Top navigation skipped
The 41-county High Plains region covers about 39,500 square miles in the Texas Panhandle, stretching from the Oklahoma state line in the east and north and the New Mexico state line in the west to the Lubbock metro area in the south.
The region includes two metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs): the Amarillo MSA, comprising Armstrong, Carson, Oldham, Potter and Randall counties, and the Lubbock MSA, comprising Crosby, Lubbock and Lynn counties.
High Plains Region Counties:
- Armstrong
- Bailey
- Briscoe
- Carson
- Castro
- Childress
- Cochran
- Collingsworth
- Crosby
- Dallam
- Deaf Smith
- Dickens
- Donley
- Floyd
- Garza
- Gray
- Hale
- Hall
- Hansford
- Hartley
- Hemphill
- Hockley
- Hutchinson
- King
- Lamb
- Lipscomb
- Lubbock
- Lynn
- Moore
- Motley
- Ochiltree
- Oldham
- Parmer
- Potter
- Randall
- Roberts
- Sherman
- Swisher
- Terry
- Wheeler
- Yoakum
$71.6 Billion
High Plains region
gross domestic product,
2022
About 3 percent of Texas’ GDP of $2.4 trillion.
Population Change (2012 to 2022)
REGION
1.9%
TEXAS
15.1%
U.S.
6.2%
Between 2012 and 2022, Randall County led regional gains at 16.9 percent, followed by Lubbock County at 11.0 percent. The High Plains Region's metropolitan areas anchored population growth in the region, with the populations in Lubbock and Amarillo growing by 10 percent and 5 percent respectfully.
Jobs & Wages
About 378,000 people were employed in the region in 2022. Cattle ranching and farming, and animal processing are some of the region’s most specialized industries, as measured by location quotient (LQ). An LQ of 1.25 or higher indicates the industries have a competitive advantage in the region. Warehousing and storage, cattle ranching, and maintenance service industries (automotive and building) led regional industry job gains between 2012 and 2022.
Percent change in total jobs, 2012 to 2022
The number of jobs in the High Plains Region increased 6.7%, in Texas 23.5% and in the U.S. 13.9%.
Top Industries by Location Quotient, 2022
View the LQ data
| Industry | Employment | Average Annual Wages | Location Quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Industry | Employment | Average Annual Wages | Location Quotient |
| Cattle Ranching and Farming | 9,575 | $48,675 | 23.21 |
| Leather and Hide Tanning and Finishing | 125 | $43,805 | 15.07 |
| Other Crop Farming | 2,211 | $38,898 | 12.53 |
| Oil and Gas Extraction | 2,911 | $148,001 | 10.06 |
| Animal Slaughtering and Processing | 11,402 | $52,259 | 8.37 |
Industries with Largest Total Jobs Growth, 2012 to 2022
View the job growth data
| Industry | Employment Change, 2012 to 2022 | Percent Employment Change, 2012 to 2022 | Average Annual Wages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warehousing and Storage | 1,932 | 89.1% | $46,284 |
| Services to Buildings and Dwellings | 1,199 | 38.9% | $31,970 |
| Automotive Repair and Maintenance | 1,156 | 38.7% | $43,134 |
| Cattle Ranching and Farming | 2,643 | 38.1% | $48,675 |
| Building Equipment Contractors | 1,324 | 25.5% | $57,038 |
THE High Plains REGION IS ONE OF THE COMPTROLLER’S 12 ECONOMIC REGIONS.
Sources: JobsEQ; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts