You're Not Crazy: The Bay Area Is Getting Way More Crowded

U.S. Domestic Migrations From 2013 to 2014

You’ve been thinking for a while that it’s getting crowded around these parts — a lot more crowded. On the freeways. On BART. Even at your hot yoga/vegan sushi takeout place.

And now, the U.S. Census Bureau confirms you’re not crazy — the Bay Area’s population is growing rapidly, largely driven by people flocking here from all over the United States.

The agency published new population numbers today that show the estimated population of our nine-county region increasing by about 100,000 between July 1, 2013, and July 1, 2014, from 7,461,992 to 7,561,755 — or about 1.3 percent.

The fastest-growing Bay Area county, in both absolute numbers and percentage? Alameda, which saw a gain of more than 27,000 people, or about 1.75 percent. The two slowest-growing counties were Napa and Marin, with gains under 1 percent.

San Francisco, whose population continues to break its previous highs, increased from 841,138 to 852,469, or about 1.2 percent.

The Census Bureau’s report also shows that especially in the central Bay Area — the Metropolitan Statistical Area (or MSA) consisting of Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Contra Costa and Alameda counties — a steady influx of new migrants from across California and the United States is driving the population growth. The population increased by about 43,000 people. About two-thirds of that growth was due to new arrivals between mid-2013 and mid-2014.

In fact, the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward MSA had a higher net domestic in-migration — the difference between people arriving in the area and those moving away — than any other metro area in the state and one of the highest in the nation.

The South Bay — an MSA defined as Santa Clara and San Benito counties — saw a net domestic in-migration of more than 10,000 new arrivals. The North Bay MSAs, Santa Rosa and Vallejo-Fairfield, reported about 3,600 and 3,800 respectively.