to the Sunshine State from other parts of the United States or abroad. Since late 2019 and early 2020, deaths in Florida have exceeded births, a trend expected to continue well into the next decade.

Nearly 10% of Florida’s residents are 75 or older, making Florida the second largest U.S. state and territory after Puerto Rico.

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