Census-designated place · Jim Wells County, Texas

Ben Bolt, Texas

Ben Bolt is a census-designated place in Jim Wells County, Texas, part of the Alice, TX metro area. It has 2,152 residents. Ben Bolt, Texas has a quality-of-life score of 1 out of 100 (very low), ranking #15,428 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Texas it ranks #993 of 1,016 cities and towns. It ranks best on home price to income ratio (low), grocery stores (high) and depression (low). It ranks worst on hot days (high), physical inactivity (high) and primary care shortage (high).

1Very low

Quality-of-life score: #15,428 of 15,651 cities and towns
Texas: #993 of 1,016 in TX
Population: 2,152 (2020-2024)
Land area: 12 mi²
Density: 175.8 /mi²
FIPS code: 4807540

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 72 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.

Safety12#13,734/15,637
Economy11#13,885/15,631
Housing33#10,094/14,977
Health23#11,998/15,609
Healthcare1#15,416/15,650
Environment11#13,763/15,453
Education10#14,098/15,649
Infrastructure16#13,109/15,650
Community1#15,548/15,651
Leisure & amenities28#11,277/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Ben Bolt, Texas ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Jim Wells 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

Home price to income ratio · low1.6×
93/100Texas 3.6×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077High uncertainty
Grocery stores · high2.3 /10k
83/100Texas 1.1 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsJim Wells County value
Depression · low19.6%
83/100Texas 21.2%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Drug overdose deaths · low9.6 /100k
83/100Texas 13.4 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimateProvisional dataJim Wells County value
High ozone days · low0 days
76/100Texas 7 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyJim Wells County value
Comfortable days · high27.5%
66/100Texas 30.7%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationJim Wells County value

Weaknesses

Hot days · high159 days
1/100Texas 111 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationJim Wells County value
Physical inactivity · high40.1%
3/100Texas 29.6%United States 26.5%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Primary care shortage · high19.0
3/100Texas 5.5United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationJim Wells County value
Food environment index · low5.8
3/100Texas 5.7United States 7.62019 & 2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteJim Wells County value
Dental care shortage · high19.0
3/100Texas 5.8United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationJim Wells County value
Voter turnout · low48.8%
4/100Texas 57.8%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionJim Wells County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
1,542 (2016-2020) → 2,152 (2020-2024)
+40%4 yearsCensus table B01003US 331,578,104 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
30.2% (2016-2020) → 84.4% (2020-2024)
+54 pts4 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.1% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
25.2% (2016-2020) → 44.3% (2020-2024)
+19 pts4 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.6% → 30.6%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
73.5% (2016-2020) → 91.7% (2020-2024)
+18 pts4 yearsCensus table B28002US 85.2% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateWorsening
4.1% (2016-2020) → 21.1% (2020-2024)
+17 pts4 yearsCensus table B17001US 15.7% → 15.5%
Poverty rateWorsening
5.7% (2016-2020) → 16.3% (2020-2024)
+11 pts4 yearsCensus table B17001US 11.9% → 12.1%

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.

There is not enough history to compare Ben Bolt, Texas over five years.

Cities and towns like Ben Bolt, Texas five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Ben Bolt, 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.

No place that looked like Ben Bolt, Texas five years ago has more measures that improved than declined, with a higher standing among its peers today.

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

2,152 residents (±587)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

2,152 residents (±587)

Ben Bolt, Texas
Texas share

White23%†488
Black0.2%†4
Hispanic or Latino77%1,660

Education

1,250 residents (±319)

Ben Bolt, Texas
Texas share

No high school diploma23%†285
High school or GED34%†423
Some college18%†231

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

611 households (±168)

Ben Bolt, Texas
Texas share

Under $25k10%†63
$25k–50k30%†186
$50k–75k24%†149
$75k–100k13%†79
$100k–150k9.7%†59
$150k–200k5.7%†35
$200k or more6.5%†40

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

611 households (±168)

Ben Bolt, Texas
Texas share

Own76%†463
Rent24%†148

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

135 households (±90)

Ben Bolt, Texas
Texas share

Under $75011%†15
$750–1,00068%†92
$1,000–1,50016%†22

Home values

463 homes (±139)

Ben Bolt, Texas
Texas share

Under $150k56%†261
$150k–250k22%†102
$250k–400k18%†82

Age of homes

692 homes (±178)

Ben Bolt, Texas
Texas share

2010 or later17%†119
2000–200924%†164
1980–199923%†159

Size of homes

692 homes (±178)

Ben Bolt, Texas
Texas share

Studio2.0%†14
1 bedroom6.6%†46
2 bedrooms14%†95

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

835 workers (±288)

Ben Bolt, Texas
Texas share

Drive alone82%†681
Carpool4.1%†34
Public transit0.0%0
Walk7.5%†63
Bike0.0%0
Work from home6.8%†57
Other0.0%0

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

778 workers (±271)

Ben Bolt, Texas
Texas share

Under 15 min40%†315
15–29 min34%†266
30–44 min9.1%†71

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Alice, TX

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 Jim Wells County, the county holding most of Ben Bolt's residents.

Jim Wells County has 783 employer establishments, 202 for every 10,000 residents (0.81× the US rate of 248; 0.92× Texas's), with 12,790 paid employees at an average annual pay of $37,009. The Census Bureau also counts 3,403 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 783; 3,403 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 202; US 248 · Texas 218
Paid employees: 12,790
Average annual pay: $37,009; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	69	17.8	0.85×About typical	4,320	$20,481	130
Restaurants and other eating places	65	16.8	0.91×About typical	1,112	$17,566	37
Specialty trade contractors	38	9.8	0.63×Fewer than typical	309	$54,065	345
Limited-service restaurants	30	7.7	0.96×About typical	699	$17,064	9
Full-service restaurants	29	7.5	0.97×About typical	359	$18,565	20
Truck transportation	22	5.7	1.12×About typical	186	$40,780	158
Gasoline stations	21	5.4	1.67×More than typical	232	$22,224	—
Insurance agencies and brokerages	20	5.2	1.17×About typical	135	$72,000	51
Offices of physicians	19	4.9	0.76×Fewer than typical	216	$61,384	7
Religious organizations	19	4.9	0.88×About typical	87	$20,644	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	18	4.6	0.92×About typical	71	$26,338	95
Building equipment contractors	18	4.6	0.77×Fewer than typical	174	$53,000	57

Rank places for an industry Open Jim Wells County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 38,766 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 $1,178 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Ben Bolt, Texas: $0.55 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $1,178; −97% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.55; 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

Defense Health Agency$1,178100%

Top recipients

ENVIGO GLOBAL SERVICES INC$1,178100%

Spending by fiscal year

8.1KFY2017
2.8KFY2018
-421.8FY2019
881.6FY2020
-4.3KFY2021
43.3KFY2022
37.3KFY2023
100KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Other animal production · 1129$1,178100%

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 Ben Bolt, Texas, so they do not add up across cities.

Ben Bolt, Texas's figures are part of those of Jim Wells County, TX ($154.6K in FY2026), never added to them: 0.8% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Ben Bolt is mostly in Jim Wells County.

See federal money in Jim Wells 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.

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

House

Monica De La CruzR-TX-15 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 5.9%

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.

Jim Wells County1100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Alice, TX0

Other cities and towns in Jim Wells 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
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/4807540

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends

What changed in five years

Cities and towns like Ben Bolt, Texas five years ago that improved