El Paso has 683,012 residents, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimate. The city remains the sixth-largest in Texas, but something interesting has happened to its population. After years of gradual growth, El Paso lost an estimated 2,219 residents between July 2024 and July 2025.
We checked the latest figures against the Census Bureau population estimates, released in May 2026. El Paso has gained only 0.6% since the revised April 2020 estimates base. Texas, meanwhile, has grown by 8.8%.
For a city with a major military installation, a large university and one of the busiest border crossings in the country, the slow population growth is worth examining. Local employment, housing prices and household income offer more context, especially when we compare them with the growth taking place elsewhere in Texas.
El Paso Population From 2010 to 2025
El Paso had 649,121 residents in 2010. Ten years later, the Census counted 678,815, an increase of 29,694 people. The following five years brought far less growth, and the latest annual estimate is actually lower than the 2024 figure.
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 649,121 |
| 2020 | 678,815 |
| 2024 | 685,231 |
| 2025 | 683,012 |
The latest annual series puts the population peak at 685,231 in 2024. The subsequent decline of 2,219 people represents a 0.32% decrease in a single year, according to the Census-based population history.
We cannot attribute that decline to one cause from the population totals alone. Births, deaths and migration all influence the annual estimates, and a falling total does not tell us how many residents moved away.
Even with the recent decline, El Paso remains one of the largest American cities. Its population is larger than many state capitals, although its geographical isolation from the other major Texas cities gives it a very different setting from Houston, Dallas or Austin.
Texas Is Growing Rapidly, but El Paso Has Barely Grown
Texas reached 31,709,821 residents in 2025, up by more than 2.5 million people from its revised April 2020 population base. El Paso gained only 4,080 residents using the equivalent starting point.
We also looked at the population trends across Texas, where major metropolitan regions have played a central role in the increase. El Paso has not experienced the same expansion.
The contrast becomes clearer when we express the growth rates per 1,000 residents. Texas added 88 people for every 1,000 residents in its 2020 estimates base. El Paso added six.
El Paso also sits more than 500 miles by road from San Antonio, with Mexico directly to its south and New Mexico to its west. The city is not part of the expanding urban corridor that connects San Antonio, Austin and the Dallas-Fort Worth region.
Its geographical position also brings a different set of economic connections. Manufacturing and trade across the Mexican border, military activity at Fort Bliss and employment in local government, education and healthcare all contribute to the area economy.
El Paso County Has Nearly 195,000 More Residents Than the City
You may have seen El Paso population figures approaching 900,000. Those numbers generally refer to El Paso County, which includes the city and surrounding communities.
El Paso County had 877,858 residents in July 2025, compared with 865,657 in the 2020 Census. According to the official county population figures, its growth rate since the revised April 2020 estimates base is 1.4%.
The county includes communities such as Socorro, Horizon City and San Elizario. Subtracting the El Paso city estimate from the county total leaves 194,846 people living outside the city limits.
El Paso County is also not identical to the metropolitan area. Federal statistical agencies define the El Paso metropolitan area as El Paso and Hudspeth counties together. City, county and metro figures answer separate questions, and using them interchangeably can exaggerate the number of people actually living inside El Paso.
More Than 8 in 10 Residents Are Hispanic or Latino
El Paso has a predominantly Hispanic population. The Census Bureau reports that 81.2% of residents identify as Hispanic or Latino, compared with 12% who identify as non-Hispanic White.
Black residents make up 3.6% of the population, and Asian residents make up 1.5%. The Census also reports that 46.8% identify with two or more races. Hispanic origin is measured separately from race, so the percentages cannot all be added together.
Language statistics provide another useful view of the city. An estimated 65.9% of residents aged five and older speak a language other than English at home. Spanish is widely used in local households, businesses and public life.
The foreign-born share is 22.4%, meaning more than one in five residents was born outside the United States. Figures from the Census demographic profile cover the city itself, rather than the surrounding county or the population of Ciudad Juárez in Mexico.
El Paso and Ciudad Juárez sit on opposite sides of the Rio Grande. Families, workers, shoppers and businesses maintain connections across the border, making the international crossing points a regular part of local life.
In the video below, you can find out more about US cities with the most Hispanic Population.
Large Population of Children and Working-Age Adults
Children under 18 make up 24.9% of El Paso residents. Another 14.3% are aged 65 or older, leaving 60.8% in the 18-to-64 age group.
| Age Group | Share of Residents |
|---|---|
| Under 5 | 6.2% |
| Under 18 | 24.9% |
| 18 to 64 | 60.8% |
| 65 and older | 14.3% |
The under-five population is included within the under-18 group. The working-age percentage is calculated from the published shares for children and seniors.
There are also 245,346 households in El Paso, with an average of 2.74 people per household in the 2020 to 2024 American Community Survey.
Another 87.7% of residents aged one and older lived in the same house one year earlier. The Census community profile for El Paso provides additional figures on household composition, education and residential mobility.
The residential mobility figure is especially useful alongside the population decline. El Paso can have a relatively stable population of established households and still experience an overall decrease if more people leave than arrive, after births and deaths are included.
Household Income Is $59,745, but Housing Costs Tell Another Story
Median household income in El Paso is $59,745, measured in 2024 dollars over the 2020 to 2024 survey period. Per capita income is $29,956, and 18.4% of residents live below the federal poverty threshold.
Those numbers put local housing prices into perspective. El Paso has a median owner-occupied home value of $184,500, far below current advertised prices for many homes in the region. The median value comes from household survey responses, not the prices sellers are asking today.
We checked the more recent Realtor.com listing price series, published through the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. In September 2026, the median listing price in the El Paso metropolitan area was $314,987.
That is $130,487 higher than the older survey-based owner-occupied median value, although the two measures cover separate periods and housing samples. The listing figure describes homes offered for sale, not completed transactions.
Renters face their own costs. Median gross rent was $1,073 per month during the 2020 to 2024 survey period, equivalent to $12,876 over twelve months. For comparison, someone earning the city median household income would receive $4,978.75 per month before taxes if their annual income were spread evenly through the year.
At those two median figures, rent alone would equal 21.6% of gross monthly income. The calculation is illustrative, since median rent and median income do not necessarily describe the same household. Utilities, transportation, debt and childcare can increase the pressure on family budgets.
What Do El Paso Residents Earn at Work?
Workers in the El Paso metropolitan area earned an average of $24.94 per hour in May 2025, according to figures published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in August 2026. The national average was $33.54.
That leaves a gap of $8.60 per hour. At 40 paid hours per week over 52 weeks, the gap would represent $17,888 in annual earnings. The calculation assumes year-round full-time employment and does not describe every individual occupation.
The BLS occupational wage report also shows which types of work employ large numbers of local residents.
| Occupation Group | Share of Local Employment |
|---|---|
| Office and administrative support | 13.7% |
| Food preparation and serving | 10.9% |
| Transportation and material moving | 10.0% |
Higher-paying occupations include management, with an average wage of $51 per hour, and healthcare practitioners and technical workers, at $43.48. Food preparation and serving workers earned an average of $13.13 per hour.
The local employment mix helps explain why the average wage is lower than the national figure. Office support, food service and transportation together represent more than a third of area employment, and all three groups include many jobs with lower wages than management or specialized healthcare roles.
Unemployment Reached 4.6% in August 2026
The latest available metropolitan unemployment figures put El Paso at 4.6% in August 2026, down from 4.7% in August 2025. The rates are not seasonally adjusted.
Federal labor figures recorded 19,341 unemployed people in the El Paso metropolitan area in August 2026, compared with 20,105 one year earlier.
We found those figures in the September 30, 2026 employment release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
At the same time, local employment growth has been modest. El Paso County recorded a 0.8% increase in covered employment from December 2024 to December 2025. The change was positive, but it did not represent the kind of rapid expansion seen in some of the fastest-growing Texas counties.
The employment figures refer to establishments located in the county. They should not be read as proof that the city population itself is increasing, since workers can live in neighboring communities and commute into El Paso.
Fort Bliss and UTEP Bring People to El Paso
Fort Bliss is one of the major military installations in the United States and has a significant presence in El Paso. Soldiers, civilian employees and military families contribute to local housing demand, retail spending and public services.
Unlike employment at a typical private business, military assignments can also mean regular arrivals and departures. Changes in deployments and personnel assignments can affect neighborhood housing demand without producing the same kind of permanent population growth.
The University of Texas at El Paso is another major institution. In September 2025, UTEP reported a record enrollment of 26,297 students, up from 25,039 the previous fall.
According to the university enrollment announcement, the increase included a record freshman class and growth across several colleges.
Enrollment growth is not the same as population growth. Some students already live in El Paso, others commute, and some move away after graduation. Still, a university enrolling more than 26,000 students has a substantial presence in the local housing market and workforce.
El Paso Remains One of the Busiest Border Crossings in the United States
Population growth has been slow, but traffic across the international border remains substantial.
In 2025, the El Paso port of entry recorded 7,784,755 personal vehicles arriving from Mexico, up 3.2% from 2024. It handled 10.2% of all personal vehicle entries from Mexico into the United States, making it the second-busiest southern border port for that category after San Ysidro, California.
Nearby Ysleta handled 641,729 inbound commercial trucks in 2025, representing 8.5% of truck entries from Mexico.
The 2025 border crossing report from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics also recorded 11,644 inbound bus crossings at El Paso.
Vehicle crossings should not be confused with the number of individual people entering the country. One vehicle may carry several passengers, and the same commuter can cross repeatedly throughout the year.
For El Paso residents, the crossing points support trade, employment and travel between neighboring communities. Commercial activity can remain substantial even during years when the permanent resident population grows slowly.
Methodology
Population figures refer to the city of El Paso unless a section explicitly identifies El Paso County or the metropolitan area. The latest official city population estimate covers July 1, 2025 and was released in May 2026.
Demographic, household, housing and income figures use the latest Census data available for their respective measures. The 2020 to 2024 American Community Survey estimates describe a five-year survey period and should not be interpreted as measurements taken solely in 2026.
Employment data come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, housing listing prices from Realtor.com data distributed by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, university enrollment from UTEP and border crossing statistics from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
All comparisons and calculations use the stated source figures. City, county and metropolitan boundaries have been kept separate, and percentages have been rounded where necessary.
