CHICAGO (NEXSTAR) — The Census Bureau dropped a massive batch of data Thursday showing how the country has changed over the past 10 years. One takeaway? We have a new top-five list of largest cities in America.
The first four haven’t changed: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston. The newcomer comes in at No. 5: Phoenix.
That’s right, 1.6 million people are enjoying residency in Phoenix (or have otherwise found themselves there). The city’s population grew 11% over the past decade, growing from a population of 1,445,632 to 1,608,129. The Census Bureau also determined the median age in Phoenix to be about 34, and the median income tops $60,000.
Philadelphia, formerly the fifth-largest American city, has dropped into sixth place. San Antonio, San Diego, Dallas and San Jose round out the rest of the top 10.
The data is based on forms filled out last year by tens of millions of Americans, with census takers and government statisticians helping to fill in the blanks when forms were not turned in, or questions were left unanswered. The numbers reflect countless decisions made over the past 10 years by individuals to have children, move to another part of the country or to come to the U.S. from elsewhere.
The figures show continued migration to the South and West, and population losses in the Mississippi Delta, Appalachia and smaller counties where residents are leaving for larger counties. The numbers also indicate that the white population is aging and has fallen to its smallest share of the total population on record, though there are some exceptions: The share of the white population actually grew in coastal communities in the Carolinas and Virginia, as well as in counties stretching through the midsections of Georgia and Alabama. The population under age 18, meanwhile, is increasingly diverse.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
