Population map shows oldest, youngest US states

A map of the youngest and oldest states in the country shows Utah as having the youngest population.

The demographic map, created by Newsweek using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, shows that Utah residents have a median age of 32.1 years old, which is younger than the median age of any other state in the union.

Although Utah is the youngest state, a recent report by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah found that the state’s population age is gradually increasing because of declining fertility rates and the aging of the adult population, trends also seen on the national level.

Texas, the second-youngest state, has a median age of 35.6, and 13.4 percent of its population is aged 65 and over. Alaska is the third-youngest state, with a median age of 35.9.

With a median age of 45.1, Maine is the oldest state in the country, the Census Bureau data shows.

Utah’s youth can be explained by the state’s high birth rate. Mormons make up 42 percent of the population of Utah, a recent study published in the Journal of Religion and Demography found, and areas with high concentrations of Latter-day Saints historically have higher birth rates and larger household sizes.

However, data also shows that in the past 40 years, the percentage of state residents over 65 years of age has grown by a significant margin. In 1980, fewer than 8 percent of Utah residents were over the age of 65. In 2020, that figure had risen to almost 12 percent. By the year 2060, Utah’s retirement-age population is expected to be more than 20 percent, the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute reported.

In Maine, more than 22 percent of the population is aged 65 and over. Fewer jobs, lower wages and a lack of affordable housing mean younger people are seeking opportunities elsewhere in the country.

Over the past 20 years, the number of Mainers in the workforce has increased by 6 percent, which is significantly below the national workforce growth of 20 percent, said a 2023 report by the Maine Center for Economic Policy. The Maine Department of Labor estimates that over the next decade, the state’s workforce will decrease by tens of thousands of people compared to pre-pandemic levels.

Overall, northwestern states have the oldest populations, the Census Bureau data shows. Neighboring New Hampshire has a median age of 43.3. Vermont, the third-oldest state, has a median age of 43.2, and 21.6 percent of its population is 65 and over.

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