City · Henderson County, Texas

Malakoff, Texas

Malakoff is a city in Henderson County, Texas, part of the Athens, TX metro area. It has 2,045 residents. Malakoff, Texas has a quality-of-life score of 10 out of 100 (very low), ranking #14,087 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Texas it ranks #737 of 1,016 cities and towns. It ranks best on home price to income ratio (low), unemployment rate (low) and natural hazard risk (low). It ranks worst on uninsured residents (under 65) (high), broadband subscriptions (low) and high school diploma or higher (low).

10Very low

Quality-of-life score: #14,087 of 15,651 cities and towns
Texas: #737 of 1,016 in TX
Population: 2,045 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 712.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 4846224

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 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.

Safety20#12,543/15,637
Economy33#10,528/15,631
Housing48#7,855/14,977
Health15#13,222/15,609
Healthcare4#14,970/15,650
Environment55#6,941/15,453
Education39#9,559/15,649
Infrastructure1#15,535/15,650
Community15#13,352/15,651
Leisure & amenities14#13,513/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Malakoff, Texas ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Henderson 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 · low1.5×
98/100Texas 3.6×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Unemployment rate · low0.3%
96/100Texas 4.2%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
Natural hazard risk · low5.4
91/100Texas 39.62025Federal Emergency Management AgencyHenderson County value
Child care cost burden · low22.5%
86/100Texas 24.5%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHenderson County value
Math scores · high3.26
80/100Texas 3.15United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHenderson County value
High ozone days · low0 days
76/100Texas 7 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyHenderson County value

Weaknesses

Uninsured residents (under 65) · high28.8%
2/100Texas 19.1%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010
Broadband subscriptions · low71.5%
4/100Texas 91.3%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
High school diploma or higher · low79.6%
5/100Texas 86.0%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Firearm deaths · high25.5 /100k
6/100Texas 13.7 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataHenderson County value
Homicide rate · high11.6 /100k
6/100Texas 5.1 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataHenderson County value
Life expectancy · low72.1 yrs
7/100Texas 77.2 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHenderson County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,760 (2015-2019) → 2,045 (2020-2024)
−26%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
64.9% (2015-2019) → 35.5% (2020-2024)
−29 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
New homes permittedWorsening
8.1 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Median household incomeImproving
$29,185 (2015-2019) → $56,719 (2020-2024)
+94%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Poverty rateImproving
38.6% (2015-2019) → 20.5% (2020-2024)
−18 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
6.9% (2015-2019) → 19.3% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%

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, Malakoff, Texas improved on 4 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 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.

Improved4

Poverty−18 points38.6% → 20.5%
Household income+94%$29,185 → $56,719
Price / income−1.3×2.8× → 1.5×
Bachelor's++12 points6.9% → 19.3%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Malakoff, Texas between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	29.3 min2015-2019	24.2 min2020-2024	−5.1 min	Within the margin of error	90%
Bachelor's degree or higher	6.9%2015-2019	19.3%2020-2024	+12 points	Improved	94%
Broadband subscriptions	63.9%2015-2019	71.5%2020-2024	+7.6 points	Within the margin of error	47%
Child poverty rate	39.5%2015-2019	28.2%2020-2024	−11 points	Within the margin of error	84%
Effective property tax rate	1.43%2015-2019	1.32%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	37%
High school diploma or higher	79.0%2015-2019	79.6%2020-2024	+0.6 points	Within the margin of error	40%
Home price to income ratio	2.8×2015-2019	1.5×2020-2024	−1.3×	Improved	99%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4722015-2019	0.4192020-2024	−0.053	Within the margin of error	85%
Median household income	$29,1852015-2019	$56,7192020-2024	+94%	Improved	98%
Poverty rate	38.6%2015-2019	20.5%2020-2024	−18 points	Improved	99%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	33.1%2015-2019	25.5%2020-2024	−7.6 points	Within the margin of error	89%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	25.9%2015-2019	28.7%2020-2024	+2.9 points	Within the margin of error	20%

“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 Malakoff, Texas five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Malakoff, 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, Malakoff, Texas itself moved +21.5 points in standing on average over the same 9 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

2,045 residents (±375)

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

828 households (±168)

Malakoff, Texas
Texas share

Under $25k29%†237
$25k–50k12%†103
$50k–75k30%

Homes

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

Owners and renters

828 households (±168)

Malakoff, Texas
Texas share

Own62%513
Rent38%†315

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

988 workers (±292)

Malakoff, Texas
Texas share

Drive alone80%†793
Carpool3.2%†32
Public transit

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 Athens, 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 Henderson County, the county holding most of Malakoff's residents.

Henderson County has 1,521 employer establishments, 176 for every 10,000 residents (0.71× the US rate of 248; 0.81× Texas's), with 15,622 paid employees at an average annual pay of $42,189. The Census Bureau also counts 8,105 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,521; 8,105 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 176; US 248 · Texas 218
Paid employees: 15,622
Average annual pay: $42,189; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	152	17.6	0.96×About typical	2,292	$19,282	62
Specialty trade contractors	124	14.4	0.93×About typical	769	$54,250	1,063
Ambulatory health care services	82	9.5	0.46×Fewer than typical	832	$56,331	213
Religious organizations	73	8.5	1.52×More than typical	516	$20,731	—
Limited-service restaurants	68	7.9	0.98×About typical	1,332	$17,522	21
Full-service restaurants	66	7.6	0.99×About typical	884	$22,000	23
Lessors of real estate	58	6.7	0.55×Fewer than typical	146	$39,164	555
Construction of buildings	55	6.4	0.84×About typical	215	$60,558	535
Building equipment contractors	54	6.3	1.04×About typical	376	$57,356	210
Automotive repair and maintenance	37	4.3	0.85×About typical	192	$43,089	176
Gasoline stations	36	4.2	1.29×More than typical	299	$20,000	7
General merchandise stores	36	4.2	2.36×More than typical	837	$31,413	68

Rank places for an industry Open Henderson County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 86,371 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

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

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

See federal money in Henderson 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.

Malakoff, 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.

Henderson County18100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Athens, TX5

Other cities and towns in Henderson 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/4846224

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends