- Between 2022 and 2023, over 690,100 people left California, according to new census data.
- Movers were motivated by economic and personal reasons, including the cost of living and home ownership.
- Just over 422,000 people also moved into the Golden State during that same time period, data shows.
Kellee Speakman, a native Californian, started dreaming about life in Texas in 2022.
The 50-year-old elementary school teacher and self-identified conservative was frustrated with California's COVID-19 policies and intrigued by Texans proudly flaunting their "freedoms," Speakman told Business Insider earlier this year.
So, in January 2022, Speakman and her family packed up and left Temecula, California, for the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
But it only took four months for Speakman to start planning her return to California, citing Texas' higher-than-expected cost of living and politics.
"I was really depressed in Texas. I was daydreaming about home constantly," Speakman said.
The family was back in the Golden State by summer.
Speakman and her family were part of both an exodus out of California and the influx into the state in recent years.
The Californian exodus continues
Let's get into the numbers.
Census data released on October 17 shows that over 690,100 people left California for another state between 2022 and 2023, while just over 422,000 moved into the Golden State from elsewhere in the US. The data comes from the American Community Survey, which includes responses to questions concerning moving patterns.
There were fewer net migrations during this period than the year prior, in which about 818,000 people left while 475,800 moved in.
For Californians seeking greener pastures, Texas remains the top choice.
Nearly 94,000 former Californians relocated to Texas between 2022 and 2023, a decrease from over 102,000 who made the move the previous year and down from the 108,000 who moved between 2020 and 2021. In contrast, just over 38,700 people moved from Texas to California during the same time.
Between 2022 and 2023, about 54,200 people also left California for Arizona, a decline from 74,100 the year before. Nevada and Washington also saw significant interest from Californians, with each attracting over 40,000 movers.
Meanwhile, the number of people relocating from California to Florida dropped to 39,000, compared to 50,700 the prior year.
Californians look for affordability in Texas
In the past year, many people moving from California to Texas have shared with BI their motivations for relocating.
Some pointed to political factors or job opportunities as their main reasons, while others mentioned that rising costs made living in California's major cities unsustainable, prompting them to look for a quieter, more affordable suburb in Texas.
Jeffrey VonderHaar, an owner of a medical equipment business, told BI earlier this year that he was planning to move from Calabasas, California, to a neighborhood outside Houston.
After 26 years in California, VonderHaar said he was leaving because the regulations, taxes, and high cost of goods made it increasingly difficult to run his business and manage daily living expenses.
"In California, there are so many rules and regulations that change constantly," he told BI in February. "The taxes are never-ending."
He said he found Texas to be significantly more business-friendly. While he intends to keep his business in California, where he doesn't foresee much expansion, he is looking to grow his operations in Texas.
By moving to Texas, he and his family were also able to purchase a larger home on four acres of land for $1.275 million.
Michelle Clifford, a 33-year-old sales manager, shared with BI that in July, moving from California to Texas allowed her and her husband to purchase their first home, giving them and their children a lifestyle they once thought was unattainable.
The couple lives in Celina, a rapidly growing town north of Dallas. There, they bought a 2,400-square-foot home on an acre of land for around $600,000.
"I've been renting or moving almost every year since I was 18," Clifford said. "To finally have something that's mine is the most amazing feeling. Knowing that my daughters will have space to run around in Celina is the biggest blessing."
Where people are moving to California from
While fewer people from other states moved to California between 2022 and 2023 than between 2021 and 2022, the allure of the Golden State remains robust.
The route from Texas to California was the most popular among movers from 2022 to 2023. According to census data, 38,732 relocated to California during this period.
The second most traveled route was from New York to California, with about 35,000 people making the move. Washington closely followed, which saw about 32,200 movers.
Both Nevada and Oregon contributed around 22,200 movers, while Illinois and Arizona each lost over 21,000 residents to California.
Abby Raisz, Senior Research Manager at the Bay Area Council Economic Institute, told CBS News in November that job opportunities partly drive the influx of Texas transplants to California.
As companies move back to in-person work, Raisz said that many employees who worked remotely during the pandemic are returning to California. There has also been a rise in new tech jobs.
"It's not just workers returning," Raisz said.
"It's new jobs being created in some of these burgeoning industries like AI," she added. "The Bay Area remains this epicenter of innovation when it comes to tech."
The Californian boomerang
The wider group of movers to California between 2022 and 2023 also includes some individuals returning back to the state.
BI spoke with several Californians who had moved away, only to regret their decision or discover that they were better suited for life in California.
Kimberly Wilkerson, a 46-year-old self-published author and entrepreneur, relocated from Oakley, California, to Austin with her son in 2022.
She left California seeking a more favorable political climate and a better chance at achieving the American dream. However, after two and a half years in Texas, she had to return when her mother's health declined.
"I had a hope of moving my mother to Texas, but that wasn't going to be possible," Wilkerson told BI in September. "It was better for me to come back to California. Having said that, I still want to go back."
Dannielle Price, 47, moved from Riverside, California, to Texas for the second time earlier this year.
She moved to Henderson, Texas, with her daughters in 2021, hoping to buy a home. However, due to her children's struggles to adjust and the harsh summer heat, they returned to California just months after settling in Texas.
After facing challenges in finding suitable housing in California, Price decided to give Texas another chance this year, bringing her children and co-parent, Eiman Monam, 45, with her.
Despite settling into an apartment in Tyler, the family still feels that Texas isn't the right fit for them.
"We are definitely not planning to stay in Texas. We just want to get back home to California once our lease is up in May," Price said. "We'd rather deal with the high cost of living and have the convenience. It's home."