Major Migration? Dallas-Fort Worth Population Growth Tops Nation

Two out of three of the metropolitan areas that had the largest population growth were in Texas, and three Texas metropolitan areas were in the top 10 nationally, new census figures revealed.

The Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington MSA topped the nation when it came to numeric population growth, the most recent Census Bureau data revealed Thursday, with a gain of 131,767 in 2018, or 1.8 percent.

Census officials attribute the growth to migration — both domestic and international migration — as well as natural increase (having more births than deaths). In fact, natural increase impacted DFW growth the most, while domestic migration was the largest source in Phoenix.

“One interesting trend we are seeing this year is that metro areas not among the most populous are ranked in the top 10 for population growth,” Sandra Johnson, a demographer in the Census Bureau’s Population Division, said in a statement. “Though no new metro areas moved into the top 10 largest areas, Phoenix, Seattle, Austin, and Orlando all experienced numeric increases in population since 2010, rivaling growth in areas with much larger populations. This trend is consistent with the overall growth we are seeing in the south and the west.”

But it wasn’t just North Texas that grew — two of the 10 fastest-growing metro areas in the nation are in Texas — Midland, which came in number one with a growth of 4.3 percent; and Odessa, which came in fifth with a growth of 3.2 percent.

Dallas County is the nation’s eighth most populous county, but when it comes to numeric growth, Tarrant County came in eighth, and Collin County came in fourth. When it came to percentage growth, Kaufman County came in third at 4.7 percent.

From 2010 to 2018, Tarrant County grew by 274,276, and Dallas County grew by 271,089. When it comes to most populous cities, DFW came in fourth, with Houston right behind. But when it came to numerical growth, DFW topped the nation, growing by 131,767 from 2017 to 2018. Austin grew by 53,086 in the same time frame.

“Austin’s metro area population increased by 26.3 percent (451,995 people) since 2010 and was the third fastest-growing metro and ranks ninth in cumulative numeric growth,” explained Census statistician and demographer Kristie Wilder. “The growth is largely attributed to increases in net domestic migration.”

Dallas grew by 1,113,489 between 2010 and 2018, placing it at the top of the national list. Houston was second, and Austin was ninth.