county

Bell County, TX

Demographic and economic profile of Bell County, TX, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Bell County's economy is anchored by its proximity to Fort Cavazos (formerly Fort Hood), one of the largest U.S. military installations, which shapes a young workforce with a median age of 32.3 and a labor force participation rate of 65.7%. The county's 399,578 residents saw 11.0% population growth over five years, with median household income at $68,865 and relatively affordable housing at a $221,100 median home value. Unemployment sits at 7.3% and the poverty rate at 14.6%, reflecting income volatility common to military-dependent economies, while 27.2% of residents hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

399,578

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Household Income

$68,865

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

32.3 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+11.0% since 2018

Bell County added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone190,153 (49.1%)
  • Black or African American Alone88,557 (22.9%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race36,441 (9.4%)
  • Some Other Race Alone28,263 (7.3%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races25,915 (6.7%)
  • Asian Alone11,766 (3.0%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish49,979
  2. 2.German or other West Germanic2,565
  3. 3.Korean2,399
  4. 4.Other Asian and Pacific Island2,083
  5. 5.Other Indo-European1,771

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

27.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

60.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

11.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

8.6%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

48,220

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$48,752

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$33,558

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

7.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

14.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance38,525
  2. 2.Retail Trade (Group)19,403
  3. 3.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services16,662
  4. 4.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services15,852
  5. 5.Construction (Group)11,966

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations56,261
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations35,389
  3. 3.Service Occupations27,587
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations24,291
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations15,500

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Public Administration (LQ 1.63×)11,916
  2. 2.Construction (LQ 1.16×)12,385
  3. 3.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 1.11×)15,056
  4. 4.Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities (LQ 1.11×)10,023
  5. 5.Retail Trade (LQ 1.10×)18,469

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$221,100

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$1,168/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

56.5%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $200,000 to $249,99913,366 (16.6%)
  • $300,000 to $399,99912,314 (15.3%)
  • $250,000 to $299,99911,306 (14.1%)
  • $150,000 to $174,9996,524 (8.1%)
  • $400,000 to $499,9996,514 (8.1%)
  • $175,000 to $199,9995,433 (6.8%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

27.2%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

91.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

65.7%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$37,496

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

23.9 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

5.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone133,618 (75.8%)
  • Carpooled19,622 (11.1%)
  • Worked At Home16,570 (9.4%)
  • Walked3,253 (1.8%)
  • Other1,597 (0.9%)
  • Taxi612 (0.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.