Hereford, Texas
Area Profile
14,840 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Hereford, in Deaf Smith County.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 13 sourcesEmployment conditions sit below most comparable cities measured: unemployment is 4.1% and the Opportunity signal places Hereford in the bottom 13%. The unemployment rate is published for Deaf Smith County, TX, which contains Hereford, rather than for Hereford alone.
In the public schools here, 44% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 15.5 students for every teacher.
Housing is more affordable relative to local incomes than in most cities measured: rent takes 25% of renter income and the median home is 1.8 times what its owners earn.
These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.
At a glance
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment across Deaf Smith County, TX, which contains Hereford, is 4.1%, lower than in 58% of the 4,226 measured US cities.
Employment across Deaf Smith County, TX, which contains Hereford, fell 1.3% over the past year, to 8,157 employed residents.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income of new arrivalsDeaf Smith County, TX’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $42,860 | 2nd percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Income of those who leftDeaf Smith County, TX’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $52,915 | 11th percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Median household income ±$9,2932024 ACS 5-Year | $56,868 | Bottom 34%of 29,326 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$2,2902024 ACS 5-Year | $23,802 | Bottom 17%of 31,420 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Poverty rate ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year | 15.6% | Bottom 33%of 31,773 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±1.8 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 17.9 min | Top 11%of 31,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 8.4% | Bottom 17%of 31,919 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±6%2024 ACS 5-Year | 73.8% | 39th percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentDeaf Smith County, TX’s figureJuly 2026 | 8,157 | Bottom 1%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)Deaf Smith County, TX’s figureJuly 2026 | −2.5% | Bottom 18%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)Deaf Smith County, TX’s figureJuly 2026 | −1.3% | Bottom 37%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceDeaf Smith County, TX’s figureJuly 2026 | 8,503 | 1st percentileof 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 75.6% | Bottom 41%of 31,513 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Public transit to work ±0.3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.0% | 1st percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)Deaf Smith County, TX’s figureJuly 2026 | +0.2% | Bottom 32%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateDeaf Smith County, TX’s figureJuly 2026 | 4.1% | Top 42%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year | 2.3% | 23rd percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Median household income, successive ACS releases
The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes city-level labor data only for places of 25,000 or more. This is the figure for Deaf Smith County, TX, which contains this city.
44% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 35% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 15.5 students for every full-time teacher across 9 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hereford H S | HEREFORD ISD | 1,182 | 15.2 | 48% | 32% |
| Hereford J H | HEREFORD ISD | 534 | 12.1 | 42% | 36% |
| Northwest El | HEREFORD ISD | 479 | 15.5 | 47% | 36% |
| Aikman El | HEREFORD ISD | 464 | 20.2 | 49% | 44% |
| Bluebonnet El | HEREFORD ISD | 366 | 15.9 | 31% | 35% |
| West Central El | HEREFORD ISD | 331 | 15.0 | 32% | 22% |
| Hereford Preparatory Academy | HEREFORD ISD | 322 | 14.0 | 47% | 41% |
| Tierra Blanca Early Childhood Center | HEREFORD ISD | 286 | 19.1 | — | — |
| Walcott El | WALCOTT ISD | 146 | 20.9 | 52% | 32% |
79.5% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.
Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Texas’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated — housing affordability →The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the non-metropolitan parts of Texas is up 44% over five years, and up 2.9% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.
Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $1,797 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.64% of the median home value.
HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,070, some 12% above the $953 tenants already here pay.
At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,070 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $42,800 a year, about 75% of the median household income here of $56,868.
The typical renter household here spends 25% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $953 a month.
A median home at $109,700 costs 1.8 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $60,731, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.
The figures above are measured against Hereford’s median household income of $56,868, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of Texas’s figure2026 Q2 | +2.9% | 47th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Texas’s figure2026 Q2 | +43.8% | 53rd percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Texas’s figure2026 Q2 | +97.6% | 57th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price to income ±0.32024 ACS 5-Year | 1.8 | Top 25%of 26,901 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±7%2024 ACS 5-Year | 66.4% | 31st percentileof 31,840 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±2602024 ACS 5-Year | 5,522 | 89th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Market rent, one bedroomFY2026 | $855 | Top 11%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, three bedroomFY2026 | $1,283 | Top 7%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, two bedroomFY2026 | $1,070 | Top 12%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Median gross rent ±$572024 ACS 5-Year | $953 | Top 48%of 23,217 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$9,8802024 ACS 5-Year | $109,700 | 23rd percentileof 29,111 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$2722024 ACS 5-Year | $1,797 | 51st percentileof 26,440 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$8,3602024 ACS 5-Year | $60,731 | Bottom 24%of 27,548 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.29%2024 ACS 5-Year | 1.64% | 83rd percentileof 20,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year | 24.7% | Top 32%of 23,052 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±232024 ACS 5-Year | 0 | 1st percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.0% | 1st percentileof 31,895 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 11.8% | 70th percentileof 31,895 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±1602024 ACS 5-Year | 649 | 92nd percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated — growth →Development Momentum
An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.
Population has been broadly flat since 2020, at 14,860 in 2024.
Permitting has turned upward after moving the other way the year before: 39 units authorized in 2025, up 70% on the prior year.
New construction is predominantly single-family: of 38 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.
Federal tax returns show Deaf Smith County, which contains Hereford, lost about 1.0% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $42,860, below the $52,915 of households that moved out.
At 2.6 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.
Population, annual estimates
People moving in and out
Where newcomers came from
- Potter County, TX 80 people · 12% of arrivals
- Randall County, TX 78 people · 12% of arrivals
- Castro County, TX 70 people · 11% of arrivals
- Parmer County, TX 53 people · 8.2% of arrivals
Where people who left went
- Randall County, TX 235 people · 30% of departures
- Potter County, TX 85 people · 11% of departures
- Parmer County, TX 45 people · 5.7% of departures
Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Deaf Smith County, TX. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.
Housing units permitted per year
Weather & climate
7 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 92°F and January a low of 23°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 19.3 inches, including 14.3 inches of snow.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 19.3" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals | 14.3" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 23°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 92°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 7 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 42°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are cold wave, hail and drought, with cold wave alone responsible for 23% of it.
Low or minimal exposure: earthquake, lightning, ice storm, inland flooding, landslide, hurricane, avalanche, tsunami, volcanic activity, coastal flooding.
Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.
Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.
Hereford's police department reported 67 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, lower than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 492.
Deaf Smith County has a modeled homicide rate of about 6.5 per 100,000 residents a year, because the CDC suppresses counts this small, higher than most counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.
Firearm deaths of all intents run at about 17.4 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.
Drug overdose deaths run at about 13.0 per 100,000 residents in Deaf Smith County.
Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.
Offenses are reported to the FBI by Hereford’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Hereford (Deaf Smith County) rather than Hereford itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.
What this profile does not cover
Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.
- Cost of living
- Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
- Air quality
- The EPA publishes an air-quality index only where a monitor sits. There is none in this county, and a modeled value would be a different kind of number from the measured ones everywhere else on this page.
- Taxes
- Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
- Anything about a specific address
- Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.
Access
2 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Rick Husband Amarillo Intl at 48 miles.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±6%2024 ACS 5-Year | 81.2% | Bottom 21%of 31,711 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 48 mi | Bottom 13%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 2 | Bottom 8%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year | 16.7% | Bottom 18%of 31,711 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rick Husband Amarillo Intl | AMA | 48 mi | 13,502 ft |
| Lubbock Preston Smith Intl | LBB | 87 mi | 11,500 ft |
| Lea County Rgnl | HOB | 155 mi | 8,000 ft |
Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.
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Data & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle |
| Safety | Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency | 2025 calendar year |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) |
| Demographics, Income | Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county) | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | July 2026 |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Demographics | U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program | July 1, 2024 estimate |
| Safety | U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics Provisional county-level mortality by intent | April 2025 to March 2026; March 2025 to February 2026 |
| Schools | U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments | 2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year |
| Housing | U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research Fair Market Rents | FY2026 |
| Housing | U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) | 2026 Q2 |
| Current conditions | NOAA National Weather Service National Weather Service current conditions | Live observation, read when the page opens |
Profile recalculated September 26, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.
ZIP codes in Hereford
1 ZIP areaEvery ZIP area in Hereford with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track Hereford closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.
| ZIP | Population | Median household income | Median home value | Area Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 79045 | 18,189 | $60,543 | $116,500 | — |