Charleston migration, mapped
In 2022–23, 5,621 people moved into the Charleston metro and 6,082 moved out, a net of −461. Yellow arcs are people arriving, blue arcs are people leaving. Hover a dot to see the corridor, or click through to compare.
The map couldn’t load. The numbers below still tell the story.
† IRS methodology change in this year’s files (see methodology)
What the flows say
- Biggest published corridors: Huntington, WV-KY-OH leads both directions, with 1,180 people in and 1,337 out in 2022–23. The listed corridors cover about 45–46% of all flows; the totals count everyone.
- Trend: net outflow has eased over the last three years, from −1,168 in 2020–21 to −461 in 2022–23†.
Population · 2025
200,170
▼ 0.7% year over year · shrinking
Peak population · 2000
235,518
15.0% below the 2000 peak
Why the population is changing
- Growth driver: the population shrank in 2025: domestic migration −206, births minus deaths −1,272, international migration +73.
- Peak population: the high-water mark was 235,518 in 2000. The 2025 estimate of 200,170 is 15.0% below that.
Net income flow · 2022–23
−$62M
▼ $160M arrived · $222M left
Avg household income · movers
$48k in · $61k out
leavers out-earn arrivals by 27%
Charleston wealth migration
- Money moved: households moving into the Charleston metro in 2022–23 reported $160M in income (AGI). Households leaving took $222M with them, a net loss of $62M.
- Income gap: the average household moving in reported $48k of income, vs $61k for leavers. Leavers out-earn arrivals by 27%.
About the data
Corridors are IRS county-to-county migration flows added up into metro areas (2023 Census metro definitions; exemptions ≈ people). "Rest of" entries cover a state's counties outside any featured metro. The IRS hides corridors with fewer than 20 returns, so the lists here cover about 46% of inbound and 45% of outbound movers in 2022–23. The in, out, and net totals count everyone. Income figures are the total income (AGI) movers reported, from the complete county totals. Dollars are not adjusted for inflation, and household averages divide by the number of returns. Population figures are Census Bureau estimates; the peak covers records since 2000. Years marked † had a change in how the IRS built the files. Full details on the methodology page.
Download this data (CSV), free to use with attribution.
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