Is West Virginia gaining or losing people?

Gaining. In 2022–23, 3,137 more people moved to West Virginia from other states than moved away.

See where they came from ↓
Moved in
36,521
people
Moved out
33,384
people
Net change
+3,137 people
In households (tax returns): 20,894 in, 20,015 out, +879 net

Where are people moving to West Virginia from?

People, 2022–23

  1. Virginia6,733
  2. Ohio4,699
  3. Maryland4,317
  4. Pennsylvania3,254
  5. Florida2,761
  6. North Carolina1,873

Where are people from West Virginia moving?

People, 2022–23

  1. Ohio5,442
  2. Virginia4,520
  3. Pennsylvania3,063
  4. Maryland2,664
  5. Florida2,608
  6. North Carolina2,470
Every state, in full ↓

Where West Virginia's newcomers came from across states

Blue lines show arrivals · thicker line = more people

Biggest net gain: Virginia (+2,213 people). Biggest net loss: Ohio (−743).

Is this new?

West Virginia has gained households from moves every year since 2020–21, after seven years of losses.

Net migration · households (tax returns)
13–1414–1515–1616–1717–1818–1919–2020–2121–22+87922–23†††
Net migration of West Virginia (Net migration · households (tax returns))
YearValue
2013–14−2,257
2014–15 †−2,091
2015–16−3,586
2016–17 †−4,791
2017–18−2,783
2018–19−2,942
2019–20−491
2020–21+682
2021–22+464
2022–23 †+879

The IRS changed its processing in 2014–15, 2016–17 and 2022–23. Compare years between the dotted lines.

Who's moving, by income?

Arriving households$58.5k avg
Leaving households$60.5k avg

Average adjusted gross income reported on the second-year tax return. It may have been earned before the move or in more than one location.

Not counted above

Moved within West Virginia
30,667 people
Arrived from abroad
227 people
Left for abroad
258 people

Net change only counts moves between states.

Which West Virginia counties are gaining?

Barbour County: +58 peopleBerkeley County: +2,317 peopleBoone County: −43 peopleBraxton County: +1 peopleBrooke County: −63 peopleCabell County: −90 peopleCalhoun County: −49 peopleClay County: +32 peopleDoddridge County: −28 peopleFayette County: +9 peopleGilmer County: −76 peopleGrant County: +17 peopleGreenbrier County: −72 peopleHampshire County: +326 peopleHancock County: +151 peopleHardy County: +132 peopleHarrison County: +233 peopleJackson County: +61 peopleJefferson County: +979 peopleKanawha County: −450 peopleLewis County: +2 peopleLincoln County: −121 peopleLogan County: +26 peopleMcDowell County: −96 peopleMarion County: +154 peopleMarshall County: −119 peopleMason County: +20 peopleMercer County: −283 peopleMineral County: +34 peopleMingo County: −111 peopleMonongalia County: −193 peopleMonroe County: +90 peopleMorgan County: +279 peopleNicholas County: −14 peopleOhio County: −119 peoplePendleton County: −70 peoplePleasants County: −111 peoplePocahontas County: +30 peoplePreston County: +57 peoplePutnam County: +9 peopleRaleigh County: −13 peopleRandolph County: +48 peopleRitchie County: −81 peopleRoane County: −3 peopleSummers County: +68 peopleTaylor County: +47 peopleTucker County: +36 peopleTyler County: −85 peopleUpshur County: −85 peopleWayne County: +74 peopleWebster County: −22 peopleWetzel County: +33 peopleWirt County: −21 peopleWood County: +4 peopleWyoming County: −40 people

Net people, 2022–23, including moves within the state.

  1. ≤ −5k
  2. −5k to −1k
  3. −1k to −100
  4. −100 to +100
  5. +100 to +1k
  6. +1k to +5k
  7. ≥ +5k
Withheld

Growing most

  1. Berkeley County+2,317
  2. Jefferson County+979
  3. Hampshire County+326
  4. Morgan County+279
  5. Harrison County+233
  6. Marion County+154

Losing most

  1. Kanawha County−450
  2. Mercer County−283
  3. Monongalia County−193
  4. Lincoln County−121
  5. Ohio County−119
  6. Marshall County−119

Every state, in full

Moves between West Virginia and each state, 2022–23. Tap a column to sort.

Net trendhouseholds, 13–14 → 22–23, † breaks
Virginia6,733 in4,520 out+2,213$67.5k$56.8k
Ohio4,699 in5,442 out−743$45.3k$50.2k
Maryland4,317 in2,664 out+1,653$62.9k$53.8k
Pennsylvania3,254 in3,063 out+191$59.7k$58.9k
Florida2,761 in2,608 out+153$53.8k$90.0k
North Carolina1,873 in2,470 out−597$49.6k$62.8k
Kentucky1,372 in1,668 out−296$44.2k$51.6k
Texas1,172 in1,253 out−81$64.7k$72.1k
South Carolina937 in1,458 out−521$54.7k$73.0k
California847 in523 out+324$67.5k$70.0k

Small charts: net households, 13–14 → 22–23, outlined bars = † years.

All counties in West Virginia

Counties and county equivalents, including historical geographies.

Cite this page

Moved Where. “Is West Virginia gaining or losing people?” movedwhere.com/state/west-virginia. Data: IRS Statistics of Income migration data, 2022–23.

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Common questions

How many people moved to West Virginia in 2022–23?

36,521 people moved to West Virginia from other states, and 33,384 left for other states.

Where do most people moving to West Virginia come from?

In 2022–23, the most came from Virginia (6,733 people), Ohio (4,699 people), Maryland (4,317 people).

Where does this data come from?

From the IRS Statistics of Income, U.S. Population Migration Data. State migration is counted when matched tax returns filed in 2022 and 2023 show addresses in different states. A household is one tax return; people counts everyone on it. Non-filers and unmatched returns are excluded. Domestic net migration is not total population change.

Why are there no “vs last year” changes?

The IRS changed how it processed this data in 2014–15, 2016–17 and 2022–23, so a change from one year to the next can reflect the method rather than real moves. We show levels, rankings and 10-year trends instead.