COLUMBUS – The population of the seven-county region surrounding Columbus gained new residents during the COVID-19 pandemic, even though its most populous county suffered a net loss in population.
Franklin County’s population went on a bit of a roller-coaster ride during the pandemic, falling by 7,000 residents from April of 2020 to July of 2021, but regaining 4,000 by July 1 of last year, according to county-by-county population estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
All of the counties in central Ohio, with the exception of Franklin and Madison counties, gained population during the 27-month period, resulting in a net gain of just over 26,000 residents.
Delaware County’s growth continued unabated with the county picking up 12,000 new residents.
Central Ohio population changes
April 1, 2020 July 1, 2022
- Delaware 214,170 226,296
- Fairfield 158,918 162,898
- Franklin 1,323,800 1,321,820
- Licking 178,509 181,359
- Madison 43,847 43,540
- Pickaway 58,537 60,023
- Union 62,790 66,898
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
Several large, urban U.S. counties that either gained residents or stemmed the rate of declines between July 2021 and July 2022 compared with a year earlier.
Population change is driven by migration, both within U.S. borders as people move around, and international trends as people arrive from abroad. It also depends on whether births outpace deaths, or vice versa.
All the population estimates rely on birth, death and migration data.