Texas Walks Away With Two Out Of The Top Five Fastest Growing Cities In U.S. According To Census Bureau

The South and West continue to have the fastest-growing cities in the United States, according to new population estimates for cities and towns recently release by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Among the 15 cities or towns with the largest numeric gains between 2017 and 2018, eight were in the South, six were in the West, and one was in the Midwest.

Phoenix, Ariz., was at the top of the list with an increase of 25,288 people. Rounding out the top five with the largest population increases were San Antonio, Texas (20,824); Fort Worth, Texas (19,552); Seattle, Wash. (15,354); and Charlotte, N.C. (13,151).

Cities in the South that experienced a surge in population growth were Austin, Texas (12,504); Jacksonville, Fla. (12,153); Frisco, Texas (10,884); McKinney, Texas (9,888); and Miami, Fla. (8,884).

Cities in the West were San Diego, Calif. (11,549); Denver, Colo. (11,053); Henderson, Nev. (10,759); and Las Vegas, Nev. (9,016). Columbus, Ohio (10,770), was the only city from the Midwest on the top 15 list.

Ten incorporated places exceeded the 50,000 population mark in 2018 — seven in the South, two in the West, and one in the Midwest.

These cities and towns were Madison, Ala. (50,440); Maricopa, Ariz. (50,024); Bentonville, Ark. (51,111); Newark, Ohio (50,029); Stillwater, Okla. (50,391); Smyrna, Tenn. (50,775); Leander, Texas (56,111); Little Elm, Texas (50,314); Wylie, Texas (51,585); and Lacey, Wash. (50,718).

Additionally, three cities crossed the 100,000 population mark in 2018. They were Vacaville, Calif. (100,154); San Angelo, Texas (100,215); and Kenosha, Wis. (100,164).

Big City and Small Town America

The United States is a nation of both big cities and small towns. While only 4.0% (775) of all cities had a population of 50,000 or more in 2018, collectively they contained 127.1 million people — nearly 39 percent of the U.S. population.

On the other hand, of the 19,495 incorporated places in the United States, around 76% (14,768) had fewer than 5,000 people.

Housing Unit Growth Remained Steady in Nearly All States

The nation’s housing stock grew by 1.2 million units between 2017 and 2018, reaching 138.5 million housing units in total. The growth rate of 0.8% from 2017 to 2018 remained the same as from the previous year.

Four states gained more than 50,000 housing units between 2017 and 2018: Texas (172,000), Florida (108,000), California (104,000) and North Carolina (63,000).

Utah was the fastest-growing state in terms of housing units, with an increase of 2.2% between 2017 and 2018. Idaho had an increase of 1.9%, and Colorado and Texas had an increase of 1.6% each.

Housing Unit Growth Since Census Day (April 1, 2010)

The nation’s housing stock increased by 6.8 million units (5.2%) since April 1, 2010. North Dakota was the fastest-growing state in terms of housing units, with an increase of 18.9% during the same period. Rounding out the top five states in percentage gain were Utah (13.2%), Texas (11.3%), Idaho (10.2%) and Colorado (9.5%).

Twelve states added more than 150,000 housing units between April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2018. In terms of the largest numeric increase, the top six were Texas (1.1 million), California (597,000), Florida (558,000), North Carolina (357,000), Washington (262,000) and New York (256,000).

Detailed Tables

Table 1.
The 15 Fastest-Growing Large Cities Between July 1, 2017, and July 1, 2018, With Populations of 50,000 or More on July 1, 2017
Rank Area name State name Percent
increase
2018 total population
1 Buckeye city Arizona 8.5                                 74,370
2 New Braunfels city Texas 7.2                                 84,612
3 Apex town North Carolina 6.8                                 53,852
4 Frisco city Texas 6.1                               188,170
5 Meridian city Idaho 6.1                               106,804
6 McKinney city Texas 5.4                               191,645
7 Georgetown city Texas 5.2                                 74,180
8 Rowlett city Texas 5.1                                 66,285
9 St. Cloud city Florida 5.0                                 54,115
10 Ankeny city Iowa 4.6                                 65,284
11 Dublin city California 4.5                                 63,445
12 South Jordan city Utah 4.4                                 74,149
13 Midland city Texas 4.4                               142,344
14 Castle Rock town Colorado 4.3                                 64,827
15 Round Rock city Texas 4.3                               128,739

 

Table 2.
The 15 Cities With the Largest Numeric Increase Between July 1, 2017, and July 1, 2018, With Populations of 50,000 or More on July 1, 2017
Rank Area name State name Numeric increase 2018 total population
1 Phoenix city Arizona                      25,288                 1,660,272
2 San Antonio city Texas                      20,824                 1,532,233
3 Fort Worth city Texas                      19,552                    895,008
4 Seattle city Washington                      15,354                    744,955
5 Charlotte city North Carolina                      13,151                    872,498
6 Austin city Texas                      12,504                    964,254
7 Jacksonville city Florida                      12,153                    903,889
8 San Diego city California                      11,549                 1,425,976
9 Denver city Colorado                      11,053                    716,492
10 Frisco city Texas                      10,884                    188,170
11 Columbus city Ohio                      10,770                    892,533
12 Henderson city Nevada                      10,759                    310,390
13 McKinney city Texas                        9,888                    191,645
14 Las Vegas city Nevada                        9,016                    644,644
15 Miami city Florida                        8,884                    470,914

 

Table 3.
The 15 Most Populous Cities on July 1, 2018
Rank Area name State name 2018 total population
1 New York city New York                        8,398,748
2 Los Angeles city California                        3,990,456
3 Chicago city Illinois                        2,705,994
4 Houston city Texas                        2,325,502
5 Phoenix city Arizona                        1,660,272
6 Philadelphia city Pennsylvania                        1,584,138
7 San Antonio city Texas                        1,532,233
8 San Diego city California                        1,425,976
9 Dallas city Texas                        1,345,047
10 San Jose city California                        1,030,119
11 Austin city Texas                           964,254
12 Jacksonville city Florida                           903,889
13 Fort Worth city Texas                           895,008
14 Columbus city Ohio                           892,533
15 San Francisco city California                           883,305

 

Table 4.
Total Population Living in Cities and Towns by Population Size as of July 1, 2018
Population size Number of cities Total population
Under 5,000 14,768 16,752,328
5,000 to 9,999 1,643 11,740,211
10,000 to 49,999 2,309 50,494,290
50,000 and Over 775 127,108,750

 

Table 5.
Average Annual Population Change, 2017–2018, by Population Size as of July 1, 2017
Population size Number of cities Average numeric change Average percent change
Under 5,000 14,768 3 0.2
5,000 to 9,999 1,661 48 0.7
10,000 to 49,999 2,300 151 0.7
50,000 and Over 766 988 0.7

 

Table 6.
Average Cumulative Population Change, 2010–2018, by Population Size as of July 1, 2010
Population Size Number of cities Average numeric change Average percent change
Under 5,000     14,831 18 0.8
5,000 to 9,999        1,667 307 4.3
10,000 to 49,999        2,278 1,309 5.6
50,000 and Over           719 11,898 7.5

The statistics released cover all local functioning governmental units, including incorporated places (like cities and towns), minor civil divisions (such as townships), and consolidated cities (government units for which the functions of an incorporated place and its parent county have merged).

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