Austin Population Milestone: One Million and Counting

The city of Austin is home to one state capitol, four college football national championships, 17 moonlight towers, and now, for the first time in its 187-year history, more than one million residents.

The latest data from the United States Census Bureau confirmed that Austin’s population broke the seven-figure mark in 2025, when 1,002,632 residents called the Texas capital city their home. That number reflected a 4,025 increase in residents since July 1, 2024. This 0.4-percent year-over-year growth ascended Austin into position as the twelfth most populous city in the United States.

“This is a historic moment for Austin, and one that my predecessor Edwin Waller probably didn’t even think about when he surveyed the site that would eventually become our beloved city back in 1839,” said Mayor Kirk Watson. “There’s no denying now that Austin is a big city, and we have big challenges. But we also still have small town heart, and that’s part of what makes it the best place in the country to raise a family or to seek out new opportunities.”

The Census Bureau released population estimates for counties and metro areas in March, and Valencia said that data helps explain what’s driving Austin’s continued growth. While the region experienced a decline in international migration, the drop in Austin was not as steep as in other cities. Additionally, migration from elsewhere in Texas and the rest of the country combined with stable natural increase (the difference between births and deaths) to maintain steady growth in the city, Travis County, and the metro area.

“Crossing the threshold of one million residents is an exciting milestone that underscores Austin’s role as the region’s principal city, but it’s not surprising,” City Demographer Lila Valencia said. “The latest estimates from the Census Bureau bear out what we have been seeing in our internal estimates since 2020.”

Valencia credited job growth that has outperformed expectations and housing costs that have fallen from their pandemic-era peaks as two factors that help existing Austinites remain in the city while drawing in new residents from around the state, country, and world.

In addition to population estimates, the Census Bureau’s release included housing unit estimates at the national, state, and county levels. These estimates indicate Travis County had the seventh greatest increase in housing stock among counties nationwide. Between July 2024 and July 2025, Travis County added 16,197 housing units, growing at a rate of 2.4 percent. During this time, counties in the Austin metro area added a total of 31,897 housing units. Fifty-one percent of these units were added in Travis County, 24 percent in Williamson, 17 percent in Hays, 6 percent in Bastrop, and 2 percent in Caldwell County. Hays County ranked 9th among counties adding units at the highest rate. Austin’s city limits lie primarily within Travis County but also extend into Hays and Williamson Counties as well. 

The newly released data is crucial in determining how the federal government proportionately distributes billions of dollars in grants and program funding for social services, community development, and the construction of schools, roads, and hospitals.  

Data from the Census also play a central role in redrawing boundaries for representative districts for the U.S. Congress, Texas Legislature, and Austin City Council.  

In June, the U.S. Census Bureau will release population estimates with age, sex, and race/ethnicity detail for states and counties.

For more information visit the Austin Demographics and Data Division’s online hub.