Americans Are Moving to This Underrated Southern City in 2025
- Conway, South Carolina, topped MoveBuddha’s report on the most popular domestic relocation destination so far in 2025.
- The Palmetto State is also the most sought-after state to move to this year, accounting for over 22 percent of inbound searches.
- New Jersey, California, and New York have received the highest number of outbound inquiries, indicating that these states are more likely to lose residents in the future.
Americans are on the move, and they are searching for affordability, space, and a better work-life balance.
Relocation company MoveBuddha has released its latest 2025 Moving Trends Report, which analyzed over 55,000 searches on its website to determine where people are planning to move this year so far.
The most popular domestic destination for relocation in the first six months of 2025 is Conway, South Carolina, with four times as many people seeking to move in compared to those wanting to move out. The city surpasses its neighbor, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, which topped the list in the first quarter of the year. Conway, home to 28,000 full-time residents, offers the appeal of a vibrant community without the high housing costs and congestion associated with larger cities.
South Carolina is the most popular state to move to so far, accounting for the highest volume of inbound searches—or over 22 percent. The Southeast has a strong showing in the top ten, with North Carolina and Tennessee seeing spikes in inbound demand.
“There’s been some broadening in migration interest, with lesser-known and previously overlooked destinations gaining ground as formerly popular locations reach saturation and cost limits,” the report stated. “This year, smaller locations are becoming more popular, with huge demand and few residents calling it quits. That means movers are very interested in just a handful of popular locales, and cities that haven’t grown in popularity this year, even if they’re maintaining strong migration interest, are falling behind.”
At the other end of the spectrum, New Jersey, California, and New York have seen many more inquiries for outbound moves, meaning those states stand to lose residents rather than gain. “These states, in addition to being densely populated, face affordability challenges in an America struggling with persistent inflation and pay that hasn’t kept up,” MoveBuddha noted.
The communities of West Des Moines, Iowa, as well as El Cajon and Palmdale, both in California, are the top “exit cities,” as the company called them.
See the full report at movebuddha.com.
Source link