Oregon Population Stays Flat as Neighboring States Continue to Grow

Although Oregon’s census indicates that the state added 30,000 residents since 2020, deaths outnumbered births by 19,000 this decade, leaving Oregon’s population basically flat from 2024 to 2025, as neighboring Washington and Idaho kept growing.

Oregon Population Growth Slows

The states with the highest natural population growth, in percentage terms, are Utah, Alaska, Texas, North Dakota, and Idaho. U.S. Census Bureau data shows that Oregon’s population has grown by 30,042 people since 2020. Five Oregon cities saw their population grow by more than 2%, while one saw its population shrink by more than that amount:

• The Bend metropolitan area added 6.99% to an estimated 266,376 residents in 2025.
• Ontario was up 4.99% to 60,085
• Corvallis increased by 4.41% to 97,728
• Albany was up 3.02% to 3,893
• Salem increased by 2.66% to 445,814
• The Portland MSA, the state’s largest metropolitan area, grew by less than 1%, with a population increase of 0.98% to 2,542,282.

On the other end, Brookings saw its population drop 3.82% to 22,621, and Eugene-Springfield shrank by 0.69% to 381,584.

While about 105 new Oregonians are born each day, on average, 115 die. That daily deficit of 10 adds up to about 30,000 people a year.

Oregon has among the lowest birth rates in the nation, but statistics show that Oregon deaths have outnumbered births by a median rate of 19,000 since 2020.

Other states with more deaths than included West Virginia in the West, and Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire in the Northeast.

Migrants are also less likely to live in Oregon. With a net migration of just 56,000 this decade, according to the new census, the state is lagging behind other states, where immigrants from other countries accounted for nearly all the growth. The Trump administration’s immigration crackdown will likely make things worse.

As a share of the population, Oregon’s natural population growth ranked 40th in the U.S. from 2020 to 2025.