Tennessee has been among the most popular relocation destinations in the country in the past five years, and a new study shows which counties people are moving to.
An analysis by World Population Review examined population change in each county between 2020 and 2026 to determine which states saw the largest percentage increases and decreases since the start of the decade.
Wilson County had the greatest increase in population between 2020 and 2026. The population grew by 20.9% over six years, to 179,726. Estimates from the 2020 Census show the county had a population of 147,745.
WINNERS: Biggest population gainers? Wilson (20.9%), Maury (19.64%), Louden (17.67%), Montgomery (14.6%), and Van Buren (14.43%).
LOSERS: Lake County in Northwest Tennessee saw the largest decline between 2020 and 2026, at 11.86%. In 2020, the Census Bureau estimated the county’s population at 7,001. The county now has approximately 6,159 people in 2026.
Largest population losses? Lake (11.85%), Haywood (5.35%), Obion (2.93%), Shelby (2.66%), and Lauderdale (1.68%).
The study found that, although Shelby County is the most populous of Tennessee’s 95 counties, it was the only county with a major metropolitan area to see a population decline.
Of the three largest counties, Knox County (Knoxville) had the largest increase at 7.25% to 515,309. Just a few years earlier, in 2020, the county’s population was 478,925.
Davidson County (Nashville) saw a 5.45% increase in population, reaching 755,185. This is up from 2020’s population of 715,887.
Shelby County, home to Memphis, experienced a 2.66% population decline but still has 905,104 residents. In 2020, Shelby County had 930,012 people living there.
Hamilton County (Chattanooga) only narrowly surpasses Rutherford in population by about 3,000 people. The rapid growth in Murfreesboro is likely to push the county ahead of Hamilton within the next year, making it the fourth-most populated county in Tennessee.
Starbucks’ announcement this week of a $100 million investment to establish a corporate office in Nashville, expected to create 2,000 jobs, will likely continue the population growth in and around middle Tennessee. Some Starbucks workers are reluctant to move from Seattle to Nashville, according to reports.
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