Census-designated place · El Paso County, Texas

Sparks, Texas

Sparks is a census-designated place in El Paso County, Texas, part of the El Paso, TX metro area. It has 4,134 residents. Sparks, Texas has a quality-of-life score of 12 out of 100 (very low), ranking #13,732 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Texas it ranks #676 of 1,016 cities and towns. It ranks best on distance to an airport (low), comfortable days (high) and natural hazard risk (low). It ranks worst on uninsured residents (under 65) (high), bachelor's degree or higher (low) and poverty rate (high).

12Very low

Quality-of-life score: #13,732 of 15,651 cities and towns
Texas: #676 of 1,016 in TX
Population: 4,134 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 2,952.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 4869432

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.

Safety49#7,961/15,637
Economy5#14,803/15,631
Housing12#13,141/14,977
Health52#7,440/15,609
Healthcare11#13,982/15,650
Environment40#9,336/15,453
Education14#13,489/15,649
Infrastructure55#7,102/15,650
Community2#15,253/15,651
Leisure & amenities23#12,022/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Distance to an airport · low9 mi
96/100Texas 33 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauEl Paso County value
Comfortable days · high32.8%
89/100Texas 30.7%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationEl Paso County value
Natural hazard risk · low6.4
89/100Texas 39.62025Federal Emergency Management AgencyEl Paso County value
Child care cost burden · low22.3%
87/100Texas 24.5%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteEl Paso County value
Injury deaths · low61 /100k
87/100Texas 69 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteEl Paso County value
Depression · low19.5%
83/100Texas 21.2%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate

Weaknesses

Uninsured residents (under 65) · high38.1%
1/100Texas 19.1%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010
Bachelor's degree or higher · low4.5%
1/100Texas 33.8%United States 35.7%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003High uncertainty
Poverty rate · high51.7%
1/100Texas 13.4%United States 12.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Rent as share of income · high51.0%
2/100Texas 30.9%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071At least this value: the publisher's top bracket is open-ended
Mammography screening · low30.0%
2/100Texas 42.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteEl Paso County value
Voter turnout · low48.0%
3/100Texas 57.8%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionEl Paso County value

Trends

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

Child poverty rateWorsening
47.3% (2015-2019) → 75.7% (2020-2024)
+28 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
58.0% (2015-2019) → 84.3% (2020-2024)
+26 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
70.7% (2015-2019) → 95.2% (2020-2024)
+25 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
25.0% (2015-2019) → 38.1% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Poverty rateWorsening
39.8% (2015-2019) → 51.7% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
39.4% (2015-2019) → 51.0% (2020-2024)
+12 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, Sparks, Texas improved on 1 of 8 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 5 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.

Improved1

Broadband+25 points70.7% → 95.2%

Declined2

Child poverty+28 points47.3% → 75.7%
Uninsured+13 points25.0% → 38.1%

All 8 measures

Change of every measure of Sparks, Texas between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	25.7 min2015-2019	20.6 min2020-2024	−5.1 min	Within the margin of error	90%
Broadband subscriptions	70.7%2015-2019	95.2%2020-2024	+25 points	Improved	95%
Child poverty rate	47.3%2015-2019	75.7%2020-2024	+28 points	Declined	2%
High school diploma or higher	64.5%2015-2019	64.7%2020-2024	+0.2 points	Within the margin of error	35%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4832015-2019	0.4142020-2024	−0.069	Within the margin of error	90%
Poverty rate	39.8%2015-2019	51.7%2020-2024	+12 points	Within the margin of error	3%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	25.0%2015-2019	38.1%2020-2024	+13 points	Declined	2%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 10944 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 Sparks, Texas five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Sparks, 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, Sparks, Texas itself moved +32.8 points in standing on average over the same 4 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

4,134 residents (±1,200)

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

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

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

Race and Hispanic origin

4,134 residents (±1,200)

Sparks, Texas
Texas share

White2.2%†90
Black0.0%0
Hispanic or Latino98%4,044
Asian0.0%0
American Indian and Alaska Native0.0%0
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander0.0%0
Other or two or more races0.0%0

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B03002View table on data.census.gov

Education

2,190 residents (±599)

Sparks, Texas
Texas share

No high school diploma35%†774
High school or GED26%†564
Some college23%†513
Associate degree11%†240
Bachelor's degree3.7%†80
Graduate degree0.9%†19

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B15003View 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.

Income

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

Household income

1,113 households (±281)

Sparks, Texas
Texas share

Under $25k41%†451
$25k–50k17%†191
$50k–75k23%†260
$75k–100k2.1%†23
$100k–150k12%†136
$150k–200k4.7%†52
$200k or more0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $50k–75k (+13.8 points).

† 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

1,113 households (±281)

Sparks, Texas
Texas share

Own66%†732
Rent34%†381

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

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

Rent paid

281 households (±188)

Sparks, Texas
Texas share

Under $75015%†41
$750–1,00019%†54
$1,000–1,50051%†142

Home values

732 homes (±245)

Sparks, Texas
Texas share

Under $150k89%†649
$150k–250k7.0%†51
$250k–400k4.4%†32

Age of homes

1,194 homes (±290)

Sparks, Texas
Texas share

2010 or later9.5%†113
2000–200936%†434
1980–199940%†481

Size of homes

1,194 homes (±290)

Sparks, Texas
Texas share

Studio3.8%†45
1 bedroom0.0%0
2 bedrooms18%†213

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

1,628 workers (±513)

Sparks, Texas
Texas share

Drive alone91%†1,488
Carpool2.5%†41
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home3.1%†50
Other3.0%†49

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

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

Time to get to work

1,578 workers (±515)

Sparks, Texas
Texas share

Under 15 min42%†661
15–29 min32%†509
30–44 min10%†165

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 El Paso, 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 El Paso County, the county holding most of Sparks's residents.

El Paso County has 16,280 employer establishments, 186 for every 10,000 residents (0.75× the US rate of 248; 0.85× Texas's), with 254,282 paid employees at an average annual pay of $42,760. The Census Bureau also counts 85,247 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 16,280; 85,247 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 186; US 248 · Texas 218
Paid employees: 254,282
Average annual pay: $42,760; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	1,585	18.2	0.87×About typical	23,707	$49,102	3,276
Restaurants and other eating places	1,574	18	0.98×About typical	33,621	$19,368	827
Lessors of real estate	866	9.9	0.81×About typical	2,757	$50,054	5,254
Specialty trade contractors	785	9	0.58×Fewer than typical	7,904	$48,781	7,245
Truck transportation	710	8.1	1.61×More than typical	7,596	$56,578	5,618
Limited-service restaurants	703	8.1	1.00×About typical	15,864	$17,676	224
Full-service restaurants	662	7.6	0.99×About typical	14,891	$21,147	365
Offices of physicians	639	7.3	1.13×About typical	5,707	$85,636	597
Automotive repair and maintenance	430	4.9	0.98×About typical	2,502	$36,646	2,019
Building equipment contractors	406	4.6	0.77×Fewer than typical	4,155	$50,843	1,818
Construction of buildings	399	4.6	0.60×Fewer than typical	3,202	$57,825	4,564
Insurance agencies and brokerages	376	4.3	0.98×About typical	2,342	$50,567	1,361

Rank places for an industry Open El Paso County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 873,242 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: Sparks is mostly in El Paso County.

See federal money in El Paso 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.

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

House

Veronica EscobarD-TX-16 · 85% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 1.2%

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.

El Paso County32100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

El Paso, TX21

Other cities and towns in El Paso 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/4869432