A major high-tax blue state has seen a significant population loss due to domestic out-migration over the last five years, new research found.
Massachusetts recorded a net loss of about 182,000 residents to domestic out-migration from April 2020 to July 2025, according to an analysis of the state’s workforce by the Pioneer Institute. The free market think tank noted the population decline is equivalent to losing roughly one and half Cambridges in that period.
“With domestic out-migration levels growing prior to the pandemic and remaining significantly elevated beyond it, it is clear out-migration is a structural phenomenon that is here to stay and not just a byproduct of remote work and the pandemic,” the report explained.
“Those leaving tend to be younger, between the ages of 26 and 34, and the loss of their economic activity will affect the state for decades to come,” it continued. “Out-migration could lead to population loss and a reduction in the labor force in 2026 as immigration is expected to drop sharply.”
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The Pioneer Institute noted that the state’s labor force reached 3.9 million in 2024, which marked the largest year-over-year increase since 2018. The growth was mainly fueled by record international migration, which added 230,000 new residents from 2022 to 2024.
Private sector employment in Massachusetts remains below its 2019 levels, and private sector employment has declined by 18,000 jobs (or -0.55%) since January 2020.
Over that same period, U.S. private sector job growth topped 5% while fast-growing states like Florida, North Carolina and Texas all exceeded 10%, per the institute’s analysis.
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The statewide unemployment rate in Massachusetts has risen to 4.8% as of December, continuing a steady climb from a post-pandemic low of 3.2% in April 2023, the institute found.
Massachusetts’ unemployment rate remains above neighboring states like Connecticut (4.2%), Rhode Island (4.3%), Maine (3.2%), New Hampshire (3.1%) and Vermont (2.6%).
The Pioneer Institute noted the number of job openings in the state has also declined to 145,000 in November 2025, a decrease of 50% from the pandemic era peak of 338,000 in May 2022. Additionally, the unemployed-to-jobs ratio topped 1 for the first time since the pandemic in October 2024.
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Massachusetts retained its status as the most educated state in the U.S. as of 2024, with 53.4% of its population 25 and older holding a bachelor’s degree or higher, according to the report. The next most educated states identified in the report were Vermont (50.9%), New Jersey (47.8%) and New Hampshire (47%).
However, Massachusetts was among the 10 lowest states – 43rd – on the Tax Foundation’s 2026 State Tax Competitiveness Index.
“The states in the bottom 10 tend to have a number of issues in common: complex, nonneutral taxes with comparatively high rates,” the report said.
Job categories that saw the most growth from 2019 to 2024 in Massachusetts were heavily focused on life sciences, including biochemists (+218%), bioengineers (+182%) and biological technicians (+37%). Chemical equipment operators and tenders (+504%) and logisticians (+88%) also saw notable increases, as did family medicine physicians (+61%).
Among the occupations that saw the steepest declines were among those that could be subject to automation and artificial intelligence, including clerks (-30%), secretaries (-29%), cashiers (-20%) and customer service representatives (-17%).
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