36,391 people (2024 Census estimate, +0.3% since 2020)
1,093 square miles of land · 33 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.
26 active community water systems list Matagorda County in the area they serve, reporting 36,551 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| CITY OF BAY CITY groundwater · local government · TX1610001 | 18,061 served |
| CITY OF PALACIOS groundwater · local government · TX1610004 | 4,700 served |
| CANEY CREEK MUD OF MATAGORDA COUNTY groundwater · local government · TX1610087 | 2,764 served |
| MATAGORDA WSC groundwater · local government · TX1610013 | 1,746 served |
| MATAGORDA COUNTY WCID 6 groundwater · local government · TX1610007 | 1,518 served |
| MARKHAM MUD groundwater · local government · TX1610006 | 1,400 served |
| MATAGORDA COUNTY WCID 5 groundwater · local government · TX1610002 | 1,128 served |
| TRES PALACIOS OAKS SUBDIVISION groundwater · private · TX1610017 | 774 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 124 people were held in Matagorda County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2026). In 2021 it was about 130.
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.
5 school districts have their office in Matagorda County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $52.5 million — $44.1 million to run schools, about $12,309 per student, plus $3.3 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $23.6 million local (mostly property tax), $20.2 million state, $13 million federal. Long-term debt: $129.6 million.
Spent $81.8 million — $20.5 million to run schools, about $15,773 per student, plus $54.9 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $25.6 million local (mostly property tax), $2.1 million state, $3.6 million federal. Long-term debt: $109.4 million.
Spent $20.4 million — $17.4 million to run schools, about $16,250 per student, plus $449,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $15.9 million local (mostly property tax), $6.3 million state, $1.9 million federal. Long-term debt: $73.7 million.
Spent $19.1 million — $13.7 million to run schools, about $13,141 per student, plus $1 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $13.3 million local (mostly property tax), $1.7 million state, $2.7 million federal. Long-term debt: $38.3 million.
Spent $4.2 million — $2 million to run schools, about $21,966 per student, plus $168,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $1.7 million local (mostly property tax), $325,000 state, $393,000 federal. Long-term debt: $3.7 million.
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 Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Matagorda County about $33.3 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Moderate; social vulnerability: Relatively High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
192 bridges in Matagorda County: 74 in good condition, 106 fair, and 12 poor (6.3%). “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.
| SH 35 SB over COLORADO RIVER · built 1971 | 10,639 vehicles a day |
| SH 35 NB over COLORADO RIVER · built 1961 | 7,234 vehicles a day |
| HAMMAN RD over COTTONWOOD CREEK · built 1972 | 4,304 vehicles a day |
| SIXTH ST & AVE I over COTTONWOOD CREEK · built 1956 | 2,320 vehicles a day |
| EIGHTH ST over COTTONWOOD CREEK · built 1962 | 2,083 vehicles a day |
| AVE H over COTTONWOOD CREEK · built 1958 | 887 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $19.7 million of work in Matagorda County in fiscal 2025, about $543 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 Matagorda 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 Matagorda County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of Texas: the state government and every county in Texas.
Nearby counties: Wharton County (37 mi) · Jackson County (38 mi) · Calhoun County (42 mi) · Brazoria County (44 mi) · Fort Bend County (54 mi) · Victoria County (59 mi).