Massachusetts’ population has grown over the last few decades, however, the State has seen an increasing trend of outmigration of long-time residents, particularly young adults, to other states. People move away from MA for many reasons, but housing cost is at the top of the list for many. High costs make it difficult or expensive for companies to locate and expand in MA. Outmigration to other states varies over the years but has long been offset through population growth from international immigration. Massachusetts outmigration trends show decline across all age, income, and educational attainment groups. Young adults ages 24-44 are the age group with the highest rate of outmigration.
In 2022, roughly 200,000 individuals moved out of Massachusetts. The commonwealth’s many higher education opportunities attract young adults (18-24), but at every other age group Massachusetts is losing more residents than it attracts. In particular, young adults are choosing to make homes elsewhere. Massachusetts lost 13,700 residents aged 25 to 34 in 2022 and in total nearly 24,000 prime working age adults.
In total, roughly 200,000 people left the state in 2022 and formed 85,000 households after leaving Massachusetts. Reflecting their youth, greater than half of these households were single-person households and over a quarter formed two-person households after their move. Eighty-five percent of households that moved from Massachusetts had no children under 18, over half were single and never married.
Individuals who moved out of Massachusetts were well educated, over a third had a graduate degree. Across every income group Massachusetts is losing residents, however those with lower incomes are more likely to leave, holding other factors constant.
The ability to work from home appears to have contributed to the increase in outmigration from Massachusetts because Massachusetts’ occupation and industry mix meant that the workforce was able to embrace work from home opportunities more readily than other states.1 It is possible that the one-time shock of the pandemic and the widespread adoption of work from home policies contributed to the short-run increase in domestic outmigration of remote workers. Policies to attract young adults and families will be necessary to ensure that Massachusetts continues to attract highly educated workers who are now less tethered to the location of their employer.
Why is it important to retain these folks in MA? Massachusetts has invested significant resources, such as public education, to support young adults grow up and contribute to the workforce, their communities, and the overall wellbeing of our state. Over the long term, continued outmigration will deplete the supply of labor in Massachusetts, from entry-level to high-skill, and result in fewer businesses operating in our state. This labor force is essential to the economic growth of Massachusetts and to maintain healthy tax revenue levels as more baby boomers exit the workforce as they enter retirement. Recent analysis shows that current outmigration trends cost the state $4.3 billion in adjusted gross income and $213.7 million in lost tax revenue in 2021. These outmigration trends are even more concerning when considering Baby Boomers, many of which are entering or nearing retirement age, represent a larger size of the population.
However, these trends may be reversing. From 2023 to 2024, the state’s population increased by almost 1%, approximately 70,000 individuals, which represents the largest growth since the end of the baby boom. This is in part due to the highest immigration levels in decades as well as declining outmigration that have leveled off following the end of the Covid-19 pandemic.