Everything is (continually getting) bigger in Texas. While we here in Houston are fully aware of the magnificence of the city – what with the impeccable culinary scene, spellbinding events, and rich Bayou culture – it seems as if the word is getting out.
A recent report published by the U.S. Census Bureau revealed that Houston, following Dallas, experienced the largest numeric population growth of any US city between 2022 and 2023.
The report revealed that most U.S. counties (60%) experienced a net population increase from 2022 to 2023, increasing from 52% of counties the year prior.
Domestic migration, international migration, and natural change were cited as the impetus for the population gains/losses.
According to the report, 8 of the 10 counties that saw largest numeric growth occurred in Texas. In fact, Harris County in Houston was the single-largest growing county in the United States with 53,788 added residents. This was followed by Collin County in DFW, and Montgomery County in Florida.
As of July 1, 2023. Harris County is the third most populated county in the United States, following Los Angeles County and Cook County in Illinois.
Other counties in Texas that lead the population gain from 2022 to 2023 include Denton, Fort Bend, Bexar, Tarrant, and Williamson.
“The Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX metro area surpassed 8 million residents between 2022 and 2023, adding 152,598 residents for a total population of 8,100,037,” the report reads.
“This was the largest numeric population increase of any U.S. metro area between 2022 and 2023, followed by Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, which added 139,789 over the same period, bringing its total population to 7,510,253.”
Denton County reached the 1 million resident milestone, the seventh country in Texas to do so, after experiencing an increase of 30,000 new residents.
As for the counties (with populations above 20,000) that experienced population decreases, California’s Lassen Country experienced the biggest fastest decrease in 2023 with 3.9%. The county was followed by Randolph County, Missouri, and Bronx County, New York.
With a decline of 56,420 residents, Los Angeles County in California saw the highest population decline between 2022 and 2023. The California was followed by New York counties Queens, Kings, and Bronx. The report cites negative domestic migration as the cause.