City · Liberty County, Texas

Cleveland, Texas

Cleveland is a city in Liberty County, Texas, part of the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area. It has 8,984 residents. Cleveland, Texas has a quality-of-life score of 1 out of 100 (very low), ranking #15,529 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Texas it ranks #1,007 of 1,016 cities and towns. It ranks best on time spent in the emergency room (low), comfortable days (high) and mental health care shortage (low). It ranks worst on arts, entertainment and recreation (low), restaurants and bars (low) and uninsured residents (under 65) (high).

1Very low

Quality-of-life score: #15,529 of 15,651 cities and towns
Texas: #1,007 of 1,016 in TX
Population: 8,984 (2020-2024)
Land area: 19 mi²
Density: 477.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 4815436

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.

Safety26#11,573/15,637
Economy21#12,387/15,631
Housing32#10,129/14,977
Health8#14,368/15,609
Healthcare1#15,461/15,650
Environment9#14,078/15,453
Education2#15,334/15,649
Infrastructure23#12,124/15,650
Community1#15,541/15,651
Leisure & amenities0#15,602/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Time spent in the emergency room · low111 min
92/100Texas 149 minUnited States 170 minOct 2024–Sep 2025Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesLiberty County value
Comfortable days · high30.5%
80/100Texas 30.7%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationLiberty County value
Mental health care shortage · low8.0
67/100Texas 14.0United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationLiberty County value
Broadband subscriptions · high93.1%
67/100Texas 91.3%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Child care cost burden · low26.7%
66/100Texas 24.5%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLiberty County value
Depression · low22.9%
61/100Texas 21.2%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate

Weaknesses

Arts, entertainment and recreation · low0.3 /10k
1/100Texas 3.4 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLiberty County value
Restaurants and bars · low2.7 /10k
1/100Texas 7.8 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLiberty County value
Uninsured residents (under 65) · high27.7%
2/100Texas 19.1%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010
Mammography screening · low29.0%
2/100Texas 42.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLiberty County value
Mental health providers · low30 /100k
2/100Texas 181 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteLiberty County value
Grocery stores · low0.7 /10k
4/100Texas 1.1 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLiberty County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
8,061 (2015-2019) → 8,984 (2020-2024)
+11%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedWorsening
25.3 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
73.9% (2015-2019) → 93.1% (2020-2024)
+19 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
High school diploma or higherImproving
73.0% (2015-2019) → 82.7% (2020-2024)
+9.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
2.2× (2015-2019) → 3.2× (2020-2024)
+45%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
19.9% (2015-2019) → 27.7% (2020-2024)
+7.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

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, Cleveland, Texas improved on 2 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 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

High school++9.7 points73.0% → 82.7%
Broadband+19 points73.9% → 93.1%

Declined1

Uninsured+7.8 points19.9% → 27.7%

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Cleveland, Texas between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	32.1 min2015-2019	36.8 min2020-2024	+4.8 min	Within the margin of error	11%
Bachelor's degree or higher	8.2%2015-2019	9.7%2020-2024	+1.6 points	Within the margin of error	39%
Broadband subscriptions	73.9%2015-2019	93.1%2020-2024	+19 points	Improved	89%
Child poverty rate	18.5%2015-2019	21.7%2020-2024	+3.2 points	Within the margin of error	26%
Effective property tax rate	1.56%2015-2019	1.31%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	68%
High school diploma or higher	73.0%2015-2019	82.7%2020-2024	+9.7 points	Improved	95%
Home price to income ratio	2.2×2015-2019	3.2×2020-2024	+1.0×	Within the margin of error	22%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4342015-2019	0.4812020-2024	+0.047	Within the margin of error	17%
Median household income	$41,4072015-2019	$54,5192020-2024	+32%	Within the margin of error	59%
Poverty rate	14.4%2015-2019	19.2%2020-2024	+4.7 points	Within the margin of error	13%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	28.4%2015-2019	29.2%2020-2024	+0.8 points	Within the margin of error	48%
Rent-burdened households	43.1%2015-2019	47.8%2020-2024	+4.7 points	Within the margin of error	39%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	19.9%2015-2019	27.7%2020-2024	+7.8 points	Declined	5%

“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 Cleveland, Texas five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Cleveland, 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, Cleveland, Texas itself moved −1.9 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

8,984 residents (±277)

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

2,789 households (±321)

Cleveland, Texas
Texas share

Under $25k22%†601
$25k–50k26%†716
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

2,789 households (±321)

Cleveland, Texas
Texas share

Own63%1,755
Rent37%1,034

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

3,221 workers (±550)

Cleveland, Texas
Texas share

Drive alone78%2,526
Carpool6.8%†218
Public transit0.0%0

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 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, 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 Liberty County, the county holding most of Cleveland's residents.

Liberty County has 1,206 employer establishments, 110 for every 10,000 residents (0.44× the US rate of 248; 0.51× Texas's), with 14,678 paid employees at an average annual pay of $50,768. The Census Bureau also counts 11,994 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,206; 11,994 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 110; US 248 · Texas 218
Paid employees: 14,678
Average annual pay: $50,768; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	106	9.7	0.63×Fewer than typical	1,313	$70,406	2,148
Restaurants and other eating places	97	8.9	0.48×Fewer than typical	1,670	$20,607	78
Ambulatory health care services	88	8.1	0.39×Fewer than typical	782	$73,849	211
Religious organizations	59	5.4	0.97×About typical	317	$20,221	—
Building equipment contractors	52	4.8	0.79×Fewer than typical	566	$82,150	405
Limited-service restaurants	47	4.3	0.54×Fewer than typical	1,036	$17,864	19
Automotive repair and maintenance	36	3.3	0.65×Fewer than typical	137	$37,978	330
Full-service restaurants	35	3.2	0.42×Fewer than typical	557	$24,987	36
Legal services	34	3.1	0.58×Fewer than typical	98	$46,561	38
Gasoline stations	33	3	0.93×About typical	337	$22,561	—
Truck transportation	33	3	0.60×Fewer than typical	297	$74,145	730
General merchandise stores	30	2.7	1.55×More than typical	830	$29,864	57

Rank places for an industry Open Liberty County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 109,248 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 $8,777 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Cleveland, Texas: $0.98 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $8,777; −56% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.98; US $1,994
Sole-source: 31%; US 30%
Single offer: 11%; 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

U.S. Coast Guard$5,12058%
Department of Veterans Affairs$2,53829%
Defense Logistics Agency$6787.7%
Federal Emergency Management Agency$4405.0%

Top recipients

HIDENIS GROUP LLC$5,12058%
HEALTH CENTER OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS$2,53829%
AZE SUPPLY CO INC$6787.7%
AESTHETIC HOME INVESTMENTS LLC$2653.0%
SORELLE RESOURCES, LLC$1401.6%

Spending by fiscal year

17.6KFY2017
15.7KFY2018
7.2KFY2019
13.7KFY2020
4KFY2021
20.8KFY2022
8.2KFY2023
10.2KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Ship and boat building · 3366$5,12058%
Scientific research and development services · 5417$2,53829%
Other fabricated metal product manufacturing · 3329$6787.7%
Lessors of real estate · 5311$4405.0%

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

Cleveland, Texas's figures are part of those of Liberty County, TX, Montgomery County, TX and San Jacinto County, TX ($23.3M 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: Cleveland is mostly in Liberty County.

See federal money in Liberty 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.

Cleveland, Texas is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

Ted CruzR-

County

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

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX34

Other cities and towns in Liberty 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/4815436

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends