Surprise City (Not Bozeman) Is The Fastest Growing In Montana

Population growth in Montana

It is no secret anymore that Montana has been experiencing a rapid population growth in the past few years.

From the pandemic allowing more people to work remotely, to the popularity of the television show Yellowstone, Montana has been one of the fastest growing states in America the past few years running.

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One city that has been front and center as the face of this population growth is Bozeman. For better or worse Bozeman has had their image go from cowpoke to chic in the last decade or so.

As it turns out though Bozeman is NOT the fastest growing city in Montana.

Sure, they have seen quite a bit of growth, having added 3,464 people from 2020 to 2023.

However, that makes them only the third fastest growing city in Montana.

What city is the fastest growing city in Montana?

According to the U.S. Census Bureau and their "Annual Cities and Town Population Totals" report, Montana's fastest growing city is *drum-roll*

Kalispell is Montana's fastest growing city

Yep during the same time period Kalispell saw it's population grow by 4,962.

If you are wondering how fast other cities are growing, here's top 5 population growth cities from 2020 to 2023.

1. Kalispell 4,962
2. Billings 3,640
3. Bozeman 3,464
4. Missoula 3,359
5. Helena 2,220

While Bozeman may be unjustly taking the brunt of criticism for Montana's current population explosion, the cost of living there has gone up quite a bit in recent years.

In fact, both Kalispell and Bozeman find themselves on the list of the 10 most expensive cities in Montana as you'll see in the gallery below. 👇