Nearly 2.5 million people moved between provinces in Türkiye in 2025, with Istanbul recording both the highest number of arrivals and departures, while young people emerged as the country's most mobile age group, official data shows.
According to the latest Internal Migration Statistics released by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) on Tuesday, 2,475,019 people migrated from one province to another last year.
The share of Türkiye's population moving between provinces stood at 2.87% in 2025. The rate, which was 3.18% in 2008, has changed over the years.
Women accounted for 52.5% of those who moved between provinces, compared with 47.5% for men.
Istanbul received 329,912 migrants in 2025, the highest number nationwide. Ankara followed with 176,833 arrivals and Izmir in western Türkiye, with 106,083.
At the other end of the list, Ardahan in northeastern Türkiye received the fewest migrants, at 4,914, followed by the northeastern province of Bayburt with 5,064 and the eastern province of Tunceli with 6,078.
Istanbul also saw more people leave than any other province, with 371,258 departures. Ankara ranked second with 145,661 people leaving, followed by Izmir with 98,728.
Ardahan, Bayburt and Tunceli recorded the lowest numbers of departures.
People aged 20-24 accounted for the highest migration activity in 2025, with 480,185 moving between provinces, while women made up 58.5% of migrants in the age group, and men accounted for 41.5%.
Education was the leading factor behind migration among young adults. A total of 179,612 people aged 20-24 moved for education, while 75,591 relocated to start a job or seek employment. Another 42,391 moved in search of better housing and living conditions.
Across all age groups, 564,114 people migrated as dependents of another household member, making it the most common reason for moving.
Better housing and living conditions prompted 510,226 people to relocate, while 406,144 moved for education.
Migration patterns also differed by gender. Among men, better housing and living conditions were the leading reason for moving, accounting for 253,093 migrants.
For women, migration linked to another household member was the main reason, involving 334,900 people. Education and better living conditions were also among the leading factors behind women's migration.
TurkStat data also showed people who moved to another province following the Feb. 6, 2023 earthquakes and later returned to their pre-earthquake provinces were classified under the category of "returning to family or hometown."
