The often-cited $20.5 billion is what Canadian visitors spent in the United States in 2024—not a confirmed amount lost to a boycott. Statistics Canada measured $18.8 billion in Canadian spending on U.S. visits in 2025, $3.3 billion less than in 2024. The decline coincided with political tensions, but available evidence does not establish how much was caused by a boycott or rank states by total losses.
What the $20 billion figure actually means
In 2024, 20.4 million visits by Canadians generated $20.5 billion in U.S. spending and supported 140,000 American jobs, according to the U.S. Travel Association, as reported by Axios. That is a pre-decline baseline, not a forecast or tally of money lost.
Statistics Canada reported that Canadians spent $18.8 billion on U.S. visits in 2025, down $3.3 billion from 2024. This observed year-over-year difference is not a causal estimate of boycott damage, and the two figures come from different publishers and measures. They should not be presented as a precise U.S.-dollar accounting of losses.
How much did Canadian travel to the U.S. fall?
Statistics Canada’s 2026 review of 2025 travel reports 23.1 million Canadian-resident trips that included a U.S. visit, 23.5% fewer than in 2024. It also reports 25.4% fewer Canadian-resident return border crossings from the United States. These are different measures: trips and border crossings are not interchangeable counts of unique travelers.
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The pullback was especially pronounced in leisure travel. Canadian residents made 21.5% fewer leisure-related U.S. visits in 2025, a decline of 3.2 million visits. At the same time, leisure visits to overseas destinations rose 12.2%, or 1.1 million. The figures show a change in travel patterns, but do not establish that every declined U.S. trip was redirected elsewhere or canceled because of political tensions.
Which states appear most exposed?
There is no consistent state-by-state dataset in the available figures that supports a ranking by total dollars lost specifically because of reduced Canadian travel. The reported comparisons use different measures and time periods, so they indicate exposure or pressure—not a single league table of losses.
| State or comparison | Reported measure | Period and qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Alaska | Estimated Canadian visitor spending loss of $114 per resident, versus $11 nationally | Tourism Economics state analysis, 2025; per-capita estimate, not total state losses. Tourism Economics |
| Maine, North Dakota, Vermont, and Montana | Hotel occupancy declined at least 3.5% in each state | Year to date through August 2025 among northern border states; occupancy is not a measure of Canadian visitor spending. Tourism Economics |
| Florida | Canadian visitors down 7% | 2025 compared with 2024, according to Visit Florida estimates reported by AP. Associated Press |
| California | Canadian visitors down an estimated 20% | 2025 compared with 2024; estimate attributed to Tourism Economics and reported by AP. Associated Press |
| North Dakota | $14.4 million less Canadian visitor spending | January–June 2025 compared with January–June 2024, as reported by Axios citing the North Dakota tourism media library. Axios |
Tourism Economics also forecast a 4.1% decline in visitor spending across U.S. states in 2025. That is a forecast for international visitor spending overall, not a realized Canadian-only loss.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Is the decline a boycott?
Political tensions and consumer objections were part of the context for the travel pullback. But they were not the only pressures: reporting by the Associated Press also identifies a weaker Canadian dollar and higher airfares and hotel prices as headwinds. The available evidence supports describing a consumer backlash or informal boycott as a factor, not assigning the entire spending decline to it.
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Canadians also spent more on travel at home and on overseas trips in 2025. Statistics Canada reported $81.3 billion in domestic tourism expenditures, up 8.7% year over year, and $31.3 billion in spending on overseas visits, up 17.5%. Those increases are consistent with substitution, but do not prove that the money was redirected from planned U.S. trips.
Quick Recap
What the figures can—and cannot—tell us
- The $20.5 billion figure describes 2024 Canadian visitor spending in the U.S.; the measured 2025 reduction was $3.3 billion in Statistics Canada’s reported spending measure.
- State evidence points to different kinds of exposure: Alaska’s per-capita spending estimate, northern states’ hotel occupancy changes, and reported visitor or spending changes in Florida, California, and North Dakota.
- None of these figures establishes a definitive ranking of states by total dollar losses caused specifically by fewer Canadian visitors.
- Statistics Canada said in its 2026 annual review that early-2026 return border crossings remained similar to late-2025 levels, “signalling a persistent shift away from the United States by Canadian residents in their travel preferences.”
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