U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Skip Header


For Immediate Release: Thursday, May 23, 2019

Fastest-Growing Cities Primarily in the South and West

Ten Places Exceed Population of 50,000 in Latest Census Bureau Estimates

MAY 23, 2019 — The South and West continue to have the fastest-growing cities in the United States, according to new population estimates for cities and towns released today 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 today 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).

The Census Bureau will release 2018 population estimates by age, sex, race and Hispanic origin for the nation, states and counties on June 20, 2019. The data will be embargoed June 18.

###

Contact


Kristina Barrett
Public Information Office
301-763-3030
pio@census.gov

Page Last Revised - October 28, 2021
Is this page helpful?
Thumbs Up Image Yes Thumbs Down Image No
NO THANKS
255 characters maximum 255 characters maximum reached
Thank you for your feedback.
Comments or suggestions?

Top

Back to Header