City · Harrison County, Texas

Waskom, Texas

Waskom is a city in Harrison County, Texas, part of the Longview, TX metro area. It has 2,084 residents. Waskom, Texas has a quality-of-life score of 8 out of 100 (very low), ranking #14,420 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Texas it ranks #800 of 1,016 cities and towns. It ranks best on home price to income ratio (low), child care cost burden (low) and distance to an Amtrak station (low). It ranks worst on students per teacher (high), restaurants and bars (low) and distance to an airport (high).

8Very low

Quality-of-life score: #14,420 of 15,651 cities and towns
Texas: #800 of 1,016 in TX
Population: 2,084 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 777.5 /mi²
FIPS code: 4876636

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.

Safety28#11,293/15,637
Economy36#10,070/15,631
Housing58#6,288/14,977
Health30#10,997/15,609
Healthcare2#15,365/15,650
Environment28#11,174/15,453
Education11#13,861/15,649
Infrastructure5#14,871/15,650
Community9#14,237/15,651
Leisure & amenities19#12,713/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Waskom, Texas ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Harrison 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×
96/100Texas 3.6×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Child care cost burden · low21.2%
91/100Texas 24.5%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHarrison County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · low7 mi
87/100Texas 43 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauHarrison County value
Math scores · high3.35
87/100Texas 3.15United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHarrison County value
Days with unhealthy air · low0.0%
84/1002025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyHarrison County value
New homes permitted · high6.7 /1k
82/100Texas 6.3 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data

Weaknesses

Students per teacher · high33.6×
0/100Texas 15.0×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsHarrison County value
Restaurants and bars · low3.3 /10k
3/100Texas 7.8 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsHarrison County value
Distance to an airport · high143 mi
3/100Texas 33 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauHarrison County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · high9.6 µg/m³
4/100Texas 8.9 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyHarrison County value
Dental care shortage · high18.0
6/100Texas 5.8United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationHarrison County value
Distance to an emergency room · high15.1 mi
7/100Texas 5.5 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesHarrison County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
1,617 (2015-2019) → 2,084 (2020-2024)
+29%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Child poverty rateImproving
38.7% (2015-2019) → 22.0% (2020-2024)
−17 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Median household incomeImproving
$32,188 (2015-2019) → $55,781 (2020-2024)
+73%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
27.6% (2015-2019) → 13.1% (2020-2024)
−14 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
66.3% (2015-2019) → 78.5% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Poverty rateImproving
28.4% (2015-2019) → 17.1% (2020-2024)
−11 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 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.

Over about five years, Waskom, Texas improved on 1 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 12 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

Uninsured−14 points27.6% → 13.1%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Waskom, Texas between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.9 min2015-2019	26.7 min2020-2024	+4.9 min	Within the margin of error	10%
Bachelor's degree or higher	10.8%2015-2019	10.4%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Within the margin of error	25%
Broadband subscriptions	66.3%2015-2019	78.5%2020-2024	+12 points	Within the margin of error	70%
Child poverty rate	38.7%2015-2019	22.0%2020-2024	−17 points	Within the margin of error	91%
Effective property tax rate	1.15%2015-2019	0.86%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	73%
High school diploma or higher	81.0%2015-2019	77.7%2020-2024	−3.4 points	Within the margin of error	10%
Home price to income ratio	2.6×2015-2019	1.6×2020-2024	−0.9×	Within the margin of error	97%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4122015-2019	0.4272020-2024	+0.015	Within the margin of error	37%
Median household income	$32,1882015-2019	$55,7812020-2024	+73%	Within the margin of error	95%
Poverty rate	28.4%2015-2019	17.1%2020-2024	−11 points	Within the margin of error	95%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	29.4%2015-2019	30.0%2020-2024	+0.6 points	Within the margin of error	50%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	27.6%2015-2019	13.1%2020-2024	−14 points	Improved	99%

“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 Waskom, Texas five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Waskom, 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, Waskom, Texas itself moved +0.7 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

2,084 residents (±570)

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

735 households (±164)

Waskom, Texas
Texas share

Under $25k21%†158
$25k–50k27%†199
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

735 households (±164)

Waskom, Texas
Texas share

Own74%545
Rent26%†190

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

813 workers (±272)

Waskom, Texas
Texas share

Drive alone76%†619
Carpool16%†129
Public transit0.0%

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 Longview, 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 Harrison County, the county holding most of Waskom's residents.

Harrison County has 1,402 employer establishments, 197 for every 10,000 residents (0.80× the US rate of 248; 0.90× Texas's), with 20,396 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,934. The Census Bureau also counts 6,373 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,402; 6,373 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 197; US 248 · Texas 218
Paid employees: 20,396
Average annual pay: $53,934; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	89	12.5	0.81×About typical	869	$69,772	543
Ambulatory health care services	80	11.3	0.54×Fewer than typical	467	$50,638	252
Restaurants and other eating places	79	11.1	0.61×Fewer than typical	1,566	$18,768	38
Religious organizations	51	7.2	1.29×More than typical	449	$17,022	—
Limited-service restaurants	44	6.2	0.77×Fewer than typical	996	$18,885	15
Management, scientific and technical consulting	43	6.1	0.90×About typical	79	$56,684	130
Lessors of real estate	42	5.9	0.48×Fewer than typical	78	$43,936	405
Automotive repair and maintenance	39	5.5	1.09×About typical	180	$43,583	165
Building equipment contractors	37	5.2	0.87×About typical	206	$51,180	90
Truck transportation	36	5.1	1.00×About typical	493	$81,034	230
Services to buildings and dwellings	35	4.9	0.73×Fewer than typical	136	$35,412	600
Legal services	31	4.4	0.81×About typical	85	$107,188	44

Rank places for an industry Open Harrison County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 70,999 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Waskom, Texas: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; 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

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

1.1KFY2017

What was bought

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

Waskom, Texas's figures are part of those of Harrison County, TX ($3.3M 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: Waskom is mostly in Harrison County.

See federal money in Harrison 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.

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

House

Nathaniel MoranR-TX-1 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 1.3%

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.

Harrison County18100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Longview, TX13

Other cities and towns in Harrison 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/4876636

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends