State
County
Land Area
96.2 sq mi
Density
1,537.8/sq mi
2020 Growth Rate
2.23%
Growth Since 2010
30.52%
Rank in State
Rank in Country
Denton is a city located in Texas. With a 2020 population of 147,993, it is the 22nd largest city in Texas and the 180th largest city in the United States. Denton is currently growing at a rate of 2.23% annually and its population has increased by 30.52% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 113,383 in 2010. Denton reached it's highest population of 147,993 in 2021. Spanning over 98 miles, Denton has a population density of 1,538 people per square mile.
The average household income in Denton is $78,338 with a poverty rate of 15.69%. The median rental costs in recent years comes to $1,082 per month, and the median house value is $218,800. The median age in Denton is 29.4 years, 29.2 years for males, and 29.7 years for females. For every 100 females there are 95.1 males.
Denton is located in Denton County, Texas about 40 miles northwest of Dallas. It's the 12th largest city in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex which stretches over 13 counties and has a combined population of 7.5 million. While Denton isn't a very large city, it draws in more than twice its population every year for festivals like the North Texas State Fair and Rodeo.
The opening of the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport in 1974, in addition to the city's growing status within the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex in the decade previously, saw an increase from 27,000 in 1960 to 40,000. The second-largest leap in population came in the 1980s, with a growth of an additional 18,000 people, culminating in a population of 66,000 in 1990.
None of this compares, however, to Denton’s largest decade of growth: the 2000s. Denton has seen rapid growth in recent years, along with the majority of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, and has become the country’s seventh fastest growing city. In the year 2000, the population sat at 80,000. By 2010, this had skyrocketed to 117,000: an increase of 36,000 people, or a percentage increase of more than 45%.
Denton is expected to grow faster than ever in the years to come thanks to greater sensitivity to the needs of developers and a shorter permitting process. There are now two master-planned communities proposed that would add 15,000 new homes to the city, increasing residential properties by nearly 50% (https://www.bisnow.com/dallas-ft-worth/news/economic-development/denton-county-poised-for-major-residental-growth-with-commercial-following-those-rooftops-97372).
Denton's history began in the mid-1800s when William S. Peters got a land grant from the Texas Congress and founded a colony in his name. A few years following this, Denton County was formed, and the town was renamed Denton.
In 1866, Denton was incorporated, and as the city was expanding, it grew into a major agricultural trade center. The Texas and Pacific Railway was built in 1881 and gave Denton a rail connection that led to a booming population.
Denton’s connection to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex and the building of the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport saw a near doubling in population growth between the 1960s and the 1980s. Heavy manufacturing companies moved in, joining older firms, and saw the population continue to grow more so into the 1990s and 2000s.
According to the most recent ACS, the racial composition of Denton was:
Race | Population | Percentage |
---|---|---|
White | 107,212 | 78.72% |
Black or African American | 13,052 | 9.58% |
Asian | 5,736 | 4.21% |
Two or More Races | 4,980 | 3.66% |
Some Other Race | 4,100 | 3.01% |
American Indian and Alaska Native | 930 | 0.68% |
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander | 185 | 0.14% |
Type | Count | Average Size | Owned |
---|---|---|---|
All | 46,687 | 2.7 | 48.7 |
Married | 20,507 | 3.3 | 74.4 |
Non Family | 19,426 | 1.72 | 25.8 |
Female | 4,958 | 3.69 | 35.8 |
Male | 1,796 | 3.71 | 39.2 |
3.29
Average Family Size
2.7
Average Household Size
Education Attained | Count | Percentage |
---|---|---|
Less Than 9th Grade | 3,521 | 4.36% |
9th to 12th Grade | 4,263 | 5.28% |
High School Graduate | 15,020 | 18.61% |
Some College | 20,598 | 25.52% |
Associates Degree | 5,929 | 7.35% |
Bachelors Degree | 20,279 | 25.12% |
Graduate Degree | 11,110 | 13.76% |
Name | Total | High School | Bachelors |
---|---|---|---|
White | 53,681 | 51,603 | 23,228 |
Hispanic | 15,876 | 11,021 | 3,577 |
Black | 6,380 | 5,605 | 1,522 |
Asian | 2,986 | 2,958 | 2,299 |
Other Race | 2,368 | 1,446 | 425 |
Multiple Races | 1,876 | 1,646 | 709 |
Native American | 692 | 645 | 147 |
Islander | 112 | 96 | 52 |
The highest rate of high school graduation is among asian people with a rate of 99.06%.
The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 76.99%.
$36,947
Average Earnings
$42,502
Average Male
$32,194
Average Female
77.23% of Denton residents speak only English, while 22.77% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 17.10% of the population.
Name | Total | In Poverty | Poverty Rate |
---|---|---|---|
White | 75,908 | 8,789 | 11.58% |
Hispanic | 30,719 | 6,128 | 19.95% |
Black | 10,943 | 2,466 | 22.53% |
Asian | 4,775 | 1,625 | 34.03% |
Multiple | 4,608 | 661 | 14.34% |
Other | 3,732 | 490 | 13.13% |
Native | 883 | 125 | 14.16% |
Islander | 185 | 72 | 38.92% |
15.69%
Overall Poverty Rate
14.36%
Male Poverty Rate
16.98%
Female Poverty Rate
The race most likely to be in poverty in Denton is Islander, with 38.92% below the poverty level.
The race least likely to be in poverty in Denton is White, with 11.58% below the poverty level.
The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 3.35%. Among those working part-time, it was 30.41%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 21.24%.
38.8%
Overall Marriage Rate
41.1%
Male Marriage Rate
36.6%
Female Marriage Rate
The age group where males are most likely to be married is Over 65, while the female age group most likely to be married is 35-44.
Name | Veterans | % of Total |
---|---|---|
White | 5,429 | 6.29% |
Hispanic | 511 | 2.17% |
Black | 405 | 3.64% |
Other | 156 | 4.51% |
2 or More | 97 | 3.27% |
Asian | 83 | 1.73% |
Indian | 56 | 7.45% |
6.31%
Veteran Poverty Rate
28.05%
Veteran Disability Rate
67.1%
Labor Force Participation
63.6%
Employment Rate
5.2%
Unemployment Rate
Non citizens include legal permanent residents (green card holders), international students, temporary workers, humanitarian migrants, and illegal immigrants.
87.31%
Native Born
12.69%
Foreign Born
8.56%
Non Citizen
4.13%
Naturalized
87.31% of Denton residents were born in the United States, with 56.59% having been born in Texas. 8.56% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.
Year | Population | Growth | Annual Growth Rate |
---|---|---|---|
2021 | 147,993 | 3,226 | 2.23% |
2020 | 144,767 | 3,226 | 2.28% |
2019 | 141,541 | 3,226 | 2.33% |
2018 | 138,315 | 2,686 | 1.98% |
2017 | 135,629 | 1,368 | 1.02% |
2016 | 134,261 | 3,107 | 2.37% |
2015 | 131,154 | 2,937 | 2.29% |
2014 | 128,217 | 3,187 | 2.55% |
2013 | 125,030 | 1,457 | 1.18% |
2012 | 123,573 | 3,472 | 2.89% |
2011 | 120,101 | 3,091 | 2.64% |
2010 | 117,010 | 36,473 | 3.81% |
2000 | 80,537 | 14,267 | 1.97% |
1990 | 66,270 | 18,207 | 3.26% |
1980 | 48,063 | 8,189 | 1.89% |
1970 | 39,874 | 13,030 | 4.04% |
1960 | 26,844 | 5,472 | 2.31% |
1950 | 21,372 | 10,180 | 6.68% |
1940 | 11,192 | 1,605 | 1.56% |
1930 | 9,587 | 1,961 | 2.31% |
1920 | 7,626 | 2,894 | 4.89% |
1910 | 4,732 | 545 | 1.23% |
1900 | 4,187 | 1,629 | 5.05% |
1890 | 2,558 | 0.00% |