COLUMBUS – While many of the nation’s largest cities saw their populations dwindle during the first year of the pandemic, Columbus was not among them.
New estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau show Columbus added only 668 residents from 2020 to 2021, it was still among the fastest-growing cities with populations of at least 50,000 with 905,000 residents as of July 1, 2021.
Columbus was not the only central Ohio city to experience some notable growth. Newark joined the list of cities with populations of 50,000 or more, boasting 50,383 residents.
Eight of the 10 largest cities in the U.S. lost population, with only Phoenix and San Antonio gaining new residents from 2020 to 2021.
Top U.S. cities in population
1. New York, N.Y. (8.5 million)
2. Los Angeles (4 million)
3. Chicago (2.7 million)
4. Houston (2.3 million)
5. Phoenix (1.6 million)
6. Philadelphia (1.6 million)
7. San Antonio (1.5 million)
8. San Diego (1.4 million)
9. Dallas (1.3 million)
10. San Jose, Calif. (1.0 million)
14. COLUMBUS (905,000)
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Wikipedia
New York led the way, losing more than 305,000 residents, or about 3.5% of its 2020 population. Among the nation’s 10 largest cities, it was followed by Chicago and Los Angeles.
Smaller big cities primarily in the Sunbelt gained news residents. Along with Columbus, those cities include Austin and Fort Worth in Texas; Jacksonville, Fla., and Charlotte, N.C.