City · Brewster County, Texas

Alpine, Texas

Alpine is a city in Brewster County, Texas. It has 6,014 residents. Alpine, Texas has a quality-of-life score of 55 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #7,085 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Texas it ranks #109 of 1,016 cities and towns. It ranks best on property crime rate (low), gyms and fitness centers (high) and restaurants and bars (high). It ranks worst on job growth (low), mammography screening (low) and distance to an airport (high).

55Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #7,085 of 15,651 cities and towns
Texas: #109 of 1,016 in TX
Population: 6,014 (2020-2024)
Land area: 5 mi²
Density: 1,246.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 4802104

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety77#3,617/15,637
Economy45#8,533/15,631
Housing35#9,793/14,977
Health74#4,121/15,609
Healthcare25#11,716/15,650
Environment71#4,552/15,453
Education50#7,830/15,649
Infrastructure25#11,808/15,650
Community41#9,310/15,651
Leisure & amenities99#86/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Alpine, Texas ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Brewster County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Property crime rate · low105 /100k
100/100Texas 1,786 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationBrewster County value
Gyms and fitness centers · high3.2 /10k
99/100Texas 1.2 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBrewster County value
Restaurants and bars · high21.1 /10k
99/100Texas 7.8 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBrewster County value
Grocery stores · high4.2 /10k
99/100Texas 1.1 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBrewster County value
Drug overdose deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100Texas 13.4 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataBrewster County value
Public EV charging ports · high22.2 /10k
97/100Texas 4.0 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyBrewster County value

Weaknesses

Job growth · low-6.1%
1/100Texas 0.6%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataBrewster County value
Mammography screening · low30.0%
2/100Texas 42.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBrewster County value
Distance to an airport · high146 mi
3/100Texas 33 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauBrewster County value
Hot days · high127 days
3/100Texas 111 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationBrewster County value
Flu vaccinations · low26.0%
3/100Texas 40.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBrewster County value
Reading scores · low2.58
4/100Texas 2.89United States 3.052018University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBrewster County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

Child poverty rateImproving
14.5% (2015-2019) → 1.7% (2020-2024)
−13 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Poverty rateImproving
16.2% (2015-2019) → 8.7% (2020-2024)
−7.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
High school diploma or higherImproving
84.9% (2015-2019) → 91.2% (2020-2024)
+6.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
38.8% (2015-2019) → 45.1% (2020-2024)
+6.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Median household incomeImproving
$46,488 (2015-2019) → $60,139 (2020-2024)
+29%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
24.6% (2015-2019) → 29.0% (2020-2024)
+4.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Alpine, Texas improved on 2 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 11 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

Poverty−7.6 points16.2% → 8.7%
Inequality−0.0630.437 → 0.374

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Alpine, Texas between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	14.0 min2015-2019	13.4 min2020-2024	−0.6 min	Within the margin of error	55%
Bachelor's degree or higher	38.8%2015-2019	45.1%2020-2024	+6.2 points	Within the margin of error	76%
Broadband subscriptions	76.7%2015-2019	80.6%2020-2024	+3.8 points	Within the margin of error	25%
Effective property tax rate	1.36%2015-2019	1.14%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	63%
High school diploma or higher	84.9%2015-2019	91.2%2020-2024	+6.3 points	Within the margin of error	87%
Home price to income ratio	3.2×2015-2019	3.7×2020-2024	+0.4×	Within the margin of error	52%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4372015-2019	0.3742020-2024	−0.063	Improved	88%
Median household income	$46,4882015-2019	$60,1392020-2024	+29%	Within the margin of error	54%
Poverty rate	16.2%2015-2019	8.7%2020-2024	−7.6 points	Improved	88%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	24.6%2015-2019	29.0%2020-2024	+4.4 points	Within the margin of error	25%
Rent-burdened households	45.5%2015-2019	45.4%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	57%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	16.2%2015-2019	16.7%2020-2024	+0.5 points	Within the margin of error	40%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Alpine, Texas five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Alpine, Texas in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Alpine, Texas itself moved +2.2 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

6,014 residents (±20)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

3,263 households (±219)

Alpine, Texas
Texas share

Under $25k19%†631
$25k–50k21%†700
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

3,263 households (±219)

Alpine, Texas
Texas share

Own66%2,144
Rent34%1,119

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+10.8 points).

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

3,184 workers (±262)

Alpine, Texas
Texas share

Drive alone65%2,078
Carpool21%†663
Public transit0.0%0

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Brewster County, the county holding most of Alpine's residents.

Brewster County has 285 employer establishments, 298 for every 10,000 residents (1.20× the US rate of 248; 1.37× Texas's), with 2,234 paid employees at an average annual pay of $35,547. The Census Bureau also counts 1,131 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 285; 1,131 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 298; US 248 · Texas 218
Paid employees: 2,234
Average annual pay: $35,547; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Brewster County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Restaurants and other eating places	33	34.6	1.88×More than typical	382	$19,762	12
Traveler accommodation	23	24.1	13.3×More than typical	265	$33,008	29
Full-service restaurants	17	17.8	2.32×More than typical	180	$23,644	6
Specialty trade contractors	16	16.8	1.08×About typical	40	$34,875	105
Lessors of real estate	14	14.7	1.19×About typical	55	$26,491	101
Ambulatory health care services	11	11.5	0.55×Fewer than typical	74	$47,432	29
Limited-service restaurants	11	11.5	1.44×More than typical	186	$16,731	—
Building equipment contractors	10	10.5	1.74×More than typical	31	$36,226	18
Religious organizations	9	9.4	1.70×Too few to compare	21	$22,762	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	8	8.4	1.66×Too few to compare	21	$30,571	21
Grocery and convenience stores	7	7.3	2.47×Too few to compare	257	$19,961	—
Plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors	7	7.3	2.22×Too few to compare	26	$35,962	6

Rank places for an industry Open Brewster County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 9,550 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $61.9K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Alpine, Texas: $10.29 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $61.9K; +174% vs FY2025
Per resident: $10.29; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Federal Acquisition Service$61.9K100%

Top recipients

HERTZ CORPORATION (THE)$45.1K73%
PREMIER LEASING, INC.$16.7K27%

Spending by fiscal year

173.8KFY2018
0FY2019
32KFY2021
10.6MFY2022
-970.7KFY2023
22.6KFY2025
61.9KFY2026

What was bought

Equipment maintenance$61.9K

Top industries (NAICS)

Automotive equipment rental and leasing · 5321$61.9K100%

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Alpine, Texas

SHORT TERM RENTAL OF MOTOR VEHICLES$22.6K
HERTZ CORPORATION (THE)· Brewster County, TX· Equipment maintenance· Mar 6, 2026 – Mar 6, 2026· 47QMCE26FA629
SHORT TERM RENTAL OF MOTOR VEHICLES$22.6K
HERTZ CORPORATION (THE)· Brewster County, TX· Equipment maintenance· Nov 21, 2025 – Nov 21, 2025· 47QMCE26FA112
SHORT TERM RENTAL OF MOTOR VEHICLES$16.7K
PREMIER LEASING, INC.· Brewster County, TX· Equipment maintenance· Jun 29, 2026 – Jun 29, 2026· 47QMCE26FB262

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Alpine, Texas, so they do not add up across cities.

Alpine, Texas's figures are part of those of Brewster County, TX ($6.5B in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Alpine is mostly in Brewster County.

See federal money in Brewster County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Alpine, Texas is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Brewster County63100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Brewster County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/4802104

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends

What changed in five years

Improved2

Declined0

Cities and towns like Alpine, Texas five years ago that improved

Who lives here

Age and sex

Income

Household income

Homes

Owners and renters

Getting to work

How people get to work

Local businesses

Federal contracts performed here

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

What was bought

Top industries (NAICS)

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Alpine, Texas

How this is estimated

Representation in Congress

Senate

County

Other cities and towns in Brewster County

Similar cities and towns

Data and sources

Improved2

Declined0

Age and sex

Household income

Owners and renters

How people get to work

Race and Hispanic origin

Education

Rent paid

Home values

Age of homes

Size of homes

Time to get to work

Senate

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

What was bought

Top industries (NAICS)

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Alpine, Texas

How this is estimated