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Binational Population Data in Sister Cities along the Rio Grande in Texas

Population has grown significantly in the sister cities along the Rio Grande, which forms the border between Texas and four Mexican states.

Population growth in the sister cities that straddle the Rio Grande, which forms the border between Texas and its four neighboring Mexican states—Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas—has been significant in recent decades.

The table and bar chart below show the data for seven sister-city pairs for the period 1990-2010 (see map 

Population Growth in Sister Cities along the Texas-Mexico Border

City/Municipio, State
(arranged by sister-city pairs)

1990 Population (Census)

2000 Population (Census)

1990-2000 %-age Increase

2010 Population (Census)

2000-2010 %-age Increase

El Paso, Texas MSA*
591,610
679,622
14.9
800,647
17.8
Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua
798,499
1,217,818
53
1,332,131
9.4
Presidio, Texas
3,072
4,167
35.6
4,426
6.2
Ojinaga, Chihuahua
23,910
24,313
2.0
26,304
8.2
Del Rio, Texas
30,705
33,867
10.3
35,591
5.1
Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila
56,3360
110,388
96.0
136,755
23.9
Eagle Pass, Texas
20,651
22,413
8.5
26,248
17.1
Piedras Negras, Coahuila
98,185
127,898
30.0
152,806
19.5
Laredo, Texas MSA*
133,239
193,117
44.9
250,304
29.6
Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas
219,468
310,277
41.0
384,033
23.8
McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas MSA*
383,545
569,463
48.5
774,769
36.1
Reynosa, Tamaulipas
282,667
419,776
49.0
608,891
45.8
Brownsville-Harlingen-San Benito, Texas MSA*
260,120
335,227
28.9
406,220
21.2
Matamoros, Tamaulipas
303,293
416,428
37.0
489,193
17.5
All seven Texas population centers
1,422,942
1,837,876
29.2
2,298,205
25.0
All seven Mexican population centers
1,758,448
2,602,585
48.0
3,130,113
20.3
Total of seven sister-city pairs
3,181,390
4,440,461
77.2
5,428,318
22.2
For Comparison - State of Texas
16,986,510
20,851,820
22.8
25,145,561
20.6

Chart showing total population in sister cities along the Texas-Mexico border


* When a U.S. city has significant numbers of people living near but not in the city, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is delineated, with boundaries beyond the jurisdiction of the city, and populations are determined for those full MSAs. In this table, MSAs are used instead of cities for those population centers where appropriate. In Mexico, the only subdivision of a state is a municipio; municipios (municipality/city) are the only unit of local government and together they cover the entire state. In most cases, a municipio is self-contained with respect to population.

Sources: Data on Texas cities and MSAs were obtained from the website of CensusScope , accessed on April 5, 2011, except for Presidio, which was obtained at the website of the Texas Data Center , also accessed on April 5, 2011. Data on Mexican municipios were obtained from the website of the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía , accessed on April 5, 2011.

Population has grown significantly in the sister cities along the binational Rio Grande, which forms the border between Texas and four Mexican states.