Panola County, Texas Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Panola 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
-
F
Education Well below average
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Panola County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 22,726 | 30,160,889 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 27.7 | 112.2 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | -0.56% | 1.41% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 42.1 | 35.9 | 37.3 |
| Households | 8,898 | 10,982,153 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Panola County declined by 1.7% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 22,726 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Panola County is Gen X, aged 45–60, at 20.4% of residents. That is 1.0 points above Texas as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 4,588 20.2% -3.3 pts
- Millennials 29–44 4,093 18.0% -4.9 pts
- Gen X 45–60 4,647 20.4% +1.0 pts
- Boomers 61–79 4,638 20.4% +7.2 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 50.1% of the people living in Panola County and men 49.9%.
- Women 50.1% Texas 50.1%
- Men 49.9% Texas 49.9%
How many residents match a customer profile?
Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Panola County
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Panola County has a the economy index of C, which means it is somewhat prosperous.
| Metric | Panola County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $63,075 | $78,939 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 2.77% | 4.56% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 2.5% | 5.2% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Panola County is about 20% lower than in Texas.
Housing
| Metric | Panola County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $34,582 | $258,873 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $834 | $1,402 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 79.9% | 62.6% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Panola County is about 3.5 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $834 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Panola County spend about 42 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 175 hours, about 7.3 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Panola County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 21.0 | 22.8 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 42.0 | 45.6 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 175 | 190 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $5,423 | $5,888 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 7.1% | 14.4% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 5,860 | 9,879 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 559 | 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 Panola County is 21 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
Panola County has a education index of F, which means it scores poorly in education.
| Metric | Panola County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 15.5% | 29.3% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 2.50 | 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
Panola County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Panola County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 76.3 | 78.0 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 20.1% | 21.1% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 22.1% | 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).
Panola County, TX Compared With Nearby Counties
Panola County, TX is the smallest of the 6 counties compared here, 22,726 residents against a local median of 52,842. Panola County, TX's median home price, at $34,582, runs 83% below the $205,000 typical of the counties around it.
Median household income tells the same story from another angle: $63,075 against a local median of $50,854, 24% above it. The picture is mixed rather than uniform: median household income runs ahead of the neighbourhood while commute runs behind it, so Panola County, TX is trading one against the other rather than simply out-performing what surrounds it. The counties themselves spread $204,483 on median home price, so Panola County, TX sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Panola County, TX has the 6th highest median home price of the 6 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panola County, TX | 22,726 | $63,075 #3/6 | $34,582 #6/6 | 21.0 min #4/6 |
| Harrison County, TX | 70,155 | $66,946 | $248,957 | 18.1 min |
| Shelby County, TX | 24,155 | $49,689 | $205,000 | 17.9 min |
| Rusk County, TX | 52,842 | $68,603 | $59,204 | 22.3 min |
| De Soto Parish, LA | 27,025 | $48,684 | $263,686 | 27.6 min |
| Caddo Parish, LA | 229,305 | $50,854 | $59,652 | 18.2 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Panola County, Texas.
How big is Panola County, Texas by population?
About 22,726 people live in Panola County, Texas, in 8,898 households of 2.5 people on average. The median age is 42.1, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 5 years.
Is Panola County, Texas urban or rural?
Averaged over its land area, Panola County, Texas has 28 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 32% of the U.S. average of 86.
Is Panola County, Texas an affordable place to live?
The median home costs 0.5 times the median household income ($34,582 against $63,075), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $834 a month takes about 16% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
Is unemployment high in Panola County, Texas?
Unemployment in Panola County, Texas is only 2.5%, well below the U.S. rate of 5.2%, a sign of a tight labor market where employers compete for workers.
What share of adults in Panola County, Texas have a college degree?
15.5% of adults in Panola County, Texas hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 6), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.
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