Gen Z Is Moving to San Antonio and D.C., Leaving NYC and L.A.

Gen Z is moving — and the map of where young adults land looks nothing like it did ten years ago. San Antonio, Texas, is now the number one destination for Gen Z movers, pulling in a net gain of 10,678 members of the generation in 2026, according to a new analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data by the real estate brokerage Redfin.

The report, released in September 2026, ranks Washington, D.C., Austin and Nashville right behind the Texas metro. The nation's capital drew a net inflow of 8,631 young adults, Austin followed with 8,590 and Nashville with 8,093, while Dallas added 6,944 — which means three of the five most popular Gen Z destinations sit in Texas. Providence, Las Vegas, Virginia Beach, Honolulu and Charleston round out the top ten. On the other end of the ledger, New York is losing more Gen Zers than any other metro, with a net outflow of 29,554, followed by Minneapolis, Los Angeles, Denver and Detroit. The numbers paint a clear picture of where Gen Z is moving — and where the generation is leaving fastest.

Why Gen Z is moving right now

The pattern is about launch pads, not just cheap rent — and it reshapes how economists think about where Gen Z is moving next. Redfin principal economist Sheharyar Bokhari summed it up in a statement, saying Gen Zers are "chasing opportunity" while millennials are "chasing space." Younger adults gravitate toward cities where they can start careers and build social lives, and the analysis notes that moves among young adults are also shaped heavily by college, first jobs and the school-to-work transition — not by housing costs alone.

Nashville shows the formula in action. Kristin Sanchez, a Redfin Premier agent in the Tennessee capital, said the city "has become a magnet for young professionals because the job market is growing right alongside the city," adding that newcomers arriving from expensive coastal markets find strong career options where paychecks stretch further. Full methodology and interactive charts are in Redfin's complete migration report. A separate Redfin and Glassdoor analysis ranked Washington, D.C., the best big American city for recent college graduates, weighing career opportunity, housing affordability and quality of life. The social layer matters as much as the economic one: lively scenes around music, food and nightlife keep showing up wherever Gen Z is moving in the largest numbers.

The short hop is the real story behind the move

Here is the twist in the data: the single most common Gen Z move in the entire country is Los Angeles to Riverside, California, with 10,261 people making that exact hop in 2024. Next comes New York to Philadelphia, with 9,284 movers, followed by Los Angeles to San Diego at 9,237. Rather than cross-country leaps, young adults are reshuffling within regions they already know — and the price gaps explain why. It reframes the usual story of why Gen Z is moving: many are not hunting the cheapest city in America, just the cheapest move that keeps their life intact. A typical New York home sells for about eight hundred thirty-two thousand dollars, compared with roughly three hundred nine thousand in Philadelphia, and, as reported by MoneyLion, Zillow pegs the average Los Angeles home value near nine hundred thirty thousand dollars.

Millennials follow the same short-hop pattern. Their most popular route is also Los Angeles to Riverside, with 19,983 movers, followed by Washington, D.C. to Baltimore and San Jose to San Francisco. And young adults are slightly less likely to make a major move than they were a decade ago: roughly 14 percent of 19-to-24-year-olds left their metro area in 2024, down from about 15 percent in 2014, while 25-to-34-year-olds dropped to roughly 9 percent from about 11 percent. Remote work has let many young adults start careers without changing cities, and steep housing costs in certain places are discouraging some would-be movers altogether. That caution shapes how Gen Z is moving overall: smaller steps, closer to home, more calculated.

What it means if you are thinking about a move

The generational split is the clearest signal for anyone weighing a relocation. Washington, D.C., is the second-most popular destination for Gen Zers — yet it is also one of the metros millennials are leaving fastest, with a net outflow of 12,364. Twenty-somethings want career launch pads and social energy; people in their thirties and early forties want room to grow. Millennials' top pick is Houston, with a net inflow of 16,365, followed by Dallas and Baltimore, and every one of their five favorite destinations carries a median home-sale price under four hundred fifty thousand dollars.

If you are plotting your own relocation, the map of where Gen Z is moving doubles as a shortlist of job markets with real entry-level demand and social scenes built for twenty-somethings. The practical takeaway is narrower than the headlines suggest. Most of the biggest moves are short hops between neighboring metros, which suggests the winning play is looking one metro over rather than across the country — closer to your existing network, your job market and the social life you already have. The cost math still rules everything, though: even in a year when rents are easing in parts of the country, living alone remains one of Gen Z's most expensive dreams, and a cheaper metro with real entry-level jobs beats a glamorous one you cannot afford. Cities are watching closely too: where Gen Z is moving today predicts which rental markets, transit lines and late-night districts grow tomorrow. For more on how young adults are navigating housing, work and city life, see our IRL Life coverage.