Both Bastrop and Elgin, each with population growth greater than 20% between 2020 and 2023, are communities primed for business expansion. Smithville, located in a still-rural section of eastern Bastrop County, was the first Film Friendly Community designated by the Texas Film Commission.
The hometown hospitality of three historic cities – Bastrop, Elgin, and Smithville – beautiful recreation areas and incredible entertainment venues combine with a business-friendly culture, reliable infrastructure, a community college, a talented workforce and dedicated partners – all in a beautiful setting. Bastrop County boasts an expanding industrial park in Bastrop, located on a four-lane highway between Austin and Houston, proximity to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, and an Austin Community College campus in Elgin. Bastrop County ranks 14th among large U.S. counties (100,000+ population) for growth between 2020 and 2023. The county has several key components of the region’s biosciences industry, including a unit of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Research Center — the Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research — as well as life sciences companies such as Agilent Technologies and Caligor Coghlan.
BASTROP COUNTY | AUSTIN MSA | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Population 2023 | 110,778 | 2,473,275 | |
| Population growth 2013-2023 | 46.1% | 31.3% | |
| Land area (sq. mi.) 2020 | 888.2 | 4,219.5 | |
| Median age 2024 | 39.1 | 35.5 | |
| Households 2024 | 37,909 | 992,698 | |
| Home ownership rate 2024 | 78.2% | 58.0% | |
| Median household income 2024 | $76,280 | $98,368 | |
| Per capita income 2024 | $32,710 | $54,422 | |
| High school grads 2024 | 85.7% | 92.9% | |
| College grads 2024 | 26.0% | 51.9% | |
| Labor force 2023 | 49,984 | 1,454,802 | |
| Unemployment rate 2023 | 3.4% | 3.3% | |
| Public school enrollment 2021-2022 | 19,031 | 328,852 | |
| High school graduates 2022 | 1,288 | 22,140 | |
| Retail sales 2023 | $1,878 mil. | $48,390 mil. | |
| Business 2023 | Establishments | 1,819 | 76,406 |
| Employment | 21,584 | 1,248,890 | |
| Average salary | $50,839 | $84,375 | |
| Mfg.business 2023 | Establishments | 91 | 2,239 |
| Employment | 1,346 | 72,133 | |
| Average salary | $60,674 | $126,226 | |
Source: Texas Comptroller for retail sales; Texas Workforce Commission for labor force, unemployment, businesses, employees, and salaries; Texas Education Agency for public school enrollment and graduates; ESRI for 2024 demographic estimates; and U.S. Census Bureau for all other data.
| LARGEST CITIES IN THE COUNTY | LARGEST SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN THE COUNTY |
|---|---|