It’s enigmatic that Chicago, a city rich in culture nestled on the shores of Lake Michigan with so much to offer, ranks No. 6 in the country for net outflow, according to a recent migration analysis by Redfin.com.

But then again, COVID-19 turned normal on its head.

The report is based on a sample of some 2 million Redfin.com users who searched for homes across 112 metro areas in July.

According to the report, the Windy City’s July 2021 net outflow was 3,818. Where are they going? They’re heading west. Chicagoans were most drawn to Los Angeles, where residents fled in droves, with a net outflow of nearly 22,000 last month.

San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Washington, D.C., and Boston saw more movement than any other metro areas.

A net outflow measures how many more Redfin.com home searchers looked to flee a particular city, instead of relocating to it. 

Conversely, warm-weather destinations like Miami, Phoenix, Las Vegas and Tampa were the most sought-after places to flock to with the highest rate of net inflow. Who wouldn’t want to work from the beach or near a golf course?

Still, there’s a silver lining: Like Denver and Seattle, Chicago also saw year-over-year declines in net outflow, from 4,439 in July 2020 to 3,818 in 2021, a drop of 621.