City · Van Zandt County, Texas

Canton, Texas

Canton is a city in Van Zandt County, Texas. It has 4,545 residents. Canton, Texas has a quality-of-life score of 12 out of 100 (very low), ranking #13,828 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Texas it ranks #689 of 1,016 cities and towns. It ranks best on child care cost burden (low), unemployment rate (low) and property crime rate (low). It ranks worst on primary care physicians (low), distance to an emergency room (high) and dentists (low).

12Very low

Quality-of-life score: #13,828 of 15,651 cities and towns
Texas: #689 of 1,016 in TX
Population: 4,545 (2020-2024)
Land area: 6 mi²
Density: 737.7 /mi²
FIPS code: 4812496

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 71 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.

Safety58#6,643/15,637
Economy44#8,778/15,631
Housing25#11,180/14,977
Health29#11,009/15,609
Healthcare0#15,596/15,650
Environment51#7,540/15,453
Education31#10,860/15,649
Infrastructure5#14,844/15,650
Community7#14,583/15,651
Leisure & amenities2#15,339/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Canton, Texas ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Van Zandt 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

Child care cost burden · low20.0%
94/100Texas 24.5%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteVan Zandt County value
Unemployment rate · low0.7%
94/100Texas 4.2%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
Property crime rate · low459 /100k
91/100Texas 1,786 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationVan Zandt County value
New homes permitted · high10.8 /1k
89/100Texas 6.3 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data
Natural hazard risk · low7.9
87/100Texas 39.62025Federal Emergency Management AgencyVan Zandt County value
Violent crime rate · low108 /100k
84/100Texas 345 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationVan Zandt County value

Weaknesses

Primary care physicians · low8 /100k
1/100Texas 61 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteVan Zandt County value
Distance to an emergency room · high20.8 mi
3/100Texas 5.5 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesVan Zandt County value
Dentists · low20 /100k
5/100Texas 63 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteVan Zandt County value
Mental health providers · low48 /100k
5/100Texas 181 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteVan Zandt County value
Traffic deaths · high31.3 /100k
6/100Texas 14.1 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationProvisional dataVan Zandt County value
Average weekly wage · low$907
6/100Texas $1,499United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsVan Zandt County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
3,805 (2015-2019) → 4,545 (2020-2024)
+19%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.1× (2015-2019) → 4.3× (2020-2024)
+104%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
43.0% (2015-2019) → 63.5% (2020-2024)
+21 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
73.3% (2015-2019) → 84.5% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
13.6% (2015-2019) → 24.5% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
New homes permittedWorsening
16.2 /1k (2021) → 10.8 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−33%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k

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, Canton, Texas improved on 2 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 10 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

Bachelor's++11 points13.6% → 24.5%
Broadband+11 points73.3% → 84.5%

Declined1

Price / income+2.2×2.1× → 4.3×

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Canton, Texas between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	32.5 min2015-2019	36.7 min2020-2024	+4.1 min	Within the margin of error	13%
Bachelor's degree or higher	13.6%2015-2019	24.5%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	92%
Broadband subscriptions	73.3%2015-2019	84.5%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	65%
Effective property tax rate	1.48%2015-2019	1.37%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	37%
High school diploma or higher	84.5%2015-2019	88.8%2020-2024	+4.2 points	Within the margin of error	77%
Home price to income ratio	2.1×2015-2019	4.3×2020-2024	+2.2×	Declined	3%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4282015-2019	0.4402020-2024	+0.012	Within the margin of error	40%
Median household income	$52,9792015-2019	$51,0272020-2024	−3.7%	Within the margin of error	5%
Poverty rate	11.6%2015-2019	11.7%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	42%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	27.7%2015-2019	32.7%2020-2024	+5 points	Within the margin of error	22%
Rent-burdened households	43.0%2015-2019	63.5%2020-2024	+21 points	Within the margin of error	8%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	22.6%2015-2019	17.7%2020-2024	−4.9 points	Within the margin of error	86%

“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 Canton, Texas five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Canton, 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, Canton, Texas itself moved −15.2 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

4,545 residents (±27)

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

1,784 households (±183)

Canton, Texas
Texas share

Under $25k25%†441
$25k–50k24%†428
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,784 households (±183)

Canton, Texas
Texas share

Own68%1,222
Rent32%†562

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

1,880 workers (±233)

Canton, Texas
Texas share

Drive alone79%1,492
Carpool10%†191
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 Van Zandt County, the county holding most of Canton's residents.

Van Zandt County has 1,007 employer establishments, 157 for every 10,000 residents (0.63× the US rate of 248; 0.72× Texas's), with 9,632 paid employees at an average annual pay of $45,612. The Census Bureau also counts 6,008 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,007; 6,008 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 157; US 248 · Texas 218
Paid employees: 9,632
Average annual pay: $45,612; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	122	19.1	1.23×About typical	1,010	$65,198	786
Restaurants and other eating places	87	13.6	0.74×Fewer than typical	1,427	$18,946	41
Religious organizations	61	9.5	1.72×More than typical	291	$21,196	—
Building equipment contractors	54	8.4	1.40×More than typical	602	$72,379	149
Full-service restaurants	40	6.2	0.81×About typical	593	$20,148	19
Limited-service restaurants	38	5.9	0.74×Fewer than typical	757	$18,449	14
Ambulatory health care services	36	5.6	0.27×Fewer than typical	220	$50,455	160
Foundation, structure and building exterior contractors	36	5.6	1.78×More than typical	226	$56,690	177
Construction of buildings	32	5	0.66×Fewer than typical	108	$57,852	367
Lessors of real estate	32	5	0.41×Fewer than typical	57	$35,333	376
Plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors	29	4.5	1.37×More than typical	249	$62,896	84
Truck transportation	27	4.2	0.83×About typical	142	$50,662	185

Rank places for an industry Open Van Zandt County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 64,033 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 $19.9K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Canton, Texas: $4.38 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $19.9K; −54% vs FY2025
Per resident: $4.38; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.6%; 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

Department of the Navy$14.8K74%
Defense Logistics Agency$5,12826%

Top recipients

INGRAM INDUSTRIES, INC.$18.7K94%
CAVANAUGH GOVERNMENT GROUP, LLC$9084.6%
APEX PINNACLE CORP$2321.2%
QUALIFIED FASTENERS INC$1190.6%
VETERAN DISTRIBUTION & SUPPLY LLC-$45.290.0%

Spending by fiscal year

797.8FY2017
22.5KFY2018
26.1KFY2019
10.6KFY2020
16KFY2021
14.4KFY2022
5.1KFY2023
31.9KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Machine shops and screw, nut, and bolt manufacturing · 3327$12.6K63%
Communications equipment manufacturing · 3342$4,48823%
Plastics product manufacturing · 3261$2,82514%

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 Canton, Texas, so they do not add up across cities.

Canton, Texas's figures are part of those of Van Zandt County, TX ($832K in FY2026), never added to them: 2.4% of that total.

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

See federal money in Van Zandt 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.

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

House

Lance GoodenR-TX-5 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 0.9%

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.

Van Zandt County20100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Van Zandt 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/4812496

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends