(I was familiar with these estimates – but have chosen to use an AI summary to explain this)
Most Americans live surprisingly close to their birthplace: about 60% live within 10 miles, and nearly 80% live within 100 miles of where they grew up.
📊 Key Findings
- Census Bureau & Harvard study (2022):
- Nearly 6 in 10 young adults live within 10 miles of their birthplace.
- 8 in 10 live within 100 miles.
- Even when higher wages are available farther away, most people stay close to home.
- Migration trends (2025):
- Americans are moving less frequently than in past decades.
- 87.9% of the population stays in the same home year after year, up from 85.1% a decade ago.
- Long‑distance moves (across states) are less common than local moves.
⚖️ Interpretation
- Proximity to family: Many people stay close to their birthplace for childcare, elder care, and community support.
- Economic factors: While jobs may exist elsewhere, relocation costs and housing affordability often keep people rooted.
- Cultural inertia: The U.S. is a nation of movers historically, but today mobility is declining — people are more likely to remain near their origin.
Today (2025), Americans are less mobile than in the past with about 8-9% of the population relocating each year compared to the 1960s and 70s, when about 20% of the population moved each year – then typically for jobs or moving into the expanding suburbs.
Today, “urban growth boundaries” – and cities still expecting major population growth even though the fertility rate has collapsed – and pushing people into denser, urban style, multi-unit dwellings. I live in a small town – yet the majority of new housing units are in 3 floor multi-unit apartments, condos and town homes – densely packed near shopping options.
Bottom line:
- 1960s–70s: ~20% of Americans moved annually, often farther from birthplace.
- 2020s–2025: ~8–9% move annually, mostly short distances; most live within 100 miles of birthplace.
- The U.S. has shifted from a high‑mobility society to a lower‑mobility one, reshaping the cultural meaning of birthplace proximity.
