County · Texas

Matagorda County, Texas

Matagorda County, Texas. Matagorda County had 36,463 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, up 0.6% since 2020, slower than Texas (+8.8%). It holds 9 places (2 cities, villages and boroughs and 7 census-designated) and 13 census tracts. GEOID 48321.

Matagorda County is the county of the Bay City, TX micropolitan statistical area (the Census Bureau's July 2023 delineation).

Residents, July 2025 estimate

36,463

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 36,255 · ACS 2020-2024: 36,329

Median household income

$58,628

±$4,363 (90% margin)
Texas: $78,476

Median home value

$172,900

±$18,533 (90% margin)
Texas: $283,800

Median gross rent

$999

±$55 (90% margin)
Texas: $1,403

How many people live in Matagorda County, and is it growing?

The 2020 Census counted 36,255 residents in Matagorda County. The Census Bureau estimates 36,463 for July 1, 2025, up 0.6% since 2020, slower than Texas (+8.8%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 36,329 over 1,093 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 +52 (36,339)
2021→2022 −232 (36,107)
2022→2023 +145 (36,252)
2023→2024 −62 (36,190)
2024→2025 +273 (36,463)

Matagorda County in Texas. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Matagorda County	Texas	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	36,329	30,188,424	−445
Households	15,439±437	10,992,816	+1,591
Average household size	2.33±0.07	2.69	−0.30
Housing units	19,058±30	12,128,515	−496

Matagorda County's population since 2000

From 37,957 in 2000 to 36,463 in 2025: down 3.9%. The 2000, 2010 and 2020 figures are census counts. The 2005 figure is the Census Bureau's intercensal estimate, revised to fit the 2000 and 2010 counts and drawn on 2010 boundaries; 2015 and 2025 are July 1 estimates made from the census before them.

2000 Census 37,957
2005 (estimate) 37,132
2010 Census 36,702
2015 (estimate) 36,747
2020 Census 36,255
2025 (estimate) 36,463

Source: The 2000, 2010 and 2020 Census counts and the Census Bureau's population estimates (intercensal 2000-2010, Vintage 2020, Vintage 2025) · Census population estimates

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); PEP Vintage 2025 (CO-EST2025); 2020 Census · Check it at data.census.gov

What cities and towns are in Matagorda County?

Matagorda County holds 9 places: 2 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places) and 7 census-designated places. The largest is Bay City with 17,488 residents (2025 estimate). Places that cross a county line are listed with the share of their 2020 residents who live in this county.

Places in Matagorda County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Bay City	city	18,061	17,730±27	$53,840	$160,800	26.0%	100%
Palacios	city	4,395	4,388±16	$52,620	$153,800	19.2%	100%
Van Vleck	CDP	1,923	1,763±393	$58,504	$208,300	10.6%	100%
Sargent	CDP	1,212	1,422±268	$60,307	$188,200	18.6%	100%
MarkhamGEOID 4846716	CDP	908	873±540	$68,536	$137,600	1.7%	100%
BlessingGEOID 4808668	CDP	856	418±304	$51,313	$138,100	0.0%	100%
MidfieldGEOID 4848048	CDP	356	0±15	not published	not published	–	100%
MatagordaGEOID 4847016	CDP	313	182±125	$14,145	$380,000	75.3%	100%
WadsworthGEOID 4876012	CDP	302	366±223	$31,847	not published	2.7%	100%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); 2020 place-by-county parts · Check it at data.census.gov

Who lives in Matagorda County?

The median resident of Matagorda County is 37.8 years old; 25.6% are under 18 and 18.2% are 65 or older. The largest group is Hispanic or Latino residents (of any race) at 43.7%, then non-Hispanic white residents at 41.4%. 11.8% of residents were born outside the United States.

Age, origin and education, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Race groups are non-Hispanic; Hispanic includes any race.
Measure	Matagorda County	Texas	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	37.8±0.7	35.6	no clear change
Under 18 years	25.6%±0.1 pts	25.0%	–
65 years and over	18.2%±0.3 pts	13.4%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	43.7%	39.7%	+1.2 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	41.4%±0.7 pts	39.1%	−2.2 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	9.7%±0.7 pts	11.9%	no clear change
Asian alone, not Hispanic	1.6%±0.3 pts	5.5%	no clear change
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.1%±0.1 pts	0.1%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.0%±0.1 pts	0.1%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	2.6%±0.7 pts	3.1%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.9%±0.7 pts	0.4%	–
Born outside the United States	11.8%±1.8 pts	17.6%	no clear change
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	27.2%±2.1 pts	35.1%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	8.0%±1.2 pts	6.2%	–
With a disability	17.5%±2.4 pts	12.3%	–
No health insurance coverage	17.9%±2.4 pts	17.1%	no clear change
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	81.0%±2.5 pts	86.0%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	22.2%±2.5 pts	33.8%	+4.8 pts
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	8.0%±1.8 pts	12.3%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	1.6%±0.9 pts	2.0%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profiles DP02, DP05) · Check it at data.census.gov

What do households in Matagorda County earn?

Half of Matagorda County's 15,439 households earn less than $58,628 a year (±$4,363), against $78,476 in Texas. In 2015-2019 it was $60,197 in 2024 dollars; the margins of error cannot tell the two periods apart. 20.7% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Matagorda County	Texas	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$58,628±$4,363	$78,476	no clear change
Mean household income	$78,037±$4,838	$109,933	–
Per capita income	$32,494±$1,904	$40,752	no clear change
People below the poverty line	20.7%±3.5 pts	13.8%	no clear change
Children under 18 below the poverty line	31.7%±7.2 pts	18.7%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	17.0%±3.2 pts	11.4%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	86.0%±2.6 pts	91.4%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What does housing cost in Matagorda County?

Owners occupy 68.1% of Matagorda County's occupied homes and renters 31.9%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $172,900 by its owner (±$18,533). The median renter pays $999 a month including utilities, and 43.9% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Matagorda County	Texas	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$172,900±$18,533	$283,800	+$31,616
Median gross rent	$999±$55	$1,403	no clear change
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	43.9%±8.0 pts	42.3%	no clear change
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$1,672±$245	$2,106	–
Owner-occupied homes	68.1%±3.1 pts	62.6%	no clear change
Housing units	19,058±30	12,128,515	−496
Homeowner vacancy rate	1.5%±0.9 pts	1.1%	–
Rental vacancy rate	10.3%±4.0 pts	7.7%	–
Single-family detached homes	68.4%±2.7 pts	64.4%	–
Mobile homes	12.1%±2.1 pts	6.4%	–
Built 2020 or later	1.5%±0.6 pts	4.0%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	6.4%±2.1 pts	3.1%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP04) · Check it at data.census.gov

How many new homes is Matagorda County building?

Builders took permits for 300 new housing units across Matagorda County in 2025 (251 single-family), 8.2 per 1,000 residents.

2019 156 units
2020 176 units
2021 506 units
2022 225 units
2023 154 units
2024 153 units
2025 300 units

Source: Building Permits Survey, annual county files 2019-2025, U.S. Census Bureau · Census Building Permits Survey

How do people in Matagorda County get to work?

77.9% of Matagorda County's workers drive alone and 6.1% work from home. The average trip to work takes 24.0 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 8.7%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Matagorda County	Texas	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	60.8%±2.5 pts	65.3%	–
Unemployment rate	8.7%±2.1 pts	5.3%	+2.9 pts
Drove alone to work	77.9%±3.1 pts	71.4%	–
Carpooled	13.6%±2.7 pts	10.0%	–
Public transportation	0.8%±1.1 pts	0.9%	–
Walked	0.9%±0.7 pts	1.5%	–
Worked from home	6.1%±2.0 pts	14.4%	+3.2 pts
Mean travel time to work	24.0 min±1.8	26.7 min	no clear change

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What are Matagorda County's census tracts?

Matagorda County is divided into 13 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $36,723 (Tract 7301) to $74,974 (Tract 7302.04).

Census tracts of Matagorda County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates; sort by any column

Tract 730148321730100	Bay City (70%)	2,513	3,144±604	$36,723	$131,500	$578	45.1%
Tract 7302.0248321730202	Van Vleck (28%)	1,586	1,157±242	$68,721	$233,400	not published	9.9%
Tract 7302.0348321730203	Van Vleck (29%)	2,678	2,782±654	$46,388	$162,900	$1,424	17.0%
Tract 7302.0448321730204	Bay City (99%)	4,257	4,045±821	$74,974	$162,500	$1,086	14.9%
Tract 7303.0148321730301	Bay City (96%)	3,744	3,690±792	$68,354	$214,700	$1,197	13.1%
Tract 7303.0248321730302	Bay City (93%)	4,957	4,878±517	$47,524	$128,000	$1,014	21.6%
Tract 7303.0348321730303	Bay City (4%)	847	705±236	$53,750	$324,300	not published	13.6%
Tract 730448321730400	Bay City (75%)	2,948	2,834±539	$50,359	$173,200	$969	37.3%
Tract 7305.0248321730502	Matagorda (24%)	1,274	1,408±343	$43,971	$246,500	not published	15.1%
Tract 7305.0348321730503	Sargent (50%)	1,773	2,452±453	$70,667	$181,800	$898	19.8%
Tract 730648321730600	Palacios (45%)	5,501	5,960±683	$63,416	$171,400	$794	14.1%
Tract 730748321730700	Markham (16%)	4,177	3,274±632	$61,434	$139,500	not published	22.5%
Tract 990048321990000	–	0	0±15	not published	not published	not published	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) · Check it at data.census.gov

How does Matagorda County compare with Texas's other counties?

Matagorda County's rank among Texas's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	87th of 253
Growth 2020-2025	160th of 254
Residents per square mile	102nd of 254
Median household income	184th of 253
Median home value	116th of 247
Median gross rent	103rd of 245
Poverty rate	30th of 240
Bachelor's degree or higher	99th of 252
Median age	149th of 254

Every county in Texas

Source: PlainCities ranks from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) and PEP Vintage 2025 · How ranks are computed

How these figures are made: methodology and release checks · reading a margin of error · every state · corrections

Not on this page: crime, weather and schools for Matagorda County are other agencies' records. Crime: the FBI's Crime Data Explorer · climate: NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals · schools: the National Center for Education Statistics' school search.