Geographic mobility has long been an important aspect of American life, directly affecting both people and geographic areas. At an individual level, moving has a number of potential impacts, such as the potential for expanding economic opportunity or raising residential satisfaction. Given the relative stability of current birth and death rates in the United States, the critical demographic factor for any area’s population growth or decline is the movement of people. From the national to the local level, residential mobility, domestic migration, and international migration are paramount to explaining population growth and decline. Finally, federal, state and local governments, as well as the private sector, need to understand where people move when planning needed services, facilities, and businesses.

This report looks at 5-year mobility data from Census 2000 and focuses on migration and mobility patterns for metropolitan areas and territory outside metropolitan areas (hereafter referred to as nonmetropolitan territory) in the United States. The first section addresses general mobility patterns for those living in metropolitan areas within central cities, those living in metropolitan areas outside central cities, and those living in nonmetropolitan territory. Section two examines migration patterns for nonmetropolitan residents, and the third section looks at migration patterns to and from metropolitan areas by size, and for the twenty largest metropolitan areas (metropolitan statistical areas [MSAs] and consolidated metropolitan statistical areas [CMSAs]).