2023 Study: Where Americans Are Moving Abroad Post-Pandemic

Two women looking over an international map

When we last covered the topic of Americans moving abroad in late 2022, the interest in leaving the country was the highest it’s been since the Presidential Elections in 2016.

This year, despite a 30% reduction in moving-abroad-related Google searches, American moves outside of the country don’t seem to be slowing down. In fact, more Americans moved to the UK, Mexico, and Canada so far in 2023 than at this time last year.

In this year’s study, we chart the updated numbers of Americans moving abroad, look at top destinations overall, and highlight the fastest-growing areas in recent years.

Last updated: December 5 2023•5 min read
Volodymyr Kupriyanov
Written byVolodymyr Kupriyanov

Key Takeaways

  • The UK is the #1 destination for moving abroad (~21,900 moves), ahead of Mexico (19,620 moves).
  • Compared to the same period last year, 30% more Americans moved to the UK in the first six months of 2023
  • Canada welcomed 10% more Americans as new residents in the first six months of 2023 than at this time last year, according to official figures
  • 22% more Americans moved to European countries in 2022 (100,320) than in 2021
  • Fewer Americans are interested in moving abroad in 2023, as the number of relevant Google searches is down 30% year-over-year
Volodymyr Kupriyanov
Author

Volodymyr Kupriyanov

Volodymyr Kupriyanov (AKA "VK") is a data journalist based in Copenhagen, Denmark. He specializes in data-driven storytelling, leveraging data to create compelling, insightful stories. His stories for HireAHelper have been featured in hundreds of publications, including Business Insider, The New York Times, and Bloomberg. When not visualizing and analyzing numbers, he enjoys rock climbing, playing frisbee with his dog, and discovering new places to eat.

Less Googling, More Moving: Moves to Top Destinations Hold Steady as Search Interest Declines

In the first nine months of 2023, there were around 59,000 monthly Google searches in the United States for “moving abroad” or "moving to <insert country>".

Impressive as that number is, it’s 30% less than in 2022 when the average number of monthly searches for moving abroad and related keywords was 84,020. This includes a 53% reduction in searches for “moving to Canada”, and an 81% year-over-year drop in searches for “moving to Spain”.

Only a handful of countries saw a higher search interest in 2023. Searches for moving to the Middle Eastern countries of Bahrain (+50%) and Saudi Arabia (+43%) spiked the highest, while Belgium (+18%) and South Africa (+15%) saw a moderate increase in relocation interest.

But while the search interest in moving abroad is waning, the number of U.S. citizens moving to some of the top destination countries in 2023 is increasing year-over-year.

The United Kingdom, for example, had over 11,500 Americans move there from January through June 2023, about 30% more than in the first six months of 2022. The number of Americans who moved to Canada (+10%) and Mexico (+1%) in the first eight months of 2023 is higher than in the same period last year.

Steady Flow: American Moves Abroad Hit Five-Year High in 2022

According to official statistics, almost 160,000 U.S. citizens relocated to one of 40 different countries for work, study, or family reasons in 2022. Which is more Americans leaving the country than any year since 2017.

The most popular destinations for Americans moving abroad include countries such as Mexico, Canada, the UK, all the countries of the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Costa Rica, and Israel.

2022’s figure is not only the highest number going back five years, but it also represents a 16% increase in the number of moves abroad compared to 2021. In fairness, the years 2020 and 2021 were significantly affected by the pandemic, resulting in a significant decrease in moves abroad and travel in general.

Taken together, over 821,000 U.S. citizens relocated to one of these 40 countries since 2017.

Move Over, Canada: Top Destinations for American Moves Abroad in 2022

If Americans are leaving the country in record numbers, where are they going? Traditionally, the top destinations have been America's neighbors Canada and Mexico, and the United Kingdom, with whom the U.S. has significant historical ties.

In 2022, however, the top destinations looked different. Not only has the UK overtaken Mexico as the top destination overall, but Canada received fewer U.S. citizens as new residents (10,415) than France (12,220), Spain (11,156), and Germany (10,510).

As Canada drops a few places in the destinations ranking, Japan is on its way up. Having been closed for entry due to the COVID-19 pandemic longer than most countries, it only properly reopened in 2022 to see 6,642 U.S. citizens relocate there — more than twice as many moves than in 2021 (2,983).

Surf's Up: Fastest-Growing Destinations for Americans Leaving the U.S.

Japan may have recorded a significant bump in the number of U.S. citizens relocating there, but it's actually a return to normal numbers after the steep drop caused by COVID.

Portugal has seen the greatest influx of moves (+195%) from the United States compared to before the pandemic. Known for being one of the sunniest countries in the world, with a relatively low cost of living, and beautiful beaches, it became a top destination for digital nomads during the pandemic years.

New Zealand — another country with world-renowned beaches and scenery — is the second fastest-growing destination for Americans moving abroad, with 146% taking residence there in 2022, compared to 2019.

On the other hand, countries such as Brazil (-50%), Ireland (-33%), and South Korea (-31%) saw the number of Americans moving decline compared to pre-pandemic levels.

Why We Leave: Some Reasons Behind Americans Moving Abroad

While we don’t have hard data on the specific reasons why Americans decide to leave the United States, there are a few factors we can pinpoint.

According to a recent Washington Post analysis, one reason for the rise of Americans moving to Mexico is that ethnic Mexicans (who were born in the U.S. and have U.S. citizenship) decide to move to Mexico with family. Deportations, unfortunately, also play a part.

The same analysis picks out “a sense of adventure” as one of the forces driving Americans to move abroad, such as wanting to work or study somewhere completely different. More pragmatic reasons include lower cost of living, lower taxation, and better quality of life, as CNN’s reporting suggests.

There is some anecdotal evidence that the rise of remote work and the digital nomad movement is responsible for some Americans leaving the U.S., but it’s difficult to estimate how permanent those moves are and how many people are making them.

Sources and Methodology

Only moves with stated reasons indicating a certain degree of permanence were analyzed, including work, study, and family. Military moves were excluded, as were the moves for temporary purposes, such as temporary business and tourism.
Sources for each country:
The number of monthly searches was taken from Google Ads API as the total average monthly search volume for keywords of the type “moving to <insert country>” (e.g., “moving to Canada”, “moving to Mexico” and “moving abroad”.
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