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The 28-county South Texas region covers about 35,500 square miles, stretching along the Mexican border from Del Rio to Brownsville and up the Gulf Coast past Rockport to Aransas Pass and San Antonio Bay.
The region includes five metro areas: Brownsville-Harlingen, Corpus Christi, Eagle Pass, Laredo and McAllen-Edinburg-Mission.
South Texas Region Counties:
- Aransas
- Bee
- Brooks
- Cameron
- Dimmit
- Duval
- Edwards
- Hidalgo
- Jim Hogg
- Jim Wells
- Kenedy
- Kinney
- Kleberg
- La Salle
- Live Oak
- Maverick
- Mcmullen
- Nueces
- Real
- Refugio
- San Patricio
- Starr
- Uvalde
- Val Verde
- Webb
- Willacy
- Zapata
- Zavala
$117.5 Billionn
South Texas region
gross domestic product, 2022
About 4.9 percent of Texas’ GDP of $2.4 trillion.
Population Change (2012 to 2022)
REGION
3.9%
TEXAS
15.1%
U.S.
6.2%
Eight of the region’s 28 counties recorded population growth between 2012 to 2022, contributing to an overall increase in the region. Hidalgo County saw the greatest increase at 10.0 percent. The region had its largest population gains among people ages 65 and older between 2012 and 2022.
Jobs & Wages
About 848,000 people were employed in the region in 2022. Home health care services and residential care facility services are top industries by employment, employment growth and location quotient (LQ). An LQ of 1.25 or higher indicates the region has a competitive advantage in that industry.
Percent change in total jobs, 2012 to 2022
The number of jobs in the South Texas Region increased 10.6%, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Footwear Manufacturing | 1,061 | $31,979 | 15.93 |
| Hunting and Trapping | 127 | $34,923 | 10.31 |
| Home Health Care Services | 70,955 | $17,068 | 7.94 |
| Other Residential Care Facilities | 5,942 | $55,386 | 6.24 |
| Support Activities for Mining | 9,436 | $96,711 | 6.19 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Individual and Family Services | 19,602 | 129.4% | $19,635 |
| Offices of Physicians | 5,191 | 31.0% | $72,734 |
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places | 16,167 | 27.6% | $19,447 |
| General Freight Trucking | 2,879 | 27.6% | $55,393 |
| Grocery and Convenience Retailers | 2,810 | 17.2% | $31,321 |
THE South Texas 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