If you were wondering which are the smallest states in the US by population, then you are probably also interested in knowing how they stand compared to the population of the biggest cities in the US. We did a little bit of research, collected relevant data from the Census, and here’s what we’ve found out: did you know that there are six states that don’t even have 1,000,000 residents? There are many “ghost states” that have lower population than some cities in US. The largest city in the US, New York has 8,405,837 people (2013 estimate), and that’s very close to the number of people of the 10th biggest state in US – Michigan, which is 9, 909, 877 (2014 estimate). For more information about the biggest states, check out the other side of the spectrum – our list of 10 biggest states in the US by population. So, what do you think – how small is the smallest state? Keep reading, and very soon you will find out by looking at our list of 10 smallest states in the US by population. Also don’t forget to check out our article about the 10 most beautiful states in the US.
We’ve already said that the 7 smallest states on our list don’t even have 1,000,000 people, but do you know how many cities are there that have topped this number? There are 9 cities that have more than 1,000,000 residents and they are: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Antonio, San Diego, and Dallas. San Jose is almost there with its 998,537 residents. So, it seems that our smallest states are really small by population. But, are they also small in size? They don’t have to be, which proves that there are many reasons why these states are the least populated. It’s not the lack of space that makes some state small by population; other factors are more relevant such as – job opportunities, climate, economy, quality of life, the terrain… Also, some states are bigger than others, but not all of their lands are inhabitable. Some states have many bodies of water, and that’s why we will provide you with information about the size of the land area only of each state in our list, with its ranking by this category. Do you know how populated you state is? Is it among the smallest or the biggest, how large is it in its size? Does it have a lot of land area? With the list below you can find out if it’s among the smallest ones. Without further ado, the time has come to finally present you with the list of 10 smallest states in the US by population:
10. Maine
Population estimate for July 2014: 1,330,089
Land area: 30,862 square miles – rank 31
9. New Hampshire
Population estimate for July 2014: 1,326,813
Land area: 23,227 square miles – rank 44
8. Rhode Island
Population estimate for July 2014: 1,055,173
Land area: 2,706 square miles – rank 50 (smallest state by size of the land area)
7. Montana
Population estimate for July 2014: 1,023,579
Land area: 376,979 square miles – rank 4
6. Delaware
Population estimate for July 2014: 935,614
Land area: 6,030 square miles – rank 49
5. South Dakota
Population estimate for July 2014: 853,175
Land area: 196,540 square miles – rank 16
4. North Dakota
Population estimate for July 2014: 739,482
Land area: 178,647 – rank 17
3. Alaska
Population estimate for July 2014: 736,732
Land area: 1,481,347 – rank 1 (it is the biggest state in the US by size of the land area)
2. Vermont
Population estimate for July 2014: 626,562
Land area: 23,956 – rank 43
And the smallest state in the US by population is Wyoming!
Population estimate for July 2014: 584,153
Land area: 251,489 – rank 9
We hope that this list has revealed to you some information about the smalles states in the US by population that you didn’t know.
