Population: Baytown, Mont Belvieu, Highlands, Crosby
The numbers, from the Census, with the year — and what they mean on the ground.
The numbers, from the Census, with the year — and what they mean on the ground.
The figures
The table on this page pulls the latest Census Bureau estimates for the City of Baytown, the City of Mont Belvieu, and the census-designated places of Highlands and Crosby, plus the six zips, with the estimate year beside each. We don't type them; they change every summer.
What the shape is
Baytown is a city of 83,701 at the 2020 Census — call it 85,000 — that grew steadily for a century on the refinery and faster in the last decade on the plant expansions. Mont Belvieu is the fastest-growing place on this site by percentage — a small city doubling on the tank-farm tax base and Barbers Hill's schools. Highlands and Crosby are older, unincorporated, and growing slowly on acreage. The six-zip area together is well over 100,000 people, which is the number that matters for anyone counting customers.
Who lives here
Majority Hispanic in the city proper, with the plants' workforce bringing people from every Gulf state and beyond; young by Texas standards, because the plants hire young; a large share of households with someone who works shifts. The Census profile with the breakdown — age, language spoken at home, household size, commute — is linked, and the Spanish-language page is written for the large share of the city that speaks Spanish at home — the ACS table linked below gives the current figure and its year.
The turnaround number
None of the Census figures count the turnaround crews — up to a few thousand people living in the hotels and RV parks for weeks at a time and not on any census. Baytown's real population on a turnaround week is higher than any table says, and the Cuban Cafe knows it.
Questions people ask
What is the population of Baytown TX? 83,701 at the 2020 Census, roughly 85,000 today; the current estimate and its year are in the table. Mont Belvieu population? In the table, with the growth rate; it's the fastest-growing on this site. Is Baytown growing? Yes, steadily; the new-openings and construction pages show where.
En español
Población: Baytown tenía 83,701 habitantes en el Censo de 2020, unos 85,000 hoy (la estimación actual y su año están en la tabla); Mont Belvieu es la ciudad de crecimiento más rápido de la zona; Highlands y Crosby son más antiguos y crecen despacio. Los seis códigos postales juntos suman más de 100,000 personas. Mayoría hispana en la ciudad; cerca de la mitad habla español en casa. Las cuadrillas de turnaround — miles de personas por semanas — no aparecen en ningún censo.