WASHINGTON — The U.S. Census Bureau reported Thursday that Florida's population continued to soar in 2024, reaching more than 23.3 million residents.
Florida's population was 23,372,215 as of July 1, 2024, behind only Texas and California, which had more than 30 million residents. Among the top ten were New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Georgia, North Carolina, and Michigan.
By the raw numbers, Florida was second to only Texas in population growth in 2024. Texas added 562,941 residents last year, while Florida added 467,347 new citizens.
The majority of Florida's growth came from international migration, with 411,322 of the new citizens coming from other countries.
Looking deeper into the numbers, Florida saw the largest gains from international migration but was one of seventeen states that experienced more deaths than births in 2024.
Overall, the South was the most populous region in the United States, with a population gain of nearly 1.8 million in 2024.
While many children have plenty of presents under the Christmas tree, that's not always the case for foster children. ABC Action News reporter Keely McCormick spoke to a 16-year-old who spent most of her life in and out of foster care about life in the system around Christmas.
