Our semi-annual population study to share the 15 fastest-growing metro areas and micro areas in the country that are growing the fastest is late coming to you—we’ve had a busy spring here at SiteSeer!
We renovated our website and rolled out two exciting new features, White Space and Territory Optimization. Now we’re gearing up for ICSC 2025 in Las Vegas. (Connect with us there!)
Back to the matter at hand: we’re excited to share our (overdue) update on the fastest-growing metropolitan and micropolitan areas in the country. This time, we’re looking at population change between October 2023 and October 2024.
A Reminder of the Definition of Metropolitan and Micropolitan Areas
There are 387 metropolitan statistical areas and 538 micropolitan statistical areas in the U.S. According to the United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB):
- Micropolitan areas are those with an urban area of at least 10,000 but fewer than 50,000 people.
- Metropolitan areas have at least one urban area with a population of 50,000 or higher.
Top 15 Fastest Growing Metropolitan Areas
Now for the 15 fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the U.S. between October 2023 and October 2024 (and a comparison to their rank in our April 2023-April 2024 study):
#15: Charleston-North Charleston, South Carolina | 2.73%
#14: North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, Florida | 2.75% (#5 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#13: Huntsville, Alabama | 2.77%
#12: Sherman-Denison, Texas | 2.79%
#11: Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, Alabama | 2.95% (#12 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#10: Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, Texas | 3.05% (#15 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#9: Yuma, Arizona | 3.21%
#8: Panama City, Florida | 3.28% (#9 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#7: Spartanburg, South Carolina | 3.38% (#7 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#6: Jacksonville, Florida | 3.53%
#5: Port St. Lucie, Florida | 3.73% (#6 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#4: Midland, Texas | 3.84% (#13 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#3: Lakeland-Winter Haven, Florida | 3.86% (#4 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#2: Ocala, Florida | 4.08% (#3 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#1: Myrtle Beach, South Carolina/North Carolina | 4.32% (#1 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
A few observations about metropolitan area growth:
- There are five metro areas that are newcomers to the list, with Jacksonville, Florida, coming in at the 6th fastest-growth metro area between 10/2023 and 10/2024. This could be due to a number of companies opening facilities and offices there in 2023.
- Just 20 metropolitan areas showed higher than 2.5% annual growth between 4/2023 and 4/2024, and that slower growth holds true this time around as well. Just 18 metro areas grew more than 2.5% between 10/2023 and 10/2024.
- Our last iteration of this study included 8 metropolitan areas in Florida. This time, there are five. Most notable was the disappearance of The Villages from the top 15, which came in at #2 on the 4/2023-4/2024 fastest-growing metro list (but dropped down to #74 this time). It’s possible that homebuilding slowed in this active adult masterplan in 2023-2024. As for the other two that dropped from the top 15, Punta Gorda (previously #10) and Cape Coral (#8 last time), it’s reasonable to assume the two hurricanes that made landfall in Florida in 2024 near those two metropolitan areas had something to do with it.
Top 15 Fastest Growing Micropolitan Areas
#15: Fernley, Nevada | 2.72%
#14: Sanford, North Carolina | 2.77%
#13: Lewisburg, Tennessee | 2.78% (#3 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#12: Levelland, Texas | 2.86%
#11: Shelbyville, Tennessee | 2.89%
#10: Ketchikan, Arkansas | 3.19%
#9: Albemarle, North Carolina | 3.38% (#8 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#8: Breckenridge, Colorado | 3.71%
#7: Spearfish, South Dakota | 3.72%
#6: Brenham, Texas | 3.91% (#15 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#5: Heber, Utah | 4.34% (#4 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#4: Huntsville, Texas | 4.51% (#6 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#3: Andrews, Texas | 4.69%
#2: Jefferson, Georgia | 7.05% (#1 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
#1: Clewiston, Florida | 7.79% (#2 fastest growing April 2023-April 2024)
A few observations about micropolitan area growth (and loss):
- Four micropolitan areas in the top 15 fall within Texas and two are in North Carolina. Otherwise, the list has markets across the country.
- Jefferson, Georgia, and Clewiston, Florida, top the list again, but switched places from our fastest growing April 2023-April 2024 list. Georgia’s $2.6 billion investment (by way of tax breaks and other incentives) to convince South Korean electric vehicle battery company SK Battery to build plants in the town certainly has something to do with the area’s growth. Hendry County, Florida, which makes up most of the Clewiston micro area, is seeing major development with the creation of the $300 million Airglades International Airport that is expected to bring ~1,400 new jobs to the area and is creating big demand for housing.
- Andrews, Texas, is new to the list at #3 for fast-growing micropolitan areas. This is in the heart of the Permian Basin that spans across west Texas and southeastern New Mexico. In 2024, the Permian region produced more crude oil than any other region. Oil companies expanded their oil production throughout 2024 and are continuing to invest in oil development infrastructure.
This semi-annual population data comes from STI: PopStats. Look for our next study sometime in July or August 2025.
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