Who’s moving to Boston? U-Haul shares new report.

See which states and cities sent the most U-Haul trucks to Boston in the first half of 2025.

A police officer directs U-Hauls during college move in day in Brighton, Massachusetts September 1, 2014. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)

By Annie Jonas

July 22, 2025

1 minute to read

With September 1 just around the corner, many Bostonians are gearing up for an epic day of move-in madness. Others, from near and far, have already settled into their new digs.

Where have these new neighbors come from? U-Haul released a midyear migration trends report last week, revealing new insights into residential moves in the U.S. – nearly half of which occur between Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends each year, according to the report.

By looking at one-way customer transactions from January through July 2025, U-Haul determined the leading origins for trucks, trailers, and U-Box moving containers bound for 35 metro areas with populations greater than 2 million.

The best place to live in Greater Boston, according to Boston magazine

Top origin states for U-Haul customers arriving to Boston, excluding Mass., were primarily those in the Northeast and Southeastern regions of the country.

New York took the No. 1 spot, followed by New Hampshire, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Florida, Virginia, Maine, and North Carolina.

The top metro areas for customers arriving to Boston from outside of Mass. were also all in the Northeast: New York City, New York; Providence, Rhode Island; Washington, D.C.; Manchester, New Hampshire; and New Haven, Connecticut.

Cambridge ranked the No. 2 spot in the US for millennial move-ins

Within the Commonwealth, U-Haul customers came from across Central and Eastern Mass. Worcester was the top city proper for U-Haul customers headed to Boston, followed by Taunton, Hyannis, Fall River, and Northborough.

Where were U-Haul customers from Massachusetts headed? Philadelphia made the list, with Mass. ranking No. 8 for trucks arriving there. But New York City topped the chart — Massachusetts was the No. 3 state sending trucks to NYC, and Boston itself was the No. 4 metro area of origin.

Read the full U-Haul 2025 Midyear Migration Trends report.