Massachusetts continues to rank near the bottom of the country for population growth, according to U-Haul’s newly released 2026 Growth Index Report.

The Commonwealth ranked 46th nationally, an improvement from 49th last year. However, it still places Massachusetts in the bottom five states for one-way U-Haul customer transactions. Only New York, New Jersey, Illinois, and California ranked lower.

The index tracks the balance between one-way U-Haul arrivals and departures across more than 24,000 rental locations nationwide. States are ranked based on whether more customers are moving in or moving out over the course of the year.

In the report, in Massachusetts, one-way arrivals accounted for 48.2 percent of U-Haul's interstate traffic, while interstate departures made up 51.8 percent. While arrivals increased 3 percent year over year, departures also rose by 2 percent. The last time Massachusetts ranked better than 46th was in 2016.

The Growth Index only looks at one-way interstate moves, excluding the large number of in-state rentals often used for local moves. That means the data reflects whether more people are entering or leaving the state.

The Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance said the data reflects long-term policy choices on Beacon Hill that continue to push residents and businesses out of the state.

Paul Diego Craney, executive director of the group, said high taxes, rising housing costs, and state mandates have made Massachusetts less competitive compared with states gaining population.

“For years, state leaders have dismissed out-migration as anecdotal or temporary,” Craney said.

“When people are voting with their feet year after year, it’s not because of the weather," he said. "It’s because Massachusetts has become too expensive, too rigid, and too hostile to growth.”

Massachusetts ranked dead last among New England states, trailing Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, and Vermont. Meanwhile, Texas, Florida, and North Carolina ranked first, second, and third nationally.

The U-Haul report also found that all nine states without a state income tax improved their rankings from the previous year. Craney pointed to the Massachusetts's Fair Share Amendment, which added a 4 percent surtax on incomes over $1 million to the state's ordinary 5 percent income tax, plus the state’s Net Zero by 2050 climate change mandate, as policies contributing to the state’s poor showing.

“The rigid NetZero by 2050 climate mandate is not working and it’s not realistic," Craney said. "The millionaire’s tax is driving people away. Both of these policies need to be repealed if we ever want to be a state that competes again. Until the Governor and lawmakers confront the consequences of their own decisions, Massachusetts will continue to fall behind states that actually compete for residents and jobs."

U-Haul says that the Growth Index is not a direct measure of population or economic growth, but also says it is an effective gauge of how well states are attracting and maintaining residents. The company notes that the weather of a particular place and personal circumstances, such as jobs, family changes, and education, often influence moves.

U-Haul also found that eight of the top 10 growth states are in the South, while eight of the bottom 10 are in the North states, suggesting more conservative states are gaining residents while more liberal states are losing them.

A Suffolk University poll released last month found that one in three Massachusetts voters has considered moving out of the state due to concerns about the rising cost of living.

Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey's office could not be reached for comment last week.