These 10 California counties lost the most residents during the COVID-19 pandemic

The Bay Area and Southern California saw some of the state’s greatest population losses during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report from the California Department of Finance.

That report found that fewer births, less foreign immigration and COVID-19-related deaths all played a role in the state’s overall population dip of 173,000 between July 2020 and July 2021.

Some of the most populous counties in the state, such as Los Angeles and San Diego counties, saw some of the most loss in terms of total population.

Here are the counties that saw the 10 largest population drops in that one-year period.

Los Angeles County

California’s most populous county also saw the greatest decline in 2021. The county lost 67,521 people, putting the current population at 9.9 million.

Orange County

Orange County saw a drop of 22,832 people over the last year. It’s current population is 3.1 million.

Santa Clara County

The Bay Area county of Santa Clara took a population hit in 2021, losing 20,403 people. There are 1.9 million people still living in Santa Clara County.

San Francisco

San Francisco lost 15,435 people. It’s current population is 855,550.

San Diego County

San Diego County saw a decrease of 15,281 people. There are 3.2 million people still living in the county.

Butte County

Rural Butte County, hit hard by wildfires since 2018, lost 10,058 people in 2021. It’s remaining population is 201,158. T

Alameda County

Alameda County, in the Bay Area, lost 9,959 people. There are 1.6 million residents in Alameda County.

San Mateo County

The Bay Area’s San Mateo County saw a decline of 6,842 people. The current population there is 756,655.

Ventura County

Ventura saw a population decrease of 6,700 people. The county’s population is 837,845.

Santa Barbara County

Finally, Santa Barbara County lost 5,538 people. The county is home to 443,121 people.

This story was originally published December 17, 2021 at 1:33 PM.