By Jim Cline and Kate Kremer
In our last newsletter, we announced the release of the 2023 OFM Population Report. In this article, we discuss some of the highlights from the OFM data.
These 2023 highlights are taken from the “ofm_april1_population_change_and_rank.xlxs” 2023 table.
The most significant increases in population seem to be occurring in and around the Central Puget Sound region. King and Snohomish counties had 14 of the 25 cities with the highest population increases in 2023. There are only four Eastern Washington cities that made this list. Spokane was the only Eastern Washington city that was in the top 10.
| City | County | 2022-2023 Numeric Change in Population |
| Seattle | King | 16,700 |
| Kirkland | King | 3,350 |
| Redmond | King | 2,220 |
| Bellingham | Whatcom | 2,050 |
| Lynnwood | Snohomish | 2,050 |
| Vancouver | Clark | 2,000 |
| Spokane | Spokane | 1,800 |
| Mountlake Terrace | Snohomish | 1,740 |
| Tacoma | Pierce | 1,600 |
| Ridgefield | Clark | 1,540 |
| Marysville | Snohomish | 1,400 |
| Lacey | Thurston | 1,250 |
| Kent | King | 1,200 |
| Kennewick | Benton | 1,150 |
| Pasco | Franklin | 1,100 |
| Richland | Benton | 1,100 |
| Port Orchard | Kitsap | 1,080 |
| Everett | Snohomish | 900 |
| Monroe | Snohomish | 890 |
| Shoreline | King | 800 |
| Tumwater | Thurston | 740 |
| Black Diamond | King | 735 |
| Bellevue | King | 700 |
| Bothell | King/Snohomish | 610 |
| Lake Stevens | Snohomish | 560 |
Smaller cities, including some in Eastern Washington, saw some of the larger percentage increases in their population in 2023. But a few cities including Gig Harbor, Monroe, Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace saw over 4% growth with Mountlake Terrace at 7.9% increase. These larger increases are most likely the result of annexations. Below is a list of the 25 cities with the highest percentage population increase for 2023.
| City | County | 2022-2023 Percentage Change in Population |
| Black Diamond | King | 11.96 |
| Ridgefield | Clark | 11.29 |
| Rock Island | Douglas | 10.18 |
| Winlock | Lewis | 8.26 |
| George | Grant | 7.93 |
| Mountlake Terrace | Snohomish | 7.88 |
| Sultan | Snohomish | 7.51 |
| Port Orchard | Kitsap | 6.59 |
| Lamont | Whitman | 6.25 |
| Deer Park | Spokane | 5.46 |
| Lynnwood | Snohomish | 5.29 |
| Rockford | Spokane | 4.59 |
| Monroe | Snohomish | 4.52 |
| Buckley | Pierce | 4.52 |
| Winthrop | Okanogan | 4.51 |
| Gig Harbor | Pierce | 4.15 |
| Prosser | Benton | 4.04 |
| South Prairie | Pierce | 4.03 |
| Sumas | Whatcom | 4.02 |
| Warden | Grant | 3.96 |
| McCleary | Grays Harbor | 3.92 |
| Twisp | Okanogan | 3.87 |
| Kirkland | King | 3.58 |
| Ocean Shores | Grays Harbor | 3.07 |
| Carnation | King | 3.01 |
Not all cities grew. The 2023 population estimates show that Bremerton lost 580 and SeaTac lost 170. 77 cities either lost population or were estimated to have zero population growth in 2023.
Overall across the State incorporated cities grew at 1.29% which is lower than the 1.55% in 2022 but is much higher than the low population growth of 0.8% in 2021.
Cities with population increases due to annexation of over 100 people in 2022 or 2023 are listed below:
| City | County | Total 2021-2022 Percentage Change in Population¹ | Total 2022-2023 Percentage Change in Population | 2021-2022 Population Change Due to Annexation | 2022-2023 Population Change Due to Annexation |
| Lacey | Thurston | 6.07 | 2.15 | 2,513 | 94 |
| Lake Stevens | Snohomish | 10.00 | 1.38 | 3,075 | 3 |
| Pasco | Franklin | 1.88 | 1.37 | 10 | 210 |
| Monroe | Snohomish | -1.01 | 4.52 | 0 | 660 |
| Tumwater | Thurston | 1.19 | 2.81 | 0 | 439 |
Population estimates for the 39 Washington counties were also released this month. Below are the 10 Counties with largest population gain in 2023:
| County | 2022-2023 Numeric Change in Population |
| King | 30,100 |
| Snohomish | 12,500 |
| Pierce | 8,900 |
| Clark | 6,500 |
| Whatcom | 4,150 |
| Spokane | 3,900 |
| Benton | 3,200 |
| Thurston | 2,900 |
| Kitsap | 2,300 |
| Grant | 1,500 |
The 10 Counties with largest percentage population gain in 2023 are listed below.
| County | 2022-2023 Percentage Change in Population |
| Whatcom | 1.79 |
| Benton | 1.51 |
| Snohomish | 1.48 |
| Grant | 1.47 |
| Franklin | 1.35 |
| King | 1.30 |
| Clark | 1.25 |
| Mason | 1.21 |
| Douglas | 1.14 |
| San Juan | 1.10 |
There were no counties that lost population but there were three that had no increase in 2023: Columbia, Ferry and Garfield counties.
Cline and Associates also collects county unincorporated population data. Annual percentage increases range from 0% -1.5%. The Statewide percentage change in unincorporated area population was 0.8% in 2021, 0.7% in 2022 and 0.76% in 2023. The 10 counties with the highest unincorporated population are listed below:
| County | 2023 Unincorporated Population |
| Pierce | 446,150 |
| Snohomish | 374,435 |
| King | 249,060 |
| Clark | 240,155 |
| Kitsap | 183,500 |
| Spokane | 163,390 |
| Thurston | 143,980 |
| Whatcom | 94,175 |
| Yakima | 89,155 |
| Island | 60,210 |
