Capital Region Has NY’s 2nd Fastest-Growing Population
Highlights
- The Capital Region was New York’s second fastest growing region in 2025.
- Saratoga County was the fifth fastest-growing county in New York.
- Albany County had the sixth largest annual population increase in New York.
- Saratoga County led the state for net domestic migration.
The Capital Region was New York’s second fastest-growing region in 2025, according to a Center for Economic Growth (CEG) analysis of new U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
Regional Performance
As of July 1, 2025, the eight-county Capital Region’s population was 1,117,438, up 0.3 percent (3,358) from a year earlier. Among New York’s 10 economic development regions, that was the second fastest growth rate, trailing the Hudson Valley at 0.5 percent. In terms of volume, the Capital Region had the state’s third largest annual gain, behind Long Island (3,916) and the Hudson Valley (13,285).
County Performance
In the Capital Region, the fastest-growing county was Saratoga County (0.6 percent), followed by Schenectady (0.52 percent) and Albany (0.48 percent) counties. Albany County had the region’s largest annual population increase (1,523), followed by Saratoga (1,509) and Schenectady (834) counties.
Movers from abroad drove the Capital Region’s annual population growth. The region’s net international migration total was 16,274, with Albany County accounting for 57.3 percent of that. Albany County’s annual net international migration of 1,572 was the second-largest in the state. Saratoga County led the state for movers from within the country, or net domestic migration, which increased over the year by 1,415.
Metro Area Performance
The five-county Albany-Schenectady-Troy metropolitan statistical area (MSA) had a population of 915,835 as of July 1, 2025. That was an increase of 0.5 percent (4,303) over the year. Among 49 metro areas in the Northeast, the Albany metro had the 12th fastest growth rate and the seventh largest annual population gain.
CEG Initiatives
CEG’s Summer Internship Engagement Program connects interns with other young professionals to discover what it’s like to live and work in the Capital Region through a series of engaging, community-focused events.
The 2025 program featured five experiences: Intern Night at the ValleyCats; a historic crime tour in Albany; a kayaking and paddleboarding outing in Saratoga Springs; a meetup at Jahnel Group’s headquarters in downtown Schenectady; and a headshot happy hour at Launchbox’s flexible warehouse space in Colonie.
Last year’s cohort included 142 participants—a 9% increase from the previous summer. Attendees represented 20 area companies, and approximately 40% came from outside the region, state, or country.
Supporting sponsors included Goldman Sachs Ayco, Northeast Shared Services, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, and Turner Construction, with Monaco Cooper Lamme & Carr, PLLC serving as a contributing sponsor.
If your business would like to promote this program to your interns this summer, please contact Andrea Thompson at andreat@ceg.org
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