Idaho’s Popularity Plummets; 18 States People Rather Move to In 2022

Some people are calling a pair of new mid-year migration reports an early Christmas miracle.

Both reports issued by Move Buddha show that interest in moving to Idaho is starting to wane. Their Idaho-focused report shows that the inflow traffic ratio has dropped by 61.6%, the largest drop in the entire country. 

We can’t say with complete certainty it’s because Boise residents are telling people “we’re full” but the interest in Boise itself has also dropped off. Boise fell to #5 on the list of most searched cities to move to. Coeur d’Alene took the top spot. 

It’s a breath of fresh air after seeing unprecedented growth in the area during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. While many are grateful that fewer people are considering Idaho as their next place to live, we do wonder which states they’re looking at. 

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We pulled the 18 states ahead of Idaho on Move Buddha's “Moving Trends” report and put together a list for you. Some of these states are considerably cheaper to live in than Idaho. Others are not.

We wanted to give you a more complete picture of why these states might stand out, so we pulled the latest numbers for cost of living and living wages from World Population Review, median household income from US Census Bureau Data and the number of money you’d have to make in each state to be happy from Go Banking Rates. Unfamiliar with those turns? Here’s how the sources define them:

Cost of Living: “Cost of living refers to the amount needed to cover basic expenses, such as food, shelter, transportation, and healthcare.”

Living Wage: “The income required to cover basic family needs without reliance on outside assistance. Basic needs include food, housing, transportation, insurance, utilities, childcare, taxes, and inflation. However, other expenses, such as vacation, dining out, and savings, are typically not included.”

Median Household Income: “Income in the Past 12 Months - Income of Households: This includes the income of the householder and all other individuals 15 years old and over in the household, whether they are related to the householder or not”

Amount of Money to be Happy: This one is a little more complicated and we explained it in an article in 2021. According to research done at Purdue, there is and if you look at America as a whole, it's $105,000. Their research looked at the amount of money it takes for someone to reach ideal "life evaluation" (the thoughts one has about their life when they think about it) and emotional well-being (day-to-day emotional experiences.) Go Banking Rates adjusted that money based on each state’s cost-of-living index.