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List of U.S. states and territories by population facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

The United States is a big country with many people! To keep track of everyone, the United States Census Bureau counts how many people live in each of the 50 states and Washington, D.C.. They also count people in five places called territories: Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Population by U.S. state
This map shows how many people lived in each U.S. state, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico in 2022.
Annual population growth rate by U.S. state
This map shows how fast the population grew in each U.S. state, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico between 2020 and 2022.

In 2010, just nine states had more than half of all the people in the U.S. The 25 states with the fewest people had less than one-sixth of the total population. For example, California, the state with the most people, had more residents than the 21 smallest states put together! And Wyoming, the state with the fewest people, had less population than many large cities.

How the U.S. Counts Its People

The United States Census is a big count of everyone living in the United States. This includes citizens, people who live here permanently but are not citizens, and long-term visitors. U.S. government workers and military members serving in other countries are counted as living in their home state.

Why Population Counts Matter for Voting

Every 10 years, the U.S. Census Bureau counts everyone in each state and territory. This count is very important because it helps decide how many representatives each state gets in the U.S. government.

How States Get Representatives in Congress

The U.S. House of Representatives has 435 seats. After each 10-year census, these seats are divided among the 50 states based on their population. States with more people get more representatives. But every state is guaranteed at least one representative, no matter how small its population is. This count only includes the 50 states, not places like Washington, D.C., or the territories.

How the President is Elected: The Electoral College

Every four years, Americans vote for the President and Vice President of the United States. This election uses something called the Electoral College. Each state gets a certain number of votes in the Electoral College. This number is equal to how many members it has in the United States Senate (always two) plus how many members it has in the United States House of Representatives.

Washington, D.C., even though it's not a state, also gets Electoral College votes. It gets as many votes as the state with the fewest people (which is currently Wyoming). This means every state has at least three Electoral College votes (two senators + one representative). In total, the Electoral College has 538 members. People in U.S. territories like Puerto Rico cannot vote directly for the President.

Population of States and Territories

Here is a table showing the population of U.S. states and territories. It also shows how their populations have changed over time.


State or territory Census population Change,
2010–2020
Pop.
per
elec. vote
(2020)
Pop.
per
seat
(2020)
% US
(2020)
% EC
(2020)
July 1, 2023 (est.) April 1, 2020  % Abs. Seats  %
 California 38,965,193 39,538,223 6.13% 2,284,267 &&&&&&&&&&&&&052.&&&&&052 11.95% 732,189 760,350 11.800% 10.04%
 Texas 30,503,301 29,145,505 15.91% 3,999,944 &&&&&&&&&&&&&038.&&&&&038 8.74% 728,638 766,987 8.698% 7.43%
 Florida 22,610,726 21,538,187 14.56% 2,736,877 &&&&&&&&&&&&&028.&&&&&028 6.44% 717,940 769,221 6.428% 5.58%
 New York 19,571,216 20,201,249 4.25% 823,147 &&&&&&&&&&&&&026.&&&&&026 5.98% 721,473 776,971 6.029% 5.20%
 Pennsylvania 12,961,683 13,002,700 2.36% 300,321 &&&&&&&&&&&&&017.&&&&&017 3.91% 684,353 764,865 3.881% 3.53%
 Illinois 12,549,689 12,812,508 −0.14% −18,124 &&&&&&&&&&&&&017.&&&&&017 3.91% 674,343 753,677 3.824% 3.53%
 Ohio 11,785,935 11,799,448 2.28% 262,944 &&&&&&&&&&&&&015.&&&&&015 3.45% 694,085 786,630 3.521% 3.16%
 Georgia 11,029,227 10,711,908 10.57% 1,024,255 &&&&&&&&&&&&&014.&&&&&014 3.22% 669,494 765,136 3.197% 2.97%
 North Carolina 10,835,491 10,439,388 9.48% 903,905 &&&&&&&&&&&&&014.&&&&&014 3.22% 652,462 745,671 3.116% 2.97%
 Michigan 10,037,261 10,077,331 1.96% 193,691 &&&&&&&&&&&&&013.&&&&&013 2.99% 671,822 775,179 3.008% 2.79%
 New Jersey 9,290,841 9,288,994 5.65% 497,100 &&&&&&&&&&&&&012.&&&&&012 2.76% 663,500 774,083 2.772% 2.60%
 Virginia 8,715,698 8,631,393 7.88% 630,369 &&&&&&&&&&&&&011.&&&&&011 2.53% 663,953 784,672 2.576% 2.42%
 Washington 7,812,880 7,705,281 14.58% 980,741 &&&&&&&&&&&&&010.&&&&&010 2.30% 642,107 770,528 2.300% 2.23%
 Arizona 7,431,344 7,151,502 11.88% 759,485 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&09.&&&&&09 2.07% 650,137 794,611 2.134% 2.04%
 Tennessee 7,126,489 6,910,840 8.90% 564,735 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&09.&&&&&09 2.07% 628,258 767,871 2.062% 2.04%
 Massachusetts 7,001,399 7,029,917 7.37% 482,288 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&09.&&&&&09 2.07% 639,083 781,102 2.098% 2.04%
 Indiana 6,862,199 6,785,528 4.65% 301,726 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&09.&&&&&09 2.07% 616,866 753,948 2.025% 2.04%
 Missouri 6,196,156 6,154,913 2.77% 165,986 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&08.&&&&&08 1.84% 615,491 769,364 1.837% 1.86%
 Maryland 6,180,253 6,177,224 6.99% 403,672 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&08.&&&&&08 1.84% 617,722 772,153 1.844% 1.86%
 Wisconsin 5,910,955 5,893,718 3.64% 206,732 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&08.&&&&&08 1.84% 589,372 736,715 1.759% 1.86%
 Colorado 5,877,610 5,773,714 14.8% 744,518 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&08.&&&&&08 1.84% 577,371 721,714 1.723% 1.86%
 Minnesota 5,737,915 5,706,494 7.59% 402,569 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&08.&&&&&08 1.84% 570,649 713,312 1.703% 1.86%
 South Carolina 5,373,555 5,118,425 10.66% 493,061 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&07.&&&&&07 1.61% 568,714 731,204 1.528% 1.67%
 Alabama 5,108,468 5,024,279 5.12% 244,543 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&07.&&&&&07 1.61% 558,253 717,754 1.499% 1.67%
 Louisiana 4,573,749 4,657,757 2.74% 124,385 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&06.&&&&&06 1.38% 582,220 776,293 1.390% 1.49%
 Kentucky 4,526,154 4,505,836 3.84% 166,469 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&06.&&&&&06 1.38% 563,230 750,973 1.345% 1.49%
 Oregon 4,233,358 4,237,256 10.60% 406,182 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&06.&&&&&06 1.38% 529,657 706,209 1.265% 1.49%
 Oklahoma 4,053,824 3,959,353 5.54% 208,002 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&05.&&&&&05 1.15% 565,622 791,871 1.182% 1.30%
 Connecticut 3,617,176 3,605,944 0.89% 31,847 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&05.&&&&&05 1.15% 515,135 721,189 1.076% 1.30%
 Utah 3,417,734 3,271,616 18.37% 507,731 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&04.&&&&&04 0.92% 545,269 817,904 0.976% 1.12%
 Iowa 3,207,004 3,190,369 4.73% 144,014 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&04.&&&&&04 0.92% 531,728 797,592 0.952% 1.12%
 Puerto Rico 3,205,691 3,285,874 −11.81% −439,915 1* 0.981%
 Nevada 3,194,176 3,104,614 14.96% 404,063 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&04.&&&&&04 0.92% 517,436 776,154 0.927% 1.12%
 Arkansas 3,067,732 3,011,524 3.28% 95,606 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&04.&&&&&04 0.92% 501,921 752,881 0.899% 1.12%
 Kansas 2,940,546 2,937,880 2.97% 84,762 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&04.&&&&&04 0.92% 489,647 734,470 0.877% 1.12%
 Mississippi 2,939,690 2,961,279 −0.20% −6,018 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&04.&&&&&04 0.92% 493,547 740,320 0.884% 1.12%
 New Mexico 2,114,371 2,117,522 2.83% 58,343 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&03.&&&&&03 0.69% 423,504 705,841 0.632% 0.93%
 Nebraska 1,978,379 1,961,504 7.40% 135,163 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&03.&&&&&03 0.69% 392,301 653,835 0.585% 0.93%
 Idaho 1,964,726 1,839,106 17.32% 271,524 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&02.&&&&&02 0.46% 459,777 919,553 0.549% 0.74%
 West Virginia 1,770,071 1,793,716 −3.20% −59,278 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&02.&&&&&02 0.46% 448,429 896,858 0.535% 0.74%
 Hawaii 1,435,138 1,455,271 6.98% 94,970 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&02.&&&&&02 0.46% 363,818 727,636 0.434% 0.74%
 New Hampshire 1,402,054 1,377,529 4.66% 61,059 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&02.&&&&&02 0.46% 344,382 688,765 0.411% 0.74%
 Maine 1,395,722 1,362,359 2.56% 33,998 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&02.&&&&&02 0.46% 340,590 681,180 0.407% 0.74%
 Montana 1,132,812 1,084,225 9.58% 94,810 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&02.&&&&&02 0.46% 271,056 542,113 0.324% 0.74%
 Rhode Island 1,095,962 1,097,379 4.26% 44,812 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&02.&&&&&02 0.46% 274,345 548,690 0.328% 0.74%
 Delaware 1,031,890 989,948 10.25% 92,014 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&01.&&&&&01 0.23% 329,983 989,948 0.295% 0.56%
 South Dakota 919,318 886,667 8.90% 72,487 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&01.&&&&&01 0.23% 295,556 886,667 0.265% 0.56%
 North Dakota 783,926 779,094 15.83% 106,503 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&01.&&&&&01 0.23% 259,698 779,094 0.233% 0.56%
 Alaska 733,406 733,391 3.26% 23,160 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&01.&&&&&01 0.23% 244,464 733,391 0.219% 0.56%
 District of Columbia 678,972 689,545 14.60% 87,822 1* 229,848 0.206% 0.56%
 Vermont 647,464 643,077 2.77% 17,336 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&01.&&&&&01 0.23% 214,359 643,077 0.192% 0.56%
 Wyoming 584,057 576,851 2.35% 13,225 &&&&&&&&&&&&&&01.&&&&&01 0.23% 192,284 576,851 0.172% 0.56%
 Guam N/A 153,836 −3.47% −5,522 1* 0.046%
 U.S. Virgin Islands N/A 87,146 −18.10% −19,259 1* 0.026%
 American Samoa N/A 49,710 −10.46% −5,809 1* 0.015%
 Northern Mariana Islands N/A 47,329 −12.16% −6,554 1* 0.014%
Contiguous United States 332,746,351 329,260,619 7.36% 22,585,613 432
(+1*)
99.31% 623,600 756,921 98.265% 98.70%
The 50 states 334,235,923 330,759,736 7.34% 22,615,921 435 100% 618,242 760,367 98.713% 99.44%
The 50 states and D.C. 334,914,895 331,449,281 7.35% 22,703,743 435
(+1*)
100% 616,077 98.918% 100%
Total US and territories N/A 335,073,176 7.10% 22,226,684 435
(+6*)
100% 100%

* — This means a place has a representative in the House of Representatives who cannot vote on laws.

Population by U.S. Region

The U.S. Census Bureau groups states into different regions and divisions. This helps them organize and understand population data better.

Legend
Division totals – 9 divisions for 50 states and District of Columbia
Region totals – 4 regions (2 or 3 divisions each)
Individual territories
Total U.S. territories
50 states + District of Columbia
Divisions & regions as defined by U.S. Census Bureau
Last col. shows larger region which contains entity in col. 1

Column header abbreviations: # = Rank, Geo. = Geographic

Population of states, territories, divisions and region
State/federal district/territory/
division/region
# 2020 pop. # 2010 pop. # 2000 pop. # 2010–
2020
change
Geo.
sort
 Massachusetts 15 7,029,917 14 6,547,629 13 6,349,097 21 7.4% NEng
 Connecticut 29 3,605,944 29 3,574,097 29 3,405,565 47 0.9% NEng
 New Hampshire 41 1,377,529 42 1,316,470 41 1,235,786 30 4.6% NEng
 Maine 42 1,362,359 41 1,328,361 40 1,274,923 42 2.6% NEng
 Rhode Island 43 1,097,379 43 1,052,567 43 1,048,319 31 4.3% NEng
 Vermont 49 643,077 49 625,741 49 608,827 40 2.8% NEng
    New England 9 15,116,205 9 14,444,865 9 13,922,517 7 4.6% NEast
 New York 4 20,201,249 3 19,378,102 3 18,976,457 32 4.2% MAtl
 Pennsylvania 5 13,002,700 6 12,702,379 6 12,281,054 43 2.4% MAtl
 New Jersey 11 9,288,994 11 8,791,894 9 8,414,350 25 5.7% MAtl
    Mid-Atlantic 4 42,492,943 4 40,872,375 4 39,671,861 8 4.0% NEast
    Northeast 4 57,609,148 4 55,317,240 4 53,594,378 3 4.1% USA
 Florida 3 21,538,187 4 18,801,310 4 15,982,378 8 14.6% SAtl
 Georgia 8 10,711,908 9 9,687,653 10 8,186,453 12 10.6% SAtl
 North Carolina 9 10,439,388 10 9,535,483 11 8,049,313 15 9.5% SAtl
 Virginia 12 8,631,393 12 8,001,024 12 7,078,515 18 7.9% SAtl
 Maryland 18 6,177,224 19 5,773,552 19 5,296,486 22 7.0% SAtl
 South Carolina 23 5,118,425 24 4,625,364 26 4,012,012 10 10.7% SAtl
 West Virginia 39 1,793,716 37 1,852,994 37 1,808,344 50 −3.2% SAtl
 Delaware 45 989,948 45 897,934 45 783,600 13 10.2% SAtl
 District of Columbia 689,545 601,723 572,059 14.6% SAtl
    South Atlantic 1 66,089,734 1 59,777,037 1 51,769,160 3 10.6% South
 Tennessee 16 6,910,840 17 6,346,105 16 5,689,283 17 8.9% ESC
 Alabama 24 5,024,279 23 4,779,736 23 4,447,100 27 5.1% ESC
 Kentucky 26 4,505,836 26 4,339,367 25 4,041,769 33 3.8% ESC
 Mississippi 34 2,961,279 31 2,967,297 31 2,844,658 49 −0.2% ESC
    East South Central 8 19,402,234 8 18,432,505 8 17,022,810 6 5.3% South
 Texas 2 29,145,505 2 25,145,561 2 20,851,820 3 15.9% WSC
 Louisiana 25 4,657,757 25 4,533,372 22 4,468,976 41 2.7% WSC
 Oklahoma 28 3,959,353 28 3,751,351 27 3,450,654 26 5.5% WSC
 Arkansas 33 3,011,524 32 2,915,918 33 2,673,400 35 3.3% WSC
    West South Central 5 40,774,139 5 36,346,202 5 31,444,850 2 12.2% South
    South 1 126,266,107 1 114,555,744 1 100,236,820 1 10.2% USA
 Illinois 6 12,812,508 5 12,830,632 5 12,419,293 48 −0.1% ENC
 Ohio 7 11,799,448 7 11,536,504 7 11,353,140 45 2.3% ENC
 Michigan 10 10,077,331 8 9,883,640 8 9,938,444 46 2.0% ENC
 Indiana 17 6,785,528 15 6,483,802 14 6,080,485 29 4.7% ENC
 Wisconsin 20 5,893,718 20 5,686,986 18 5,363,675 34 3.6% ENC
    East North Central 3 47,368,533 3 46,421,564 2 45,155,037 9 2.0% MWest
 Missouri 19 6,154,913 18 5,988,927 17 5,595,211 39 2.8% WNC
 Minnesota 22 5,706,494 21 5,303,925 21 4,919,479 19 7.6% WNC
 Iowa 31 3,190,369 30 3,046,355 30 2,926,324 28 4.7% WNC
 Kansas 35 2,937,880 33 2,853,118 32 2,688,418 37 3.0% WNC
 Nebraska 37 1,961,504 38 1,826,341 38 1,711,263 20 7.4% WNC
 South Dakota 46 886,667 46 814,180 46 754,844 16 8.9% WNC
 North Dakota 47 779,094 48 672,591 47 642,200 4 15.8% WNC
    West North Central 7 21,616,921 7 20,505,437 6 19,237,739 5 5.4% MWest
    Midwest 3 68,985,454 3 66,927,001 2 64,392,776 4 3.1% USA
 Arizona 14 7,151,502 16 6,392,017 20 5,130,632 9 11.9% Mtn
 Colorado 21 5,773,714 22 5,029,196 24 4,301,261 6 14.8% Mtn
 Utah 30 3,271,616 34 2,763,885 34 2,233,169 1 18.4% Mtn
 Nevada 32 3,104,614 35 2,700,551 35 1,998,257 5 15.0% Mtn
 New Mexico 36 2,117,522 36 2,059,179 36 1,819,046 38 2.8% Mtn
 Idaho 38 1,839,106 39 1,567,582 39 1,293,953 2 17.3% Mtn
 Montana 44 1,084,225 44 989,415 44 902,195 14 9.6% Mtn
 Wyoming 50 576,851 50 563,626 50 493,782 44 2.3% Mtn
    Mountain 6 24,919,150 6 22,065,451 7 18,172,295 1 12.9% West
 California 1 39,538,223 1 37,253,956 1 33,871,648 24 6.1% Pac
 Washington 13 7,705,281 13 6,724,540 15 5,894,121 7 14.6% Pac
 Oregon 27 4,237,256 27 3,831,074 28 3,421,399 11 10.6% Pac
 Hawaii 40 1,455,271 40 1,360,301 42 1,211,537 23 7.0% Pac
 Alaska 48 733,391 47 710,231 48 626,932 36 3.3% Pac
    Pacific 2 53,669,422 2 49,880,102 3 45,025,637 4 7.6% West
    West 2 78,588,572 2 71,945,553 3 63,197,932 2 9.2% USA
 50 states and District of Columbia 331,449,281 308,745,538 281,421,906 7.4% NAmer
 Puerto Rico 1 3,285,874 1 3,725,789 1 3,808,610 3 −11.8% I.A.
 Guam 2 153,836 2 159,358 2 154,805 1 −3.5% I.A.
 U.S. Virgin Islands 3 87,146 3 106,405 3 108,612 2 −18.1% I.A.
 American Samoa 4 49,710 4 55,519 5 57,291 4 −7.7% I.A.
 Northern Mariana Islands 5 47,329 5 53,883 4 69,221 5 −14.8% I.A.
United States Minor Outlying Islands U.S. Minor Outlying Islands 6 6 6 316 6 I.A.
    Island Areas (Territories) 3,623,895 4,100,954 4,198,855 −11.6% USA
State/federal district/territory/
division/region
# 2020 pop. # 2010 pop. # 2000 pop. # 2010–
2020
change
Geo.
sort

See Also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Anexo:Estados de los Estados Unidos por población para niños

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List of U.S. states and territories by population Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.