Nueces County, Texas Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Nueces County, TX Population Density Map and Area Scores
Area Score
Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.
-
C
Health Below average
-
C
Income Below average
-
D
Education Well below averageBetter educated than 74% of counties in Texas
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Nueces County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 351,782 | 30,160,889 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 301.9 | 112.2 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | -0.12% | 1.41% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 38.4 | 35.9 | 37.3 |
| Households | 130,834 | 10,982,153 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Nueces County grew by 10.2% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 351,782 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Nueces County is Gen Z, aged 13–28, at 22.5% of residents. That is 1.0 points below Texas as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 78,977 22.5% -1.0 pts
- Millennials 29–44 77,653 22.1% -0.8 pts
- Gen X 45–60 67,107 19.1% -0.4 pts
- Boomers 61–79 56,250 16.0% +2.7 pts
Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below Texas, in percentage points. Children younger than Gen Z and the generations before the Boomers are counted in the population but not shown here, so these shares do not add up to 100%.
Male and female share
Women are 50.3% of the people living in Nueces County and men 49.7%.
- Women 50.3% Texas 50.1%
- Men 49.7% Texas 49.9%
How many residents match a customer profile?
Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Nueces County
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Nueces County has a the economy index of C, which means it is somewhat prosperous.
| Metric | Nueces County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $67,549 | $78,939 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 3.27% | 4.56% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 5.1% | 5.2% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Nueces County is about 14% lower than in Texas.
Housing
| Metric | Nueces County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $242,279 | $258,873 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $1,283 | $1,402 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 59.7% | 62.6% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Nueces County is about 15.7 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $1,283 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Nueces County spend about 36 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 151 hours, about 6.3 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Nueces County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 18.1 | 22.8 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 36.1 | 45.6 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 151 | 190 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $4,668 | $5,888 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 5.4% | 14.4% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 8,673 | 9,879 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 1,561 | 1,441 | 1,355 |
Fastest commutes among counties in
Texas:
Loving County (3.2 min), King County (5.8 min), Terrell County (6.5 min).
Slowest:
Bandera County (38.6 min), San Jacinto County (35.9 min), Liberty County (33.6 min).
The average commute time in Nueces County is 18 minutes, shorter than the 23 minutes in Texas.
Estimated yearly cost applies a single national wage rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area. Traffic volume figures come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.
Education & Households
Nueces County has a education index of D, which means it is barely educated.
| Metric | Nueces County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 20.4% | 29.3% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.62 | 2.69 | 2.53 |
Highest education index among counties in
Texas:
Collin County (0.4), Travis County (0.4), Fort Bend County (0.4).
Lowest:
Kenedy County (0.0), Hudspeth County (0.1), La Salle County (0.1).
Health
Nueces County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Nueces County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 77.3 | 78.0 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 22.2% | 21.1% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 18.8% | 19.9% | 19.0% |
Highest health index among counties in
Texas:
Collin County (0.8), Travis County (0.8), Denton County (0.8).
Lowest:
Starr County (0.7), Brooks County (0.7), Presidio County (0.7).
Nueces County, TX Compared With Nearby Counties
Nueces County, TX is the largest of the 5 counties compared here, 351,782 residents against a local median of 34,714. Nueces County, TX sits close to the middle of its own neighbourhood. No measure below is more than 15% off the local median, so the choice between these counties turns on things this data does not capture.
The largest of those small differences is commute, 15% above the local median at 18.1 min against 15.7 min. Nueces County, TX has the 4th lowest commute of the 5 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nueces County, TX | 351,782 | $67,549 #3/5 | $242,279 #3/5 | 18.1 min #4/5 |
| San Patricio County, TX | 69,985 | $68,913 | $216,507 | 21.1 min |
| Kleberg County, TX | 30,579 | $62,665 | $314,516 | 13.2 min |
| Jim Wells County, TX | 38,850 | $51,697 | $142,499 | 17.7 min |
| Aransas County, TX | 24,876 | $69,093 | $291,463 | 13.8 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Nueces County, Texas.
How big is Nueces County, Texas by population?
About 351,782 people live in Nueces County, Texas, in 130,834 households of 2.6 people on average. The median age is 38.4, close to the U.S. median of 37.3.
How densely populated is Nueces County, Texas?
Averaged over its land area, Nueces County, Texas has 302 people per square mile, a density typical of a mix of suburbs, small towns and farmland. That is about 3.5 times the U.S. average of 86.
Can a typical household afford a home in Nueces County, Texas?
The median home costs 3.6 times the median household income ($242,279 against $67,549), compared with 3.1 times nationally. A ratio of about 3 is traditionally considered affordable. Median rent of $1,283 a month takes about 23% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How common is a college degree in Nueces County, Texas?
20.4% of adults in Nueces County, Texas hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 5), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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