Killeen, Texas Population 2023

162,900

Killeen is a city located in Bell County Texas. Killeen has a 2023 population of 162,900. Killeen is currently growing at a rate of 2.1% annually and its population has increased by 6.44% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 153,044 in 2020.

The average household income in Killeen is $64,686 with a poverty rate of 15.73%. The median rental costs in recent years comes to - per month, and the median house value is -. The median age in Killeen is 29.6 years, 28.7 years for males, and 30.8 years for females.

Situated in Bell County, Texas, Killeen is the 21st most populous city in Texas. The city is located about 70 miles north of Austin and 3 miles outside the Fort Hood military base. The economy of Killeen depends largely on the cantonment of Fort Hood, located directly adjacent to the city. Over the years Killeen has seen rapid population growth, due to the high influx of soldiers and their families.

Real Estate and Diversity

Killeen, TX, was ranked in 2007 as the most affordable housing market in the whole of the United States with an average cost of $136,725.

In 1950, there were no blacks living in the city of Killeen until the construction of Camp Hood. A few years into the decade, Marlboro Heights, an all black subdivision was developed, and in 1956 the city school board voted in favor of integration. Today, almost 40% of Killeen's population is black and the city has almost closed the white and black homeownership gap (https://money.cnn.com/2018/04/17/news/economy/kileen-texas-homeownership/index.html).

Population Growth

At the turn of the 20th century, Killeen saw a population of around only 800. Today, this has grown to over 145,000, due mainly to the military presence in the city. Between 1940 and 1950, the population of Killeen had gone up by a multiple of over 5, from 1,300 in 1940 to over 7,045 in 1950, with an annual growth rate of 18.41%.

This population only continued to grow in the decades that followed, reaching over 23,000 in 1960, over 35,000 in 1970, over 46,000 in 1980, over 63,000 in 1990 and almost 87,000 in 1990, more than 10 times that what it was 100 years earlier. It's estimated that the population of the Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood area will grow 23% between 2015 and 2030 to reach 550,000 people.

As the railway expanded its tracks through Texas in 1881, what was a small farming community by the name of Palo Alto soon became a booming town, taking its name from Frank P. Killeen, the railroad’s assistant general manager. In the year that followed, stores, a school, and a saloon had all been built, and by 1884 the town had a hotel, a lumberyard, a blacksmith shop, two saloons, two cotton gins, two gristmills, five general stores, and roughly 350 people.

Killeen remained relatively small and isolated until the 1940s and World War II. The aforementioned Camp Hood was constructed in 1942 (renamed Fort Hood in the 1950s) as a training post to meet the demand for soldiers. This brought with it people in the thousands, not only from soldiers and their families, but contractors, laborers, and construction workers also, turning Killeen almost overnight into a military boom town. By the 1970s, Killeen had grown into a thriving city of over 35,000.

Killeen Demographics

According to the most recent ACS, the racial composition of Killeen was:

  • White: 39.03%
  • Black or African American: 38.95%
  • Two or more races: 11.63%
  • Other race: 4.68%
  • Asian: 4.02%
  • Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander: 1%
  • Native American: 0.69%
State
Texas
Land Area (mi²)
54.5 sq mi
Density (mi²)
2,986.60/sq mi
Growth Rate
2.1% (3,354)
Growth Since 2020
6.44% (9,856)
The current population of Killeen, Texas is 162,900 based on our projections of the latest US Census estimates.The last official US Census in 2020 recorded the population at 153,044.

Killeen, Texas Population 2023

Population by Race

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

White

Black or African American

Two or more races

Other race

Asian

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Native American

Killeen Population by Race

Killeen Population Pyramid 2023

Killeen Median Age

29.6

Total

28.7

Male

30.8

Female

Killeen Adults

There are 105,177 adults, (10,528 of whom are seniors) in Killeen.

Killeen Age Dependency

58.6

Age Dependency Ratio

11.1

Old Age Dependency Ratio

47.4

Child Dependency Ratio

Killeen Sex Ratio

Female76,23550.8%
Male73,84749.2%

Killeen Population by Age

Killeen Renter vs Owner Occupied by Household Type

3.31

Average Family Size

2.69

Average Household Size

45.0%

Rate of Home Ownership

Married

Male

Female

NonFamily

owner

renter

Killeen Households and Families

Male

Female

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

Less Than 9th Grade

9th to 12th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Associates Degree

Bachelors Degree

Graduate Degree

Killeen Educational Attainment by Sex (over 25)

Killeen Educational Attainment by Race

High School Graduation Rate

Bachelors Rate

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

The highest rate of high school graduation is among white people with a rate of 78.05%.

The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 24.2%.

Killeen Educational Attainment by Race

All

Male

Female

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

$34,855

Average Earnings

$40,617

Average Male

$30,243

Average Female

Killeen Earnings by Educational Attainment

Killeen Language by Age

Only English

Spanish

Other Indo-European Languages

Asian and Pacific Island Languages

Other Languages

Killeen Language

76.2% of Killeen residents speak only English, while 23.8% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 17.05% of the population.

Killeen Language

Killeen Poverty by Race

rate

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

15.73%

Overall Poverty Rate

13.98%

Male Poverty Rate

17.41%

Female Poverty Rate

Poverty in Killeen

The race most likely to be in poverty in Killeen is Native, with 34.53% below the poverty level.

The race least likely to be in poverty in Killeen is Asian, with 14% below the poverty level.

The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 4.46%. Among those working part-time, it was 19.57%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 21.81%.

Killeen Poverty

rate

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

Killeen Poverty Rate by Education

rate

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

Killeen Poverty Rate by Employment Status and Sex

Killeen Income by Household Type

Households

Families

MarriedFamilies

NonFamilies

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

mean

median

Income by Household Type

Killeen Marital Status

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Marriage Rates

48.1%

Overall Marriage Rate

51.4%

Male Marriage Rate

45.1%

Female Marriage Rate

Killeen Married by Age and Sex

male

female

Killeen Marriage

The age group where males are most likely to be married is 55-64, while the female age group most likely to be married is 45-54.

Killeen Marital Status by Race

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Killeen Marital Status

Second Gulf War

First Gulf War

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

25,079

Number of Veterans

18,907

Male Veterans

6,172

Female Veterans

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

Killeen Veterans by War

count

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

Killeen Veterans by Age

count

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

Killeen Veterans by Race

Killeen Veterans by Education

Less Than 9th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Bachelors or Greater

8.75%

Veteran Poverty Rate

28.17%

Veteran Disability Rate

Killeen Veterans by Education

LaborForceParticipation

67.7%

Labor Force Participation

53.5%

Employment Rate

10.6%

Unemployment Rate

Killeen Employment by Age

LaborForceParticipation

Killeen Employment by Race

LaborForceParticipation

Killeen Employment by Education

Origin of Non-Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

Non citizens include legal permanent residents (green card holders), international students, temporary workers, humanitarian migrants, and illegal immigrants.

Origin of Naturalized Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

35%

Born in Killeen

87.34%

Native Born

8.7%

Foreign Born

3.78%

Non Citizen

4.92%

Naturalized

Place of Birth

87.34% of Killeen residents were born in the United States, with 35% having been born in Texas. 3.78% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.

Killeen Place of Birth

Note: data after 2021 is projected based on recent change

Download Table Data

Enter your email below, and you'll receive this table's data in your inbox momentarily.

Killeen Population by Year