ILLINOIS – New data from U-Haul’s 2024 Growth Index report reveals a familiar trend for Illinois: It remains among the top states for outbound movers using U-Haul.

U-Haul’s annual Growth Index, released last week, ranks states based on net gain or loss of one-way U-Haul trucks arriving versus departing for a specific calendar year.

This year’s index ranked Illinois 45th among 50 U.S. states, a modest improvement from 48th last year. U-Haul also found Illinois to have an arrival percentage of 49.3%, the 11th lowest such rate of all U.S. states.

The index is compiled from more than 2.5 million one-way U-Haul truck transactions each year across the United States and Canada.

“State-to-state transactions from the past year reaffirm customer tendencies that have been pronounced for some time,” stated John Taylor, U-Haul International president. “Out-migration remains prevalent for a number of markets across the Northeast, Midwest and West Coast.”

On the 2024 growth index, South Carolina ranked highest, while California finished last for the fifth consecutive year.

As for Illinois, ongoing population challenges have been prevalent for quite some time. Recent Census reports estimate the state of Illinois’ population has declined by around 260,000 people since the start of the decades.