Newly released U.S. Census Bureau data has revealed that Caldwell County was one of the top 10 fastest growing counties nationwide in 2024.

The new population report, published March 13, estimated year-over-year population data from 2023-2024 across all 3,144 U.S. counties and 387 metro areas.

Caldwell County – comprising Central Texas cities like Lockhart, Luling, Uhland, and Mustang Ridge – ranked No. 9 among the top 10 U.S. counties with the highest growth rates by percentage.

The county added 2,323 residents from July 2023 to July 2024, bringing its total population to 52,430. That's a growth rate of 4.6 percent.

Caldwell County cities have been gaining in popularity in recent years, likely due to their location between Austin and San Antonio. Jaded city dwellers may flee to these areas in search for a "small town" feel that's uninterrupted by skyscrapers and bumper-to-bumper traffic on I-35.

Three other Texas counties appeared among the top 10 fastest growing counties by percentage: Kaufman County (No. 2) southeast of Dallas, and the Houston-area counties Liberty (No. 6) and Montgomery (No. 7).

Most populated U.S. metro areas
The Austin metro didn't make any huge strides, but Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands nearly led the nation as the second-fastest growing metro area in 2024.

From July 2023 to July 2024, the Houston metro added 198,171 residents, bringing the total population to 7,796,182.

New York-Newark-Jersey City was the only metro area to outpace Houston's growth during the one-year period. The East Coast metro added 213,403 new residents, which brought the total population to more than 19.94 million last year.

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington was right behind Houston as the third-fastest growing U.S. metro in 2024. The Metroplex gained 177,922 residents last year, and now has a total population of more than 8.34 million.

Kristie Wilder, a Census Bureau Population Division demographer, said in the report that the nation's population growth in its major metros was largely impacted by international migration, rather than changes in birth rates.

"While births continue to contribute to overall growth, rising net international migration is offsetting the ongoing net domestic outmigration we see in many of these areas," Wilder said.

The top 10 U.S. metros with the highest numeric growth from 2023 to 2024 are:

• No. 1 – New York-Newark-Jersey City, New York-New Jersey
• No. 2 – Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, Texas
• No. 3 – Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas
• No. 4 – Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, Florida
• No. 5 – Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Virginia-Maryland-West Virginia
• No. 6 – Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, Arizona
• No. 7 – Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida
• No. 8 – Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Georgia
• No. 9 – Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, Illinois-Indiana
• No. 10 – Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Washington