Sterling County, Texas Demographics
Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.
Sterling 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.
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C
Health Below averageHealthier than 73% of counties in Texas
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B
Income Around average
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F
Education Well below averageLess educated than 77% of counties in Texas
Source: Map AI Methodology
Population: density and quick facts
| Metric | Sterling County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 1,468 | 30,160,889 | 337,468,954 |
| Population density (per sq mi) | 1.6 | 112.2 | 86.4 |
| Population growth (%/yr) | 2.33% | 1.41% | 0.59% |
| Median age | 32.1 | 35.9 | 37.3 |
| Households | 399 | 10,982,153 | 130,235,071 |
Population in Sterling County grew by 31.8% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 1,468 in 2024.
Population Growth 2009–2024
Race & Ethnicity
Age & Sex
The largest generation in Sterling County is Gen X, aged 45–60, at 22.5% of residents. That is 3.0 points above Texas as a whole.
- Gen Z 13–28 265 18.0% -5.4 pts
- Millennials 29–44 274 18.7% -4.2 pts
- Gen X 45–60 330 22.5% +3.0 pts
- Boomers 61–79 205 14.0% +0.7 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 48.0% of the people living in Sterling County and men 52.0%.
- Women 48.0% Texas 50.1%
- Men 52.0% Texas 49.9%
How many residents match a customer profile?
Residents matching this profile
100% of everyone living in Sterling County
Pick an age range and a women/men split and the figure above answers with how many residents that profile reaches.
Economy
Sterling County has a the economy index of B, which means it is quite prosperous.
| Metric | Sterling County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $69,166 | $78,939 | $80,455 |
| Income growth (%/yr) | 5.13% | 4.56% | 4.80% |
| Unemployment rate | 2.1% | 5.2% | 5.2% |
The median household income in Sterling County is about 12% lower than in Texas.
Housing
| Metric | Sterling County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $200,000 | $258,873 | $248,835 |
| Median rent | $952 | $1,402 | $1,407 |
| Homeownership rate | 77.7% | 62.6% | 65.2% |
The median home price in Sterling County is about 17.5 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $952 per month for that long.
Commute Time & Mobility
Commuters in Sterling County spend about 32 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 134 hours, about 5.6 full days, spent commuting.
| Metric | Sterling County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-way commute (min) | 16.0 | 22.8 | 22.4 |
| Round-trip commute (min) | 32.1 | 45.6 | 44.8 |
| Yearly time spent (hours) | 134 | 190 | 187 |
| Estimated yearly cost | $4,143 | $5,888 | $5,790 |
| Work from home | 7.1% | 14.4% | 15.0% |
| Highway traffic (vehicles/day) | 1,714 | 9,879 | 8,813 |
| Local road traffic (vehicles/day) | 52 | 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 Sterling County is 16 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
Sterling County has a education index of F, which means it scores poorly in education.
| Metric | Sterling County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 21.1% | 29.3% | 31.6% |
| Average household size | 3.59 | 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
Sterling County has a health index of C, which means it is somewhat healthy.
| Metric | Sterling County | Texas Avg | U.S. Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy (years) | 84.0 | 78.0 | 78.3 |
| Self-rated poor health | 19.4% | 21.1% | 16.3% |
| Smokers | 19.3% | 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).
Sterling County, TX Compared With Nearby Counties
How Sterling County, TX compares with the 1 counties closest to it.
| Area | Population | Median household income | Median home price | Commute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sterling County, TX | 1,468 | $69,166 #2/2 | $200,000 #2/2 | 16.0 min #2/2 |
| Howard County, TX | 32,290 | $69,578 | $223,750 | 13.5 min |
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Sterling County, Texas.
How big is Sterling County, Texas by population?
About 1,468 people live in Sterling County, Texas, in 399 households of 3.6 people on average. The median age is 32.1, so residents are younger than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 5 years.
How densely populated is Sterling County, Texas?
Averaged over its land area, Sterling County, Texas has 2 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 2% of the U.S. average of 86.
Is Sterling County, Texas an affordable place to live?
The median home costs 2.9 times the median household income ($200,000 against $69,166), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $952 a month takes about 17% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.
How strong is the job market in Sterling County, Texas?
Unemployment in Sterling County, Texas is only 2.1%, well below the U.S. rate of 5.2%, a sign of a tight labor market where employers compete for workers.
How common is a college degree in Sterling County, Texas?
21.1% of adults in Sterling 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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