• cCalifornia has seen a population decline of more than 1% since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, with an estimated 500,000 people leaving the state
• San Francisco and Lassen counties have experienced the largest population declines, at 7.1% and 7.5% respectively 
•  19 of California's 58 counties saw population growth during this period of April 2020 to July 2022 but they were mainly inland counties with lower housing costs

California has seen a population decline of more than 1 percent since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, with an estimated 500,000 people leaving the state between April 2020 and July 2022

California has seen a population decline of more than 1 percent since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, with an estimated 500,000 people leaving between April 2020 and July 2022. 

In the state where annual wildfires and treacherous mudslides threaten homes, the population dipped by slightly more than 508,000 since 2020. 

San Francisco and Lassen counties experienced the largest population declines, at 7.1 percent and 7.5 percent respectively