U.S. Population Could Shrink for the First Time Ever

[applegrove]

U.S. Population Could Shrink for the First Time Ever

September 2, 2025 at 7:36 am EDT By Taegan Goddard 38 Comments

Derek Thompson: “The math is straightforward. Population growth has two sources: natural increase (births minus deaths) and net immigration (arrivals minus departures). Last year, births outnumbered deaths by 519,000 people. That means any decline in net immigration in excess of half a million could push the U.S. into population decline. A recent analysis of Census data by the Pew Research Center found that between January and June, the US foreign-born population fell for the first time in decades by more than one million.”

“While some economists have questioned the report, a separate analysis by the American Enterprise Institute predicted that net migration in 2025 could be as low as negative 525,000. In either case, annual population growth this year could easily turn negative.”

“This would be a historic first. For nearly 250 years, America has only known growth.”

[CousinIT]

1. What self-respecting woman would choose to birth a baby in this shithole?

Seriously. She puts her life at even graver risk than pregnancy and childbirth usually do, in a normal and sane country.

Same with marriage: she could lose her right to vote. And, her right to control her own body. All these rights are being taken from women in the US.

Who the hell would ever make these choices? Unless they seriously lack self-respect.

[maxsolomon]

9. My Niece just had her 2nd child in late August.

She's a die-hard Chicago Liberal with a caring and supportive Liberal husband, but I guess she lacks "self-respect".

[IzzaNuDay]

2. As long as the US converges on the Handmaid's Tale

No shit! Women are not going to allow being subjugated as breeding stock. And few will want to emigrate here. The US is on its way to being the shithole country the orange menace once accused other countries of being.

[hildegaard28]

3. Deaths are

Going to go way up under RFK. JR.

[Melon]

4. Good. Maybe our environment can heal with a lower population.

[W_HAMILTON]

10. The reason for the population decline would be this fascist administration, which is also TERRIBLE on the environment...

...so, NO, it most certainly would not be """good."""

[Melon]

11. Less people in the US and less demands on the environment

Go have have more kids if you want. Lower population has been a topic on these boards in the past and supported for the environment.

[Oopsie Daisy]

5. Is this why they want to outlaw all abortions, birth control pills and condoms?

[dalton99a]

6. The problem is not population per se, but population distribution

[OC375]

7. Good

Enough with the people. There’s too many people.

[dalton99a]

8. +1. The planet has far more people than it needs or can support

[FBaggins]

13. This isn't a change in the number of people

Just in the number that live here

[muriel_volestrangler]

12. Technically, there was a decrease in 1918

from 103,266,000 in July 1917 to 103,203,000 in July 1918. This is 'population for the United States'; from the 1940s, the statistic adds "including Armed Forces Overseas". So in 1918 you had both soldiers being posted to Europe for World War One, and the Flu pandemic.

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/graph/?g=mmo

That also shows a decrease in the very last year without the Armed Forces Overseas bit - 1944.