Population Change
The U.S. population is projected to increase from 312.2 million in 2010 to 400.9 million in 2050.33 For this four-decade period, that is an increase of 28% at an average annual rate of 0.6%. The anticipated annual rate of growth in the U.S. population is significantly slower than in the past. In the six decades from 1950 to 2010, the U.S. population had increased from 157.8 million to 312.2 million, a total gain of 98% at an average annual rate of 1.1%. Thus, the projected annual rate of growth in the U.S. population is only about half the rate of growth experienced in the recent past.
The projected slowdown in population growth is even sharper in the world overall. From 1950 to 2010, the world population increased from 2.5 billion to 6.9 billion, or by 174%. The average annual rate of growth—1.7%—was much higher than in the U.S. In the future, the global population is expected to increase from 6.9 billion in 2010 to 9.6 billion in 2050, or by 38%. The average annual rate of growth—0.8%—is only slightly higher than the rate projected for the U.S.
