News
2025 Estimates Show Another Top-10 Year for Tennessee Population Gains February 2, 2026 At the midpoint of the decade, new population estimates put Tennessee’s growth near the top of the class again this year. Our analysis looks at what drove the change in 2025 and emerging trends that will influence growth in the southeast U.S. for the remainder of the decade.
Nov. 10 Webinar Recap: Preparing for Tennessee’s New Population Estimates Program October 22, 2025 Tennessee is changing how it distributes state-shared revenues. This webinar will bring local governments up to speed on the changes and explain how to verify that accurate data about your community is being in the new process.
2030 Census Geography Update Programs Come into Focus October 9, 2025 A complete count of Tennessee's residents in the 2030 Census begins early next year as the first of a series of geographic program updates gets underway. We lay out six important opportunities for state and local government to update Census Bureau mapping files and how they can be involved.
Tennessee Enacts Population Estimates Program July 30, 2025 A new Tennessee law requires the use of annual population estimates for distributing state-shared revenues to counties and municipalities. Get up to speed on the new legislation, the Boyd Center’s role and plans for the first estimate release next July. 
Tennessee’s Outdoor Jobs Heat Up June 2, 2025 For a million Tennesseans, time on the job includes working outside for at least portion of their shift. Our new analysis highlights occupation sectors requiring outdoor work, the amount of time spent working outside, and identifies which occupation sectors are "heating up", including construction and vehicle operators.
Davidson County Tops 2024 List of Tennessee’s Fastest Growing Counties May 16, 2025 Census Bureau estimates show that Davidson County (Nashville) added the most population in Tennessee in 2024. International migration adjustments were a big factor as it outpaced Rutherford County for the first time since 2015.TNSDC Toplines
19,670 Californians Relocated to Tennessee
in 2024, according to State-to-State Migration Tables; a trend that has continued for three of the last four years. Florida added the second most (18,526), and Texas the third most (12,798). Most outbound Golden State residents moved to big states, like Texas and Florida, or other western states. Tennessee was the 10th most popular destination for Californians leaving the state, followed by North Carolina. Among current Tennessee residents, nearly 204,000 were born in California—more than from any state except Tennessee itself—making Californians the largest group of out-of-state transplants to the Volunteer State.
$418 Million in Legal Sports Wagers
were placed in Tennessee in February 2025. That month includes high-profile events like the NFL’s Super Bowl, and forecasts show $1.76 billion in bets will be placed on the league’s 2026 season-ending championship. But Tennessee Sports Wagering Council reports show the state’s betting volumes typically are the highest in the fall. The November 2025 handle grew to an inflation-adjusted $651.6 million, which is up by 16 percent year over year. The spring seasonal peak typically occurs in March, coinciding with college basketball’s annual “March Madness” tournament. Last year, $555 million in wagers were placed that month, leaving February a quieter period by comparison.
Featured Tools
Municipal Population Estimates Dashboard
Our subcounty population estimates dashboard provides data for Tennessee’s 345 municipalities, along with figures for the unincorporated areas of the state’s 95 counties. Data from 2020 through the latest year in the estimate series is presented through maps, charts and key population indicators.
County Population Estimate Dashboard
Our County Population Estimates and Components of Change Dashboard provides county- and regional-level population insights from 2020 through the latest year in the estimate series. Data about population and components of change are included, along with regional and state-level tallies of key performance indicators.
State and National Population Estimates Dashboard (v. 2024)
Center of Population of U.S. States and Counties
This interactive application shows the mean center of population for each state and county in the U.S. in 2000, 2010 and 2020. The application visualizes the degree of population shift each decade using lines that connect the center to its prior location.