County · Texas
Wilbarger County, Texas
Wilbarger County, Texas has a quality-of-life score of 17 out of 100 (very low), ranking #2,621 of 3,143 US counties. Within Texas it ranks #192 of 254 counties. It ranks best on distance to an emergency room (low), job growth (high) and time spent in the emergency room (low). It ranks worst on hot days (high), uninsured residents (under 65) (high) and voter turnout (low).
- Quality-of-life score
- #2,621 of 3,143 counties
- Texas
- #192 of 254 in TX
- Population
- 12,481 (2025)
- Land area
- 971 mi²
- Density
- 12.9 /mi²
- FIPS code
- 48487
Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 75 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.
Scores by category
Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US counties.
- Safety20#2,475/3,096
- Economy45#1,742/3,143
- Housing24#2,383/3,140
- Health21#2,494/3,144
- Healthcare34#2,087/3,143
- Environment28#2,226/3,108
- Education12#2,767/3,144
- Infrastructure32#2,144/3,144
- Community28#2,263/3,144
- Leisure & amenities33#2,099/3,143
Strengths · Weaknesses
Indicators where Wilbarger County, Texas ranks highest and lowest among US counties (score = percentile, 100 = best).
Strengths
- Distance to an emergency room · low1.4 mi
- Job growth · high10.1%
- Time spent in the emergency room · low78 min
- Average commute time · low14.0 min
- Home price to income ratio · low1.6×
- Public EV charging ports · high17.6 /10k
Weaknesses
- Hot days · high115 days3/100Texas 111 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
- Uninsured residents (under 65) · high20.9%
- Voter turnout · low47.3%
- Food environment index · low5.4
- Lack of reliable transportation · high14.3%6/100Texas 10.5%United States 8.3%2022Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
- Drought exposure · high94%6/100Texas 57%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA
Trends
The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.
- New homes permittedImproving
0.2 /1k (2021) → 0.8 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+409%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
- Drought exposureWorsening
21% (2021) → 94% (Oct 2025–Sep 2026)
+73 pts5 yearsUS 40% → 43%
- Access to exercise opportunitiesImproving
21.3% (2010 & 2021) → 81.4% (2022 & 2024)
+60 pts3 yearsUS 79.8% → 84.5%
- New business applicationsImproving
5.2 /1k (2020) → 11.7 /1k (2025)
+124%5 yearsUS 13.1 /1k → 16.6 /1k
- Broadband subscriptionsImproving
65.6% (2015-2019) → 83.8% (2020-2024)
+18 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
- Job growthImproving
-1.6% (2021) → 10.1% (2026 Q1)
+12 pts5 yearsUS 3.4% → 0.1%
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.
Counties like Wilbarger County, Texas five years ago that improved
The places whose measures looked most like those of Wilbarger County, 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.
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).
Income
How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.
Homes
Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.
Getting to work
How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.
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 Vernon, TXLocal 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.
Federal contract spending
Federal grants & assistance
Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.
Public money & outcomes
Federal money per resident by fiscal year next to how the place changed, and, when its money jumped, how it compares with similar counties. A comparison, not cause and effect.
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.
Metro area
The metro or micro area Wilbarger County belongs to. A county is in at most one.
Cities and towns in Wilbarger County
Places whose residents live mostly in Wilbarger County, largest first.
Neighboring counties
Places that share a border, best score first.
Similar counties
Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).
- Nolan County, TX21Alike on Food insecurity, No transport, Poor health
- Gray County, TX28Alike on July high, Home value (Zillow), Uninsured
- Moore County, TX33Alike on July high, Poor health, Inactivity
- Reeves County, TX16Alike on Uninsured, July high, No transport
- Terry County, TX12Alike on No transport, Voter turnout, Property tax
Data and sources
Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.
- Mapping Injury, Overdose, and ViolenceCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2026-10-01
- PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
- Daily county PM2.5 and ozone (EPA downscaler model)Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2022
- Care Compare: Hospital General Information and Timely and Effective CareCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services · release 2026-07-22
- Distance to airports and intercity railFederal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau · release 2025+amtrak-2026-04-23
- Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Return A master filesFederal Bureau of Investigation · release 2025
- National Risk IndexFederal Emergency Management Agency · release v1.20.0
- Health Professional Shortage AreasHealth Resources and Services Administration · release 2026-10-03
- Public Libraries SurveyInstitute of Museum and Library Services · release FY2024
- Common Core of DataNational Center for Education Statistics · release 2024
- U.S. Drought Monitor county statisticsNational Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA · release 2026-09-29
- Fatality Analysis Reporting SystemNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration · release 2024
- nClimGrid-Daily county averagesNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · release 2025
- Regional Economic AccountsU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis · release 2024
- Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
- Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2026 Q1
- American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
- Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
- Business Formation StatisticsU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-10-01
- 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
- Alternative Fuels Data Center station locatorU.S. Department of Energy · release 2026-10
- Election Administration and Voting SurveyU.S. Election Assistance Commission · release 2024
- County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement