California Sees Slight Improvement in Moving Van Inflow for 2025

The trend of residents moving out of California has shown a small improvement in 2025. According to data from major moving van providers, including Allied, Atlas, and United, an average of 44% of interstate relocations from the state were arrivals of new residents. This marks a slight uptick from 41% in 2024, which was the second-lowest rate recorded over the past 22 years.

Despite this modest increase, California’s inbound share of moving van relocations remains below the historical average of 47% since 2004 and significantly lower than the high of 52% reached in 2014. The year 2023 recorded an all-time low of 41% for inbound moves.

Analyzing the Trends

The data indicates that the outflow of residents decreased across all three major van companies compared to 2024, marking only the third occurrence in 14 years of synchronized declines in outflow. Yet, the inbound rates remain near historic lows, with Atlas reporting 46% of moves into California, United at 42%, and Allied at 43%.

Reflecting on the past two decades, the pandemic appears to have significantly impacted the dynamics of moving trends in California. From 2004 to 2019, the average inbound rate for van relocations was 49%, which included a period during the Great Recession when more people moved into California than out. Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, however, this figure has dropped to an average of 42%.

Contextualizing the Figures

While moving van statistics represent a fraction of overall migration—typically accessible only to wealthier individuals or those whose relocation is covered by employers—they often reflect broader trends in domestic migration. Historical data shows that fluctuations in inbound van relocations have aligned with changes in California’s net population loss over 14 of the last 21 years.

According to state demographic reports, California experienced a net loss of 215,500 residents to other states in the year ending in July 2025. This figure indicates a widening of the outmigration gap, which had been stable for four years. It represents a 54% increase from 2024’s net outflow of 140,100 and is 24% below the average outmigration of 183,800 since 2004.

California has historically been a net loser of residents, with outmigration levels fluctuating from a low of 34,200 in 2014 to a high of 369,200 in 2023. As such, the data indicates that while there are signs of improvement in the moving van inflow, the overall trend of residents leaving the state continues to pose challenges.

Jonathan Lansner, a business columnist for the Southern California News Group, can be reached at [email protected].