Three of Top Five Cities for Population Growth in Texas

The U.S. Census Bureau released new population estimates from July 1, 2016 to July 1, 2017 that show eight of the top 15 cities experiencing population growth are in the South and three of the top five cities are in Texas. San Antonio was at the top of the list, with growth of 24,200 people. Census Bureau Population Division Demographer Amel Toukabri said this equaled “an average of 66 people per day between 2016 and 2017. That’s a growth rate of 1.6 percent. This growth was enough to push San Antonio's population above the 1.5 million mark.” Other Texas cities with the largest population gains include Dallas with growth of 18,900 and Fort Worth with growth of 18,700. Austin was twelfth, with 12,515 new residents. Percentage-wise, 10 of the top 15 cities were in the South and seven were in Texas. Frisco was the fastest growing percentage-wise at 8.2 percent, 11 times faster than the national growth rate. New Braunfels had eight percent growth, Pflugerville had 6.5 percent growth, and Georgetown had 5.4 percent growth. While the rankings were based on cities with populations of 50,000 people or more, it’s notable that about 205 million people (62.9 percent) live in small towns, 76 percent of which have fewer than 5,000 people. The South had the highest population of city dwellers at 67.9 million, but this represented only 54.9 percent of the total southern population. Overall population in the South has increased 10 percent since the 2010 census. This compared to 7.8 percent growth in the West, three percent in the Midwest, and 2.2 percent in the Northeast.