This post originally appeared in Business Insider.
You hear a lot about which states are best for business, or are doing the most to attract people, or have the most employment opportunities. For the past few years, Texas and North Dakota have dominated such lists, thanks to low taxes and booming shale oil and gas production. But neither of those states figure in the top two states with the most net inflows over the past decade, according to Atlas Van Lines, the national moving company.
Each year Atlas publishes data showing how many moves were tallied from every state (plus Washington, DC), and which ones saw net inflows or outflows of 55 percent or more, as a percentage of total moves. They’ve now published 10 years worth of data, so we can see which has the longest streak of net inbound moves—who’s really winning the battle for population gains.
One is North Carolina:
Atlas Van Lines
The other is Washington, DC (which is obviously not technically a state):
Atlas Van Lines
If you’re wondering if there have been any states that have seen all net outflows, the answer is yes. There are four: Indiana, New Jersey, Ohio, and New York.
