Credit Scores of the Fastest-Growing Mid-Sized Cities in the U.S.

20 Mid-Sized Cities Added 50,000 or More Residents Since 2016

A number of mid-sized (and formerly small) cities have grown by leaps in just a few years, according to Census data. In nearly half the cities included in this analysis, roughly 1 in 10 residents are newbies to the area.

Below are the 20 mid-sized U.S. cities, as measured by metropolitan statistical area, that added 50,000 to 100,000 residents since 2016. Most are still between 500,000 and 1 million in population in 2022. The sudden surge of new residents is likely to both enrich and strain fast-growing municipalities looking to adapt to the new revenue as well as increased public services.

Boom Towns: The Fastest-Growing Mid-Sized U.S. Cities

Boom Towns: The Fastest-Growing Mid-Sized U.S. Cities

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Among the findings:

• Many new residents of Boom Towns aren't from that far away. Census data suggest that many new residents of these cities are from nearby smaller metros within the same state. Contrast this with many fast-growing large cities, like Boise, Idaho, and Atlanta, which are seeing an influx of new residents from Los Angeles and New York City metros, respectively.
• Nearly all the fastest-growing Boom Towns are in the Southern and Western regions. Only two cities—Des Moines, Iowa, and Omaha, Nebraska—are outside the Southern or Western region of the U.S. Otherwise, they are most prevalent in Florida, which boasts four of the fastest-growing mid-sized metros: Cape Coral, Deltona, Palm Bay and Port St. Lucie.

Boom Towns, Booming Credit Scores

Since 2016, Boom Towns have increased their average FICO^® Scores^☉ by an average of 21 points. That's greater than the nationwide average over that same period, where scores increased by an average of 15 points, from 699 in 2016 to 714 in 2022.

Average FICO^® Score Change Since 2016 by City

Source: Experian

All 20 Boom Towns improved their FICO^® Scores by at least 15 points, which was at least as much as the nation as a whole since 2016. The two South Carolina cities, Myrtle Beach and Greenville, saw average FICO^® Scores improve by more than 30 points.

Boom Towns Are Local Magnets

In nearly all cases, most of the fast-growing mid-sized cities are gaining their residents from areas from within the same state. However, many of these mid-sized cities are receiving new residents from larger nearby cities, many of which are also rapidly growing. The difference is that the larger cities with rapid growth receive more new residents from out of state. These large booming cities are both growing rapidly, but also supply smaller boom towns with their new residents.

Source: Experian, U.S. Census Bureau

As a consequence, many Boom Cities—like Charlotte, North Carolina; Orlando, Florida; and Seattle—are keeping movers happy. Since 2016, these cities have both welcomed more than 100,000 new residents from out of state, as well as supplied fast-growing nearby metros with their new residents.

Boom Towns Show Economic Resilience Before and After the Pandemic

Although Experian looked at population and credit score data from both before and after the economically disruptive pandemic, there's more evidence that these Boom Towns were booming well before 2020.

Nearly all of the 20 Boom Towns identified by Experian were also considered examples of economically "resilient" metros, according to a recent Brookings Institution study. In other words, these are metros that exhibited above-average economic growth both prior to and following the pandemic in 2020. So although some new residents of these Boom Towns may have arrived recently, economic data from these metros indicate above-average growth in local GDP, wages and employment already existed in these Boom Towns well before 2020.