DALLAS — Read this story and more North Texas business news from our partners at the Dallas Business Journal
Growth has suffused pretty much every corner of the Metroplex.
New Census Bureau city population estimates, released in May, were another reminder of this. But year-over-year comparisons provide only a small window through which to view the immense change sweeping across North Texas.
So Dallas Business Journal used the Census Bureau data to compare three years of growth, dating back to the last decennial census. It found that Forney, located in Kaufman County east of Dallas, led the nation for estimated population growth from 2020 to 2023 at 51.2%.
The city, which encompasses nearly 15 square miles and was not too long ago seen as a "sleepy bedroom community," reached an estimated 35,470 residents as of July 1, 2023, according to the Census Bureau data.
Forney is booming with residential, industrial and retail development. Multiple large warehouses and a new Tom Thumb grocery store are under construction, while H-E-B also plans a grocery store in the city.
Overall, three years of population growth data highlight many well-known trends, like intense growth in far northern Collin County and lots of people moving to the west and east sides of the Dallas-Fort Worth region. A lot of this population wave is due to migration, especially those moving within the state of Texas.
Prosper, in Collin and Denton counties, ranked No. 6 nationwide and No. 2 in North Texas with estimated 38.1% growth between 2020 and 2023. This area is also attracting immense interest from residential developers, retailers and investors, especially with the forthcoming extension of the Dallas North Tollway.
In Dallas County, the fastest-growing city was Rowlett, which ranked No. 204 nationally with a 6.8% increase over three years.
In Tarrant County, Burleson was the leader with a 15.9% jump. Fort Worth grew an estimated 6.5% — faster than any of the nation's other 30 largest cities.
Denton, the seat of Denton County north of Fort Worth, ranked 77th nationally with 13.2% growth.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, 20 DFW cities experienced a population decrease from 2020 to 2023. Duncanville, south of Dallas, lost an estimated 1,822 residents to shrink 4.5% to 38,883. Dallas was also among the losers, although its change was very slight: its population shrank 0.1% to an estimated 1,302,868.
