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Census Bureau estimates Bend population at 102,259 as of last July 1; higher than PSU’s figure

Aerial view of Bend
KTVZ file
Aerial view of Bend

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – Bend grew by about 2,500 people in the year ended last July 1 to an estimated population of 102,059 residents, according to new U.S. Census Bureau estimates released Wednesday night.

That Census Bureau estimate also is more than 1,000 people higher than the estimate prepared by the Portland State University Population Research Center, which late last year released its own set of estimates for Oregon city and county populations, using different stats. It pegged Bend’s July 1, 2021 population at 100,922.

So now, both agree, Bend has topped the 100,000-resident milestone.

The Census Bureau also “found” more residents for some other Central Oregon cities than PSU, while the estimates were lower for others.

Redmond’s Census Bureau population estimate for last July 1 was 35,582, but PSU said it figured 36,122 people called the city home. La Pine’s Census Bureau estimate of 2,538 residents also was lower than PSU’s (2,654), while Sisters’ estimate of 3,081 was lower than the PSU figure of 3,286.

Madras had an estimated 7,683 residents as of last July 1, according to the Census Bureau, but PSU estimated 7,717 residents. Prineville’s Census Bureau figure of 11,227 was higher than PSU’s estimate of 11,042.

Culver, according to the Census Bureau, had 1,655 residents last July 1, a bit higher than PSU’s figure of 1,636. And while PSU estimated Metolius had 981 residents, the Census Bureau estimate breaks the 1,000-resident milestone, estimating a population of 1,015.

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Here's the Census Bureau's release on the new estimates:

Some Cities Experienced Slower Growth Since 2020

MAY 26, 2022 — Populations of cities and towns in the South and West regions of the United States still experienced the most growth from July 2020 to July 2021, with the top 15 fastest-growing cities or towns located in these regions, according to new population estimates for cities and towns, released by the U.S. Census Bureau today.

Fastest-Growing Cities From July 2020 to July 2021

Eight of the 15 fastest-growing large cities or towns by percent change were in the West — with five in Arizona — and seven in the South. The South and West also contained the top 15 cities with the largest numeric gains — 11 in the South and four in the West.

“While only 4% of all cities and towns had a population of 50,000 or more in 2021, collectively they contained 129.3 million people — nearly 39% of the U.S. population,” said Crystal Delbé, a statistician in the Population Division at the Census Bureau. “On the other hand, of the 19,494 incorporated places in the United States, more than 75% had fewer than 5,000 people.”

Top Places for Population Growth

Arizona, Texas, Florida and Idaho all had several places among the 15 fastest-growing cities or towns:

  • Georgetown, Texas, had the largest growth from July 2020 to July 2021, increasing by 10.5%, a rate of growth which would double the population in less than seven years.
  • Georgetown was followed by Leander, Texas (10.1%); Queen Creek Town, Arizona (8.9%); Buckeye, Arizona (8.6%); and New Braunfels, Texas (8.3%).
  • The sixth-fastest-growing area was Fort Myers, Florida (6.8%), followed by Casa Grande, Arizona (6.2%); Maricopa, Arizona (6.1%); North Port, Florida (5.5%); Spring Hill, Tennessee (5.4%); Goodyear, Arizona (5.4%); and Port St. Lucie, Florida (5.2%).
  • Rounding out the list were three suburbs of Boise, Idaho: Meridian (5.2%), Caldwell (5.2%) and Nampa (5.0%).

San Antonio, Texas, topped the list of the largest numeric gainers with an increase of 13,626 people between 2020 and 2021.

  • Following San Antonio were Phoenix, Arizona (13,224); Fort Worth, Texas (12,916); Port St. Lucie, Florida (10,771); North Las Vegas, Nevada (9,917); Cape Coral, Florida (8,220); Buckeye, Arizona (8,001); Frisco, Texas (7,933); New Braunfels, Texas (7,538); Georgetown, Texas (7,193); Meridian, Idaho (6,234); Leander, Texas (6,159); Fort Meyers, Florida (5,891); Denton, Texas (5,844); and McKinney, Texas (5,568).

Most Populous Cities

The top 15 largest cities remained the same as in 2020, although more than half experienced decreases in their population between 2020 and 2021: New York, New York (-305,465); Los Angeles, California (-40,537); Chicago, Illinois (-45,175); Houston, Texas (-11,777); Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (-24,754); San Diego, California (-3,783); Dallas, Texas (-14,777); San Jose, California (-27,419); and Indianapolis, Indiana (-5,343).  

  • The other six most populous cities experienced some moderate to small growth in population. San Antonio, Texas, had the highest numeric gain of 13,626 people between 2020 and 2021. Followed by Phoenix, Arizona (13,224), and Fort Worth, Texas (12,916).
  • The remaining three large cities experienced relatively small population growth. Those cities were Jacksonville, Florida (4,151); Austin, Texas (1,056); and Columbus Ohio (adding only 668 people).

Despite decreasing in population, New York remained the nation’s largest city. Its July 1, 2021, population of 8.5 million was more than twice that of the next largest city, Los Angeles, with a population of nearly 4 million.

  • Following Los Angeles in population size were Chicago, Illinois (2.7 million); Houston, Texas (2.3 million); Phoenix, Arizona (1.6 million); Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1.6 million); San Antonio, Texas (1.5 million); San Diego, California (1.4 million); Dallas, Texas (1.3 million); and San Jose, California (1.0 million).

Other Highlights

Population milestones:

  • Seven places joined the list of cities with populations of 50,000 or more in 2021 with one addition located in the West, and the Midwest and the South each contributing three cities. The seven cities that passed the 50,000 population mark were Kyle, Texas (51,789); Burleson, Texas (51,618); Little Elm, Texas (51,042); Lincoln, California (50,649); Westfield, Indiana (50,630); Newark, Ohio (50,383); and Jeffersonville, Indiana (50,315).
  • Six cities crossed the 100,000 population mark in 2021: Bend, Oregon (102,059); Goodyear, Arizona (101,733); Buckeye, Arizona (101,315); Fishers, Indiana (101,171); Carmel, Indiana (100,777); and Tuscaloosa, Alabama (100,618).

Modest Housing Unit Growth in Nearly All States

The nation’s housing stock grew by about 1.3 million units between July 2020 and July 2021, reaching a total of 142.2 million. The annual growth rate of 1.0% from 2020 to 2021 increased slightly from 0.8% in the 2019 to 2020 period.

  • California had the largest number of housing units (14.5 million) on July 1, 2021, followed by Texas (11.9 million) and Florida (10.1 million). The states with the fewest housing units were Wyoming (274,400) and Alaska (327,900).
  • Utah experienced the nation’s fastest growth in housing units, with an increase of 2.7 percent between July 1, 2020, and July 1, 2021, followed by Idaho (2.5%) and Texas (2.0%). 
  • The states with the slowest housing growth were Rhode Island (0.2%), Illinois (0.2%) and West Virginia (0.3%). The complete list is available at Percentage Change of Housing Units by State Map.
  • The top five counties with the largest numeric gains in housing units between July 1, 2020, and July 1, 2021, were Harris County, Texas (34,132); Maricopa County, Arizona (29,935); Travis County, Texas (25,693); Los Angeles County, California (22,925); and Fort Bend County, Texas (14,230).
  • The fastest-growing county was Rockwall County, Texas, which increased by 6.5% between July 1, 2020, and July 1, 2021, followed by Chambers County, Texas (5.7%); Jasper County, South Carolina (5.4%); Hays and Comal counties in Texas, and Morgan County, Georgia (5.2%) were tied for third fastest growing, followed by Fort Bend County (5.1%); and Long County, Georgia (5.0%).

Table 1. The 15 Fastest-Growing Large Cities Between July 1, 2020, and July 1, 2021, With Populations of 50,000 or More on July 1, 2020
RankArea NameState NamePercent Increase2021 Total Population
1Georgetown cityTexas10.575,420
2Leander cityTexas10.167,124
3Queen Creek townArizona8.966,346
4Buckeye cityArizona8.6101,315
5New Braunfels cityTexas8.398,857
6Fort Myers cityFlorida6.892,245
7Casa Grande cityArizona6.257,699
8Maricopa cityArizona6.162,720
9North Port cityFlorida5.580,021
10Spring Hill cityTennessee5.453,339
11Goodyear cityArizona5.4101,733
12Port St. Lucie cityFlorida5.2217,523
13Meridian cityIdaho5.2125,963
14Caldwell cityIdaho5.263,629
15Nampa cityIdaho5.0106,186
Table 2. The 15 Cities With the Largest Numeric Increase Between July 1, 2020, and July 1, 2021, With Populations of 50,000 or More on July 1, 2020
RankArea NameState NameNumeric Increase2021 Total Population
1San Antonio cityTexas13,6261,451,853
2Phoenix cityArizona13,2241,624,569
3Fort Worth cityTexas12,916935,508
4Port St. Lucie cityFlorida10,771217,523
5North Las Vegas cityNevada 9,917274,133
6Cape Coral cityFlorida8,220204,510
7Buckeye cityArizona8,001101,315
8Frisco cityTexas7,933210,719
9New Braunfels cityTexas7,53898,857
10Georgetown cityTexas7,19375,420
11Meridian cityIdaho6,234125,963
12Leander cityTexas6,159 67,124
13Fort Myers cityFlorida5,89192,245
14Denton cityTexas5,844148,146
15McKinney cityTexas5,568202,690
Table 3. The 15 Most Populous Cities on July 1, 2021
RankArea NameState Name2019 Total Population
1New York cityNew York8,467,513
2Los Angeles cityCalifornia3,849,297
3Chicago cityIllinois2,696,555
4Houston cityTexas2,288,250
5Phoenix cityArizona1,624,569
6Philadelphia cityPennsylvania1,576,251
7San Antonio cityTexas1,451,853
8San Diego cityCalifornia1,381,611
9Dallas cityTexas1,288,457
10San Jose cityCalifornia983,489
11Austin cityTexas964,177
12Jacksonville cityFlorida954,614
13Fort Worth cityTexas935,508
14Columbus cityOhio906,528
15Indianapolis city (balance)Indiana882,039
 Table 4. Total Population Living in Cities and Towns by Population Size as of July 1, 2021
Population SizeNumber of CitiesTotal Population
Under 5,00014,68416,302,959
5,000 to 9,9991,65711,783,275
10,000 to 49,9992,35551,546,205
50,000 and Over798129,277,621

The statistics released today cover all local functioning governmental units, including incorporated places (like cities and towns), minor civil divisions (such as townships), and consolidated cities (government units for which the functions of an incorporated place and its parent county have merged).

On June 30, 2022, the Census Bureau will release estimates of the July 1, 2021, population by age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin for the nation, states and counties, and population by age and sex for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico  and Puerto Rico municipios. The data will be embargoed (June 28, 2022).

With each new release of annual estimates, the entire time series of estimates is revised for all years back to the date of the last census. All previously published estimates (e.g., old vintages) are superseded and archived on the FTP2 site.

More information on the timing of specific population and housing unit estimates products is available at www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/about/schedule.html. The Census Bureau develops city and town population estimates by using updated housing unit estimates to distribute county household population to subcounty areas based on the average household population per housing unit. The Vintage 2021 methodology statement and release notes are available at www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/technical-documentation/methodology.html.

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