When Hoosiers decide to pack their belongings into a U-Haul truck and put Indiana in the rearview mirror, where do they go?
According to a recent report by U-Haul, many stick close to the Midwest, traveling an average of 230 miles if they’re headed to major U.S. cities outside of Indianapolis.
Here’s what we know.
U-Haul issues its ‘Midyear Migration Trends’ for 2025
From January to July 2025, U-Haul tracked customers renting its one-way trucks, trailers and U-Box containers as part of its annual midyear growth report.
The resulting “U-Haul 2025 Midyear Migration Trends” reveals what cities and states its customers arrived from when traveling to 35 U.S. metro areas, each with populations greater than 2 million people.
Chicago, as it turns out, gets a lot of ex-Hoosiers and vice versa, while Ohio has three major cities that are attractive places to live.
A quick glance at the report also reveals where, if you live in Indiana, your new neighbors might have come from.
Note: U-Haul does not provide the exact number of customers entering and exiting U.S. States, which its lists are based upon, “for competitive and proprietary reasons,” a spokesperson with the company told IndyStar.
The U-Haul Growth Index for 2024, however, compiled upwards of 2.5 million customer transactions, according to the company.
The cities below are listed alphabetically as they appeared in the report.
What cities do U-Haul customers move to when they leave Indiana?
According to the findings, the top metro areas Hoosiers move to include these cities, which are sorted alphabetically:
Here’s a quick breakdown of each city and where Indiana ranks.
Chicago
Distance from Indianapolis to Chicago: 183 miles.
The Windy City is a popular state for ex-Hoosiers, according to the report. Indiana ranked first for arriving U-Haul customers. After that, it’s Michigan, Wisconsin and these other U.S. states:
Story continues after photo gallery.
Indianapolis also is the second leading metro area for arriving U-Haul customers to Chicago outside of Illinois, according to the company. The rankings are as follows:
Cincinnati
Distance from Indianapolis to Cincinnati: 112 miles.
Is Cincinnati chili really all that good? Possibly. Indiana ranks second among the top states for arriving U-Haul customers to Cincinnati outside of Ohio. The list includes:
The top metro areas for arriving U-Haul customers to Cincinnati outside of Ohio are:
Cleveland
Distance from Indianapolis to Cleveland: 316 miles.
We know last year’s Indianapolis Colts season could’ve gone better, but trading them for the Cleveland Browns? Really?
It must not be for the football. Indiana ranked sixth for U-Haul customers arriving to Cleveland outside of Ohio, according to the report, which includes these other states:
Columbus
Distance from Indianapolis to Columbus: 174 miles.
Columbus is regarded for its vibrant arts, culture and food scene, and ex-Hoosiers apparently want a piece of that.
Indiana came in second among the top states for arriving U-Haul customers to Columbus outside of Ohio, according to the report.
And while Florida might have come in first, Indianapolis was cited as the top metro area of U-Haul’s customers headed to Columbus. Here’s the breakdown:
The top metro areas for arriving U-Haul customers to Columbus from outside of Ohio are:
Detroit
Distance from Indianapolis to Detroit: 287 miles.
Trading one Midwest powerhouse for another, Indiana ranked fourth of arriving U-Haul customers to Detroit from outside of Michigan. The top states include the following:
Nashville
Distance from Indianapolis to Nashville: 288 miles.
Nashville might be known as “Music City” but Hoosiers appear to be at the back of the choir singing its praises.
Indiana ranked 10th among the top states for arriving U-Haul customers to Nashville from outside of Tennessee, according to the report. The top states were Florida, Georgia, Texas and these others:
St. Louis
Distance from Indianapolis to St. Louis: 247 miles.
St. Louis is famous for its iconic Gateway Arch, which welcomed Hoosiers moving to Missouri this year. Indiana ranked sixth among the top states for arriving U-Haul customers to St. Louis, according to the report.
The top states include Illinois, Texas, and these others:
What about people moving to Indiana? Here’s where U-Haul customers lived before moving to Indianapolis
Maybe the grass is greener on both sides of the lawn?
While U-Haul’s 2025 midyear migration report might have listed Illinois and Ohio as top places Hoosiers moved to when leaving Indiana, the Circle City received plenty of one-way U-Haul customers from both the Prairie and Buckeye states.
According to the report, the top U.S. states for arriving U-Haul customers to Indianapolis include the following:
What U.S. cities are U-Haul customers leaving when they arrive to Indianapolis?
So far in 2025, Indianapolis is receiving more U-Haul customers from Chicago than Cincinnati or Louisville, according the report.
Where inside of Indiana are U-Haul customers moving to Indianapolis?
Within Indiana, U-Haul reports its customers living in Fort Wayne are moving to Indianapolis in greater numbers than elsewhere inside the Hoosier State.
The top five Indiana cities of U-Haul customers moving to Indianapolis include:
John Tufts covers trending news for IndyStar and Midwest Connect. Send him a news tip at JTufts@Gannett.com. Find him on BlueSky at JohnWritesStuff.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: When Hoosiers move from Indiana, where do they go? Here’s what U-Haul says
Reporting by John Tufts, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
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