IRS migration data is quietly reshaping the country’s wealth map, showing that high earners are not just moving, they are clustering in a smaller group of low tax destinations. The headline story is about millionaires leaving certain states, but the deeper pattern is a broader shift of taxable income and spending power that is already influencing budgets, housing markets and political debates. I see a clear divide emerging between states that are losing affluent residents and those that are building their future tax base around them.
Because the available reporting focuses on overall taxpayer and income flows rather than a precise millionaire headcount for each state, some details about specific high net worth households remain unverified based on available sources. What the data does show, however, is that a handful of large, often high tax states are consistently on the losing end of IRS tracked migration, while a smaller group of low or no income tax states are the biggest winners.
What IRS migration data actually shows about wealthy movers
The clearest signal in the recent data is that high tax jurisdictions are losing residents and income to lower tax rivals. One analysis of IRS records earlier this year found that about 2.8 million more Americans moved out of high tax states than moved into them, a gap that reflects not just headcounts but a substantial shift in taxable income as people relocate to places with lighter burdens on earnings. That same review highlighted that Florida, Texas, South Dakota, Tennessee and Nevada, Washington do not impose an individual income tax, underscoring why they have become magnets for mobile professionals and business owners.
Another nationwide review of IRS migration files earlier this year reached a similar conclusion, noting that high tax states are losing residents while low tax states gain them. In that work, Florida, Texas, North Carolina, Arizona, Among the top gainers, with only one exception, while much of the Northeast and West Coast saw net outflows. When I line these findings up with separate coverage of where affluent households are settling, the pattern is consistent: the states that lean most heavily on income taxes are the ones most exposed when high earners decide to move.
The big blue states losing people and income
IRS migration tables do not break out “millionaires” as a separate category in the public summaries, but they do show which states are losing the most tax filers and adjusted gross income. A detailed 50 state survey of those records reported that Illinois, New York and California continued their streak as the nation’s biggest losers of both people and wealth, based on tax filing Americans moving between states. That same analysis tied the losses to high overall tax burdens and rising costs of living, factors that tend to matter most to households with substantial investment and business income.
Separate reporting on affluent migration has tried to quantify how many wealthy households are leaving specific states. One review published on Aug 31, 2024 highlighted that California recorded a Net loss of 24,670 wealthy households, and that New York also saw a significant outflow of affluent residents over the same period. A more recent slideshow style analysis, dated Nov 2, 2025, framed these trends under the banner “States Where Millionaires Are Quietly Leaving, IRS, Data Confirms, Story, Kelly Grant,” underscoring how closely the conversation about millionaire migration is now tied to IRS sourced numbers.
Why California, New York and Illinois keep showing up
When I look at the map of outflows, three states appear again and again: California, New York and Illinois. Each is a large, economically diverse state with world class cities, but each also combines relatively high income tax rates with steep housing and business costs. The IRS based survey that singled out Illinois, New York and California as the biggest losers of people and wealth suggests that these pressures are now showing up directly in the tax base.
Those findings line up with broader coverage of each state’s economic profile. High earners in California face some of the highest marginal income tax rates in the country, layered on top of expensive housing in coastal metros. In New York, a combination of state and city income taxes hits top earners in New York City particularly hard, while Illinois has struggled with property taxes and pension obligations that feed into the overall cost of living. None of these factors alone proves that millionaires are leaving, but together with the IRS migration data they help explain why affluent households might be more willing to relocate.
The Northeast corridor squeeze: Massachusetts, New Jersey and Pennsylvania
Beyond the headline trio, several states along the Northeast corridor are also feeling the strain of high earner mobility. Affluent professionals in Massachusetts face a mix of income taxes and elevated housing costs in and around Boston, while New Jersey combines relatively high income tax brackets with some of the steepest property tax bills in the country. Pennsylvania has a flatter income tax structure, but its older infrastructure and uneven job growth can make nearby low tax states more attractive to mobile executives and entrepreneurs.
While the IRS migration tables do not isolate millionaire households in these states, the broader pattern of high tax states losing residents and income suggests that a share of those departures involve upper income filers. The slideshow analysis tied to “States Where Millionaires Are Quietly Leaving, IRS, Data Confirms, Story, Kelly Grant” on Nov 2, 2025, placed several Northeastern states on its list of jurisdictions where affluent households are thinning out. Taken together with the earlier report that high tax states are losing residents while low tax states gain them, the picture that emerges is one of a slow but steady rebalancing of where high earners choose to live and pay taxes.
Mid Atlantic and Upper Midwest pressures: Maryland, Virginia and Minnesota
The migration story is not limited to the coasts. In the Mid Atlantic, Maryland and Virginia sit next to the federal government’s job engine, yet they also compete with lower tax Southern states for retirees and remote workers. Maryland’s progressive income tax structure and local add ons can weigh heavily on high earners in the Washington suburbs, while Virginia’s mix of income and property taxes still looks less burdensome than some Northeastern peers but more expensive than nearby no tax states. In the Upper Midwest, Minnesota has long combined a strong social safety net with relatively high income tax rates, a trade off that can be less appealing to high net worth residents once remote work makes relocation easier.
IRS migration data aggregated at the national level shows that high tax states are losing residents, but it does not spell out exactly how many millionaires are leaving Maryland, Virginia or Minnesota. That gap is why some of the more specific millionaire counts in public debate remain unverified based on available sources. What is clear, however, is that these states sit in regions where lower tax alternatives are within easy reach, and where the broader trend of high earners moving to friendlier tax climates is already visible in the overall flows of people and income.
How Washington state fits into the millionaire debate
Washington state occupies a complicated place in the conversation about wealthy migration. On one hand, it has long attracted high earners with a booming tech sector and, historically, no broad based individual income tax. On the other, recent policy debates over new taxes on capital gains and high incomes have raised questions about whether some affluent residents might eventually look elsewhere. The basic economic profile of Washington still compares favorably to many high tax states, but the direction of policy matters when high net worth households are deciding where to build or keep their wealth.
National level migration reviews that highlight high tax states losing residents do not list Washington among the worst offenders, and the Facebook based summary that noted about 2.8 million more Americans moving out of high tax states than into them specifically pointed out that Florida, Texas, South Dakota, Tennessee and Nevada, Washington do not impose an individual income tax. That places Washington in the same broad category as some of the biggest winners from high earner migration, even if the state’s recent tax experiments have complicated its reputation among the very wealthy.
Where the money is going: Florida, Texas and other winners
If high tax states are losing affluent residents and income, the obvious question is where that money is going. The IRS based analysis that found high tax states losing residents while low tax states gain them singled out Florida, Texas, North Carolina, Arizona, Among the top gainers in terms of inbound residents and income. These states combine relatively low or no income taxes with growing job markets and, in many cases, more affordable housing than coastal metros. For high earners who can work from anywhere, that combination is hard to ignore.
Florida and Texas stand out in particular. Both have no state income tax, and both have aggressively marketed themselves as destinations for businesses and wealthy individuals. The Facebook summary that highlighted about 2.8 million more Americans leaving high tax states than entering them emphasized that Florida and Texas do not impose an individual income tax, a structural advantage that compounds over time as more high earners relocate. When I connect that fact to the repeated appearance of these states in IRS migration gainers lists, it becomes clear that they are not just picking up retirees, they are capturing a growing share of the country’s top tax payers.
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Julian Harrow specializes in taxation, IRS rules, and compliance strategy. His work helps readers navigate complex tax codes, deadlines, and reporting requirements while identifying opportunities for efficiency and risk reduction. At The Daily Overview, Julian breaks down tax-related topics with precision and clarity, making a traditionally dense subject easier to understand.
