The North Bay population is on the rise, albeit modestly.
Following multiple years of population decline, the latest numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau show a slight rebound in local residents. From July 1, 2023 to July 1, 2024, Marin County gained 2,007 people, or .78%; Sonoma County gained 3,563 people, or .74%, while Napa County has declined in population by 489, or .36%. The overall gain in the three-county area comes to an increase of 5,081.
Despite the small increases last year, local populations still haven’t recovered from their pre-pandemic highs when Marin, Sonoma and Napa counties boasted totals of 262,321, 488,863 and 138,019, respectively, for a total of 889,203 in 2020, or 14,701 more than the population today.
That said, the population growth in the North Bay mirrors nationwide trends, in which 90% of metro areas across the U.S. saw gains, leading to an overall metro growth of 1.1%.
According to the Census Bureau, the gains are largely down to increases in international migration. “While births continue to contribute to overall growth, rising net international migration is offsetting the ongoing net domestic outmigration we see in many of these areas,” said Kristie Wilder, a demographer in the Census Bureau’s Population Division. For more information, visit census.gov.
