Maricopa County and the Phoenix metro were again tops in growth during 2021, which continues a trend the region has seen during the past several years.

The growth comes as the vast majority of counties in the U.S. experienced natural population declines with more deaths than births, but also one where many gained population through migration.

That is according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau, which found Maricopa County was tops in growth while 73% of counties saw a natural decrease in population. At the same time, 65.6% of counties experienced increased net migration.

Maricopa County added 46,866 people from net migration during 2021, the Census Bureau said. The county overall grew by 58,246 people.

The Phoenix metro also was tops in growth when it came to positive net migration, adding 66,850 people through domestic net migration. In overall growth, Phoenix added 78,220 people, second only to the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

“The patterns we’ve observed in domestic migration shifted in 2021,” said Dr. Christine Hartley, assistant division chief for estimates and projections in the Census Bureau’s Population Division, in a press release. “Even though over time we’ve seen a higher number of counties with natural decrease and net international migration continuing to decline, in the past year, the contribution of domestic migration counteracted these trends so there were actually more counties growing than losing population.”

The decline in most counties’ natural population was a double hit from the COVID-19 pandemic that featured fewer births and increased deaths, according to the Census Bureau.

Phoenix wasn’t alone as a region in terms of net population growth, with 65% of metro areas growing between 2020 and 2021.

Maricopa County is the fourth-largest county by population in the U.S., trailing only Los Angeles County in California, Cook County in Illinois and Harris County in Texas.

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