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Visualizing the World’s Busiest Migration Corridors
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There were 281 million international migrants globally in 2020, equivalent to 3.6% of the world’s population.
This graphic ranks the world’s busiest international migration corridors, based on data from the UN International Organization for Migration (IOM) World Migration Report 2024.
What Are Migrant Corridors?
A migrant corridor represents the number of international migrants born in one country and currently residing in another.
Corridors shown in red in the above graphic are classified by the UN as primarily comprising displaced people. This includes individuals who have fled their homes due to conflict or fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, or political opinion.
Key Corridors
Mexico to the U.S. is the top corridor by a wide margin. Due to the large number of people who enter the U.S. undocumented, the actual figure could be even higher. Recently, President-elect Donald Trump pledged to begin mass deportations of undocumented immigrants, an operation estimated to cost approximately $315 billion.
| From | To | People (Millions) | Mainly Displaced |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇲🇽 Mexico | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 10.9 | No |
| 🇸🇾 Syria | 🇹🇷 Türkiye | 3.8 | Yes |
| 🇺🇦 Ukraine | 🇷🇺 Russia | 3.7 | No |
| 🇮🇳 India | 🇦🇪 UAE | 3.5 | No |
| 🇷🇺 Russia | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | 3.4 | No |
| 🇮🇳 India | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 2.8 | No |
| 🇦🇫 Afghanistan | 🇮🇷 Iran | 2.8 | Yes |
| 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan | 🇷🇺 Russia | 2.6 | No |
| 🇮🇳 India | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | 2.5 | No |
| 🇧🇩 Bangladesh | 🇮🇳 India | 2.5 | No |
| 🇷🇺 Russia | 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan | 2.5 | No |
| 🇨🇳 China | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 2.2 | No |
| 🇵🇱 Poland | 🇩🇪 Germany | 2.2 | No |
| 🇵🇭 Philippines | 🇺🇸 U.S. | 2.1 | No |
| 🇲🇲 Myanmar | 🇹🇭 Thailand | 1.9 | Yes |
| 🇹🇷 Türkiye | 🇩🇪 Germany | 1.9 | No |
| 🇻🇪 Venezuela | 🇨🇴 Colombia | 1.9 | Yes |
| 🇮🇩 Indonesia | 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | 1.8 | No |
| 🇩🇿 Algeria | 🇫🇷 France | 1.7 | No |
| 🇦🇫 Afghanistan | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | 1.7 | Yes |
| 🇺🇦 Ukraine | 🇵🇱 Poland | 1.6 | Yes |
Conflict Zones
Migrant corridors are also prevalent in conflict zones. Nearly four million people have fled Syria for Türkiye, illustrating the devastating impact of war.
A similar number of people have moved between Ukraine and Russia in each direction. However, it’s important to note that the UN does not classify either migration corridor in the Ukraine/Russia conflict as primarily comprising displaced people.
Learn More on the Voronoi App 
To learn more about this topic, check out this graphic that shows the countries most exposed to potential immigration policy changes under the Trump presidency.
