(The Center Square) – Texas cities are the fastest growing among the largest cities in the United States, according to a new U.S. Census report.
Nine of the 15 fastest-growing cities in the U.S. were in the south, with six in Texas, according to the Census Bureau’s Vintage 2022 Population Estimates, which analyzed cities with populations of 50,000 or more.
The majority of the fastest growing cities in Texas are in the Austin area, with Georgetown reporting the fastest growth by percent change. Kyle, Leander, and New Braunfels reported the next highest growth in the region. Two other fastest growing cities were in North Texas are in the Houston area – Little Elm, in the north, and Conroe, roughly an hour north of Houston.
“Georgetown, Texas, remained the fastest-growing city by percent change in 2022, with the highest rate of growth among all U.S. cities and towns with at least 50,000 people,” Crystal Delbé, a statistician in the Census Bureau’s Population Division, said.
Following Georgetown, Kyle and Leander each reported a 10.9% increase, Little Elm 8%, Conroe 6.3%, and New Braunsfels, 5.7%.
“Texas was the only state that had more than three cities on both the 15 fastest-growing large cities and towns by numeric change and by percent change lists,” the Census report states.
Fort Worth had the largest numeric population gain in 2022, with an increase of 19,170 people; San Antonio had the third-largest of 18,889.
Texas also has the greatest number of cities that are among the 10 largest cities in the U.S.
Houston remains the fourth largest city in the U.S., after New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago, with a population of more than 2.3 million. San Antonio is the seventh-largest with 1.5 million residents; Dallas ranks ninth-largest with 1.3 million; Austin ranks 10th-largest with 1 million. Austin shares the tenth-place ranking with Fort Worth and two other cities with populations of 1 million: Jacksonville, Florida, and San Jose, California.
Three Texas cities reported population milestones last year.
Rockwall, Texas, in northeast Texas, surpassed the 50,000 population mark last year reporting 51,461 residents. Conroe and New Braunsfels crossed the 100,000 population mark, reporting 101,405 and 104,707 residents, respectively.
The Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX metro area had the highest numeric increase in population between 2021 and 2022 of any U.S. metro area, the report found, of 170,396 new residents. The Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX metro area reported the second-greatest number adding 124,281 residents over the same time period.
This article First appeared in the center square