Bad news for the U.S.: 40% of women aged 15-44 want to leave the United States permanently

A recent poll carried out by Gallup has revealed that about 20% of Americans would like to leave the country permanently, a number driven mainly by young women.

Participants were asked: “Ideally, if you had the opportunity, would you like to move permanently to another country, or would you prefer to continue living in this country?”

The young women who want to leave the U.S.

A whopping 40% of women ages 15 to 44 chose the first option, by far the highest share of any age or gender group included in the poll.

That figure was more than twice that of men in the same age range. Nineteen percent of those men said they were open to leaving the United States. People over the age of 45 were more hesitant, with 14% of women and only 8% of men saying they wanted to emigrate.

Unprecedented gender gap

“Today’s 21-percentage-point gap between younger men (19%) and women (40%) wanting to leave the U.S. is the widest Gallup has recorded on this trend,” a Gallup said on its website.

“Since Gallup began measuring this question globally in 2007, few countries have shown gender gaps this wide in the desire to migrate. Before the U.S. in 2025, no country had recorded a gap of 20 points or more between younger men and women.”

The 40% figure among women ages 15 to 44 is down from 44% in 2024, although it remains far higher than the 29% recorded in 2023.

Where young American women want to go

The poll also shows that Canada is the top destination for these women. Eleven percent of respondents said they would like to move across the northern border. New Zealand, Italy and Japan were tied for second place at 5% each.

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