Tennessee is the No. 3 growth state in America, according to 2021 transactional data compiled for the annual U-Haul Growth Index.
People coming to Tennessee in one-way U-Haul trucks increased 17% year-over-year, while departures increased 18% from 2020 as overall moving traffic surged. Despite a more substantial YOY rise in departures, arriving customers still accounted for about 50.4% of all one-way U-Haul traffic in Tennessee during 2021 to keep it a top-three state for netting do-it-yourself movers. After Tennessee was the nation’s leading growth state in 2020, it slips two spots behind Texas and Florida while remaining a prime destination.
Growth states are calculated by the net gain of one-way U-Haul trucks entering a state versus leaving that state in a calendar year. Migration trends data is compiled from well over 2 million one-way U-Haul truck customer transactions that occur annually.
“Tennessee is a very friendly state with a welcoming atmosphere,” said Jeff Porter, U-Haul Company of North Nashville president. “We’re pro-business and attract tons of new employers every year. I’ve noticed many people from California and other big states setting their sights on Tennessee. Nashville is consistently gaining new residents and the COVID era hasn’t slowed that.”
South Carolina and Arizona round out the top five growth states. It is the second year in a row that Texas, Florida and Tennessee comprise the top three growth states. California ranks 50th and Illinois 49th for the second consecutive year, indicating those states saw the largest net losses of one-way U-Haul trucks.
Tennessee’s top growth cities include Nashville, Johnson City, Murfreesboro and Maryville.
Other notable net-gain cities are Bristol, Mt. Juliet, Old Hickory, Brentwood, Knoxville, Columbia, Hermitage, Hendersonville, Ooltewah and La Vergne.
While U-Haul migration trends do not correlate directly to population or economic growth, the U-Haul Growth Index is an effective gauge of how well states are both attracting and maintaining residents.
Visit myuhaulstory.com to view more individual state reports, the top 25 U.S. growth cities and the top 25 Canadian growth cities.
U-Haul is the authority on migration trends thanks to its expansive network that blankets all 50 states and 10 provinces. The geographical coverage from more than 23,000 U-Haul truck- and trailer-sharing locations provides a comprehensive overview of where people are moving like no one else in the industry.
Independent small business owners interested in joining the U-Haul Dealer Network at no cost and earning commissions from rental transactions at their locations can visit uhaul.com/dealer to learn more and submit an information form.
2021 U-Haul growth states are as follows:
- Texas 2. Florida 3. Tennessee 4. South Carolina 5. Arizona 6. Indiana 7. Colorado 8. Maine 9. Idaho 10. New Mexico 11. South Dakota 12. Vermont 13. Wisconsin 14. Oregon 15. Washington 16. Alaska 17. Minnesota 18. Connecticut 19. North Carolina 20. Nebraska 21. Wyoming 22. Montana 23. Georgia 24. Ohio 25. New Hampshire 26. West Virginia 27. Iowa 28. Utah 29. Nevada 30. Delaware 31. Virginia 32. Rhode island 33. North Dakota 34. Maryland 35. Washington, D.C. 36. New Jersey 37. Mississippi 38. Kentucky 39. Missouri 40. Kansas 41. Arkansas 42. Michigan 43. Louisiana 44. Oklahoma 45. New York 46. Alabama 47. Massachusetts 48. Pennsylvania 49. Illinois 50. California
- Washington, D.C. is its own U-Haul market and is listed among growth states for migration trends purposes. Hawaii is excluded since state-to-state U-Haul truck moves do not occur.
