How does net migration under Biden compare to previous administrations like Trump and Obama?
Executive summary
Net migration and enforcement outcomes differ sharply across the Obama, Trump and Biden years because governments measured and managed migration differently: Obama averaged far higher annual removals than Trump or Biden during his terms (Obama ~344,000 average annual removals vs. Trump ~234,000 average annual removals, per Migration Policy Institute reporting) [1]. Biden’s era shows much higher border “encounters” and large spikes in returns and expulsions, while removals and interior deportations fluctuated and—depending on dataset and period—have at times equaled or exceeded Trump-era daily rates [2] [1] [3].
1. Numbers you can count: removals, returns and encounters
Different measures tell different stories. MPI reports Obama’s average annual removals at about 344,000 and Trump’s at about 234,000, while Biden-era removals were lower than Obama’s but saw sharp post‑Title 42 increases and large numbers of returns/expulsions at the border [1]. Meanwhile, Biden presided over far larger totals of Border Patrol “encounters” than Trump in comparable stretches—millions versus roughly 1.4 million in the earlier Trump window—so raw encounter counts under Biden are much higher even if removal percentages look similar [2] [4].
2. Apples and oranges: why comparisons are fraught
Experts and reporting repeatedly warn that direct comparisons are complicated because administrations changed policies, terminology and data collection. “Encounters” were not tracked the same way across eras; Title 42 expulsions, voluntary returns, expedited removals and interior removals are different outcomes with different policy drivers, so headline figures can mislead unless broken down [2] [1]. Fact‑checking outlets and researchers stress that shifting metrics and partial datasets limit simple claims about “who deported more” [2] [5].
3. Biden: more encounters, active policy and mixed enforcement results
Under Biden the government logged record levels of migrant encounters and the administration produced an unusually high number of immigration‑focused executive actions—MPI counted 605 by December 2024—and post‑Title 42 removals and returns grew substantially from mid‑2023 onward [1] [6]. MigrationPolicy also concluded Biden was on pace in some periods to match Trump removal numbers, though many of those were voluntary returns at the border rather than interior removals [3] [1].
4. Trump: rhetoric, rapid enforcement pushes and shorter windows
Trump campaigned on mass deportations and moved aggressively once in office, producing higher enforcement rhetoric and rapid enforcement pushes in early periods; yet analysts note Trump’s actual year‑long deportation totals in his first term remained below Obama’s and, in operational comparisons over short windows, Trump’s daily rates sometimes approximated Biden’s but did not consistently exceed Biden on a full‑year basis [7] [8]. Recent reporting from early 2025 indicates Trump administration arrest rates rose sharply but longer‑run totals and data gaps complicate firm ranking [9] [7].
5. Obama’s record: highest long‑run removals in recent decades
The clearest quantitative anchor across sources is that Obama oversaw higher average annual removals than either Trump or Biden: MPI cited an average of about 344,000 removals under Obama versus roughly 234,000 under Trump [1]. Several fact‑checks and datasets reinforce that Obama-era removal totals remain the largest among the three when measured on an annual average basis [1] [2].
6. Where reporting disagrees and what it means for policy debates
Observers disagree about causation: some attribute Biden’s higher encounter totals to push factors abroad and perceptions of a more welcoming U.S.; others stress policy choices such as asylum restrictions and cooperation with Mexico that later reduced flows [4] [1]. Some outlets say Biden-era daily removal rates sometimes exceeded Trump’s in narrow slices [2], while TRAC and Brookings analyses argue daily removals or arrests under Trump in early 2025 were often comparable or below Biden’s averages and national data remain incomplete [8] [7].
7. Takeaways and reporting limits
There is no single metric that settles “who had more net migration.” Available sources show Obama logged the highest average annual removals, Biden saw the biggest raw surge in border encounters and a mix of returns and removals, and Trump’s enforcement was aggressive in rhetoric and selective windows but did not exceed Obama’s multi‑year removal averages [1] [2] [3]. Limitations: public DHS/ICE reporting has gaps, policies (Title 42, expulsions, voluntary returns) changed definitions, and independent analysts warn that partial or short‑term snapshots can be misleading [2] [8] [7].
If you want, I can produce a compact table of the specific figures MPI and DHS report (annual removals, encounter totals, Title 42 expulsions) drawn only from the cited sources above.