399,578 people (2024 Census estimate, +7.3% since 2020)
1,054 square miles of land · 379 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
28 active community water systems list Bell County in the area they serve, reporting 428,726 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| CITY OF KILLEEN buys surface water · local government · TX0140006 | 161,027 served |
| CITY OF TEMPLE surface water · local government · TX0140005 | 94,935 served |
| CITY OF HARKER HEIGHTS buys surface water · local government · TX0140023 | 35,957 served |
| US ARMY SOUTH FORT CAVAZOS buys surface water · federal · TX0140107 | 35,669 served |
| CITY OF BELTON buys surface water · local government · TX0140002 | 23,054 served |
| SALADO WSC buys surface water · local government · TX0140035 | 11,460 served |
| BELL COUNTY WCID 3 buys surface water · local government · TX0140031 | 7,836 served |
| 439 WSC buys surface water · local government · TX0140076 | 7,836 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 1,215 people were held in Bell County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2026). In 2021 it was about 989.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
10 school districts have their office in Bell County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $631 million — $519.2 million to run schools, about $11,818 per student, plus $90.2 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $158.2 million local (mostly property tax), $303.2 million state, $153.7 million federal. Long-term debt: $393.8 million.
Spent $221.4 million — $151.9 million to run schools, about $11,135 per student, plus $52.9 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $89.4 million local (mostly property tax), $80.9 million state, $18.1 million federal. Long-term debt: $385.6 million.
Spent $143.1 million — $108.8 million to run schools, about $12,629 per student, plus $23.7 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $69.5 million local (mostly property tax), $42.7 million state, $31 million federal. Long-term debt: $158.7 million.
Spent $27.9 million — $23.2 million to run schools, about $9,952 per student, plus $2.1 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $23.4 million local (mostly property tax), $8.2 million state, $1.9 million federal. Long-term debt: $56.9 million.
Spent $49.1 million — $17.8 million to run schools, about $9,690 per student, plus $29.1 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $11.7 million local (mostly property tax), $9.8 million state, $1.6 million federal. Long-term debt: $59.5 million.
Spent $19.6 million — $18.1 million to run schools, about $10,730 per student, plus $224,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $9.1 million local (mostly property tax), $11.9 million state, $2.1 million federal. Long-term debt: $27.8 million.
Spent $13.6 million — $11 million to run schools, about $12,461 per student, plus $2.1 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $4.8 million local (mostly property tax), $7.9 million state, $1.2 million federal. Long-term debt: $12.6 million.
Spent $10.9 million — $10.3 million to run schools, about $16,297 per student, plus $197,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $3.1 million local (mostly property tax), $6.3 million state, $2 million federal. Long-term debt: $7.4 million.
And 2 more.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Relatively Moderate compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Bell County about $107 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively High; social vulnerability: Relatively Low.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
654 bridges in Bell County: 357 in good condition, 296 fair, and 1 poor (0.2%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| WEST CENTRAL AVE over NOLAN CREEK · built 1920 | 338 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $115.5 million of work in Bell County in fiscal 2025, about $312 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-05. Early voting: 2026-10-19 to 2026-10-30. Mail ballot application must be received: 2026-10-23. Election Day: 2026-11-03.
Source: Texas Secretary of State, Sept. 28, 2026 · VoteTexas.gov — early voting · VoteTexas.gov
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Bell County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Bell County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of Texas: the state government and every county in Texas.
Nearby counties: Williamson County (28 mi) · Coryell County (30 mi) · Milam County (34 mi) · Falls County (35 mi) · McLennan County (39 mi) · Burnet County (46 mi).