California vs Montana: which way are people moving?

Name: California vs Montana: which way are people moving?
Creator: Moved Where

Toward Montana. In 2022–23, 2,649 more people moved from California to Montana than the other way.

Compare

with

Year

Montana → California2,046 people

Arrivals' income: $71.2k avg income reported on the second-year tax return

California → Montana4,695 people

Leavers' income: $108.9k avg income reported on the second-year tax return

More newcomers came to Montana from California than from any other state. 6,741 people moved between the two, one way or the other.

Has it always been this way?

Yes. More households have moved to Montana than to California every year since 2013–14.

Net between the two · households (tax returns)

Net moves between California and Montana (Net between the two · households (tax returns))
Year	Value
2013–14	−559
2014–15 †	−399
2015–16	−944
2016–17 †	−1,385
2017–18	−1,039
2018–19	−1,074
2019–20	−2,086
2020–21	−2,414
2021–22	−2,093
2022–23 †	−1,479

IRS processing changes in 2014–15, 2016–17 and 2022–23.

The two states overall

California

Net change, all states: −200,547
Moved in · moved out: 389,700 · 590,247
Arrivals' income · leavers' income (reported on the second-year tax return): $95.5k · $102.1k

California page →

Montana

Net change, all states: +5,332
Moved in · moved out: 35,226 · 29,894
Arrivals' income · leavers' income (reported on the second-year tax return): $79.1k · $65.2k

Montana page →

People, 2022–23, moves between states.

Every year, in full

Moves between Montana and California, 2013–14 to 2022–23. Tap a column to sort.

Swipe for households and income →


	People			Households		Avg income per household (income reported on the second-year tax return)
2013–14	1,986	3,240	−1,254	1,189	1,748	$41.8k	$54.5k
2014–15 †	1,459	2,244	−785	876	1,275	$66.0k	$88.6k
2015–16	1,742	3,658	−1,916	1,072	2,016	$44.9k	$82.4k
2016–17 †	2,543	5,488	−2,945	1,542	2,927	$52.0k	$86.1k
2017–18	2,032	4,172	−2,140	1,267	2,306	$32.0k	$76.4k
2018–19	1,933	4,108	−2,175	1,188	2,262	$58.4k	$90.7k
2019–20	1,874	6,079	−4,205	1,134	3,220	$62.2k	$136.6k
2020–21	1,750	6,563	−4,813	1,136	3,550	$56.5k	$168.7k
2021–22	1,841	5,878	−4,037	1,175	3,268	$78.5k	$166.2k
2022–23 †	2,046	4,695	−2,649	1,338	2,817	$71.2k	$108.9k

† Processing-break years. Read changes across a † row with care.

Cite this comparison

Moved Where. “California vs Montana: which way are people moving?” movedwhere.com/compare/california-vs-montana. Data: IRS Statistics of Income migration data, 2022–23.