Colorado got bumped from the top 10 states for domestic migration, dropping to No. 16 nationally last year, even as the state has become a destination for international migration.

That puts the Centennial State in the middle of the 30 states the Common Sense Institute (CSI) examined.

Colorado is capturing less of the domestic migration it once did and is slipping in births, but seeing gains from international migration — likely from the waves of immigrants Denver has received over the past two years.

“Colorado’s boom economy was built in large part on a booming population growth,” Kelly Caufied, executive director of CSI, said in a statement. “Colorado is no longer the destination it once was. It’s no longer a top 10 spot for movers.”

Founded in 2010, the institute is a nonprofit organization in Greenwood Village that conducts fiscal and economic research.

Over the past two years — when Denver welcomed nearly 43,000 immigrants, mostly from South and Central America — 22,344 individuals migrated internationally to the state.

That represents 52% of all the new arrivals since a bus load of 90 immigrants were dropped off to wander in the cold downtown in December 2022.

This also tracks with the number of plane, train and bus tickets Denver has purchased for immigrants to travel on to their final destination, which represents about half of the 42,911 immigrant arrivals.

“It’s gaining more people from international migration than from domestic migration,” Caufied said of Colorado.

CSI researchers’ analysis examined the latest U.S. Census data.

Colorado’s population increased by roughly 36,500 people.

The state’s population last year — according to the U.S. Census Bureau — was 4,877,610.

Among the findings:

• In the previous decade, Colorado ranked in the top 10 for domestic and live births, hitting the No. 2 spot in 2015, but dropped to No. 16 in 2023.

• More than half of movers nationally went to Florida, Texas or North Carolina. Just 8% chose Colorado.

• Colorado saw more Californians move into the state in 2023 than from anywhere else and nearly twice as many from the next-highest state, Texas.

• More Coloradans moved to Nevada followed by Oklahoma, Wyoming and Arkansas.

• The state gained more through migration than it did by births. The natural increase — which represents births minus deaths — was 17,399 people, or about 48% of growth.

“The implication here is that Colorado is not as attractive a destination as it used to be in the domestic U.S.,” said DJ Summers, CSI’s director of policy and research.

Summers added: “Almost two-thirds of our net migration was international as opposed to domestic.”

A spokesperson for Gov. Jared Polis said Colorado is an attractive destination for domestic migration.

“We have not reviewed the report but the reality is that Colorado remains a top destination for visitors and people looking for greater quality of life in our great state,” said Shelby Wieman. “More and more people want to live in Colorado which is why Gov. Polis has worked tirelessly to reduce housing costs, invest in public safety to make Colorado safer, save people money on healthcare, improve education, and successfully reduce the income tax and property taxes.”

Jordan Fuja, a spokesperson for Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, appeared to dismiss the findings, citing a separate study by Zumper analyzing the best cities for new graduates (Denver ranked No. 2 and Colorado Springs No. 15) and a Best Places to Live report by U.S. News and World Report showing Denver as the 22nd fastest growing of 150 major U.S. cities.

“We’re proud that Denver remains one of the fastest growing cities in the U.S., and the second best city for new college graduates,” Fuja said in an email to The Denver Gazette. “We will continue to work around the clock to ensure Denver is a vibrant, affordable, and safe city for generations to come – whether you’ve lived here your whole life or decided to make it your new home.”