Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex

Based on Wikipedia: Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex

If the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex were a country, its economy would rank twentieth in the world—larger than Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, or Argentina. This sprawling Texan conurbation, home to more than eight million people, represents something remarkable in American geography: a place that essentially willed itself into being through sheer commercial ambition, then kept growing until it became one of the largest urban areas on Earth.

The name itself tells you something about how the place thinks. "Metroplex"—a mashup of "metropolis" and "complex"—was invented in 1972 by an advertising executive named Harve Chapman. His agency was working with the North Texas Commission on a branding problem. Surveys had shown that the old designation "North Texas" meant nothing to outsiders. Only 38 percent of respondents could identify Dallas and Fort Worth as part of North Texas; many assumed the term referred to the Texas Panhandle, that flat expanse hundreds of miles to the northwest. So they copyrighted "Southwest Metroplex" and built an identity around it. In an era when most American cities were watching their downtowns hollow out, Dallas–Fort Worth was hiring advertising agencies to market itself.

The Scale of the Thing

Numbers only go so far in conveying what the Metroplex actually is, but let's start there anyway.

The metropolitan statistical area—the official government designation—spans eleven counties across 9,286 square miles. That's larger than Rhode Island and Connecticut combined. It's larger than New Jersey. If you dropped the Metroplex into the Middle East, it would be bigger than Lebanon. The 2024 census estimate puts the population at 8.34 million, making it the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States, trailing only New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago.

But raw size matters less than the trajectory. In 2016, Dallas–Fort Worth had the highest annual population growth rate in America. The region added more than a million people between 2010 and 2020. While much of the country worries about population decline and aging demographics, the Metroplex just keeps absorbing newcomers.

The economic heft follows from the population. Twenty-three Fortune 500 companies call the area home—the fourth-highest concentration in the nation, behind New York (62), Chicago (35), and Houston (24). The gross domestic product exceeded $620 billion in 2020, which sounds abstract until you realize that this makes Dallas–Fort Worth the fourth-largest metropolitan economy in America, periodically trading places with Houston depending on oil prices and other economic fluctuations.

Two Cities, One Identity

The hyphenated name obscures a genuine duality. Dallas and Fort Worth are not the same place, and their residents have traditionally been quick to point this out.

Dallas built itself on banking, insurance, and commerce. It was the city of big money, corporate headquarters, and white-collar ambition. The gleaming skyscrapers downtown projected financial confidence. When people elsewhere in America thought of Texas cities, Dallas was the one that felt most like it could have been transplanted from somewhere else—polished, professional, perhaps a bit slick.

Fort Worth earned the nickname "Cowtown" for good reason. It grew up as a cattle town, a stop on the Chisholm Trail, a place where ranchers drove their herds to market. The culture retained that Western flavor even as the city modernized. Fort Worth has always been the more laid-back sibling, slightly suspicious of Dallas's corporate striving.

The two downtowns sit about thirty miles apart, connected by Interstate 30. Between them lies a vast suburban sprawl that has gradually filled in what was once open prairie. Arlington, sitting roughly midway between the two cities, has grown into a major center in its own right—home to the Dallas Cowboys' stadium, the Texas Rangers' ballpark, and a substantial manufacturing base. Arlington has no public transit system, making it the largest city in America without bus or rail service. This fact tells you something about how the Metroplex developed: around cars, highways, and the assumption that everyone would drive everywhere.

The Geography of Boom

The land itself is unassuming. The Metroplex sits on prairie—gently rolling terrain dotted with man-made lakes and cut by creeks and small rivers. The eastern portion, including Dallas and Collin County, lies on the Texas Blackland Prairie, so named for its dark, fertile soil. This was good farming country before it became suburb country.

West of Dallas, the landscape shifts. Denton, Tarrant, and Parker Counties occupy the Fort Worth Prairie, where the soil is rockier and less productive for crops. Much of this land historically supported cattle ranching rather than farming. But underneath it lies something more valuable than topsoil: the Barnett Shale, one of the largest onshore natural gas fields in the United States.

The Barnett Shale transformed parts of the Metroplex in the 2000s. Suddenly, ranchers and suburban homeowners found themselves sitting atop valuable mineral rights. Natural gas wells sprouted across Denton, Tarrant, and Wise Counties. The drilling brought money, jobs, and environmental controversy. It also illustrated something fundamental about Texas: the land keeps revealing new forms of wealth.

The climate is what meteorologists call humid subtropical with continental characteristics. In plain English, this means very hot summers, mild winters with occasional Arctic intrusions, and the constant possibility of violent weather. The Metroplex sits at the southern end of Tornado Alley, that corridor of the Great Plains where cold Canadian air masses collide with warm, moist Gulf air to spawn severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. Spring in North Texas brings a particular anxiety, as residents scan the horizon for the telltale green-gray sky that signals rotating storms.

Summer heat is relentless. July and August average highs of 96 degrees Fahrenheit, with heat indices routinely exceeding 105. The all-time record, set during the brutal Heat Wave of 1980, reached 113 degrees. Winters provide relief but can surprise. "Blue Northers"—sharp cold fronts that sweep down from the Arctic—can drop temperatures forty or fifty degrees in a matter of hours. The region saw this at its most extreme during Winter Storm Uri in February 2021, when temperatures plunged to negative two degrees at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and the state's power grid collapsed.

Silicon Prairie

The economic nickname "Silicon Prairie" captures the Metroplex's bid to be something more than oil refineries and cattle ranches. Technology, telecommunications, healthcare, and finance have all clustered here, drawn by cheap land, low taxes, business-friendly regulations, and a central location with excellent air connections.

Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, opened in 1974 on a massive plot of land between the two cities, became the anchor for this growth. The airport's code—DFW—has become local shorthand for the entire region. The facility sprawled across more than 17,000 acres, making it one of the largest airports in the world by area. Its position roughly equidistant from both coasts made it a natural hub for national and international travel.

Corporate relocations have accelerated in recent years. Companies fleeing California's high taxes and regulations have found the Metroplex welcoming. McKesson, one of the largest healthcare companies in America, announced its move from San Francisco in late 2018. Charles Schwab followed, relocating its headquarters from the Bay Area. These moves brought thousands of jobs and billions in economic activity, while reinforcing the region's reputation as a destination for businesses seeking friendlier terrain.

The UT Southwestern Medical Center represents another kind of economic asset. This research institution, affiliated with the University of Texas system, has produced six Nobel Prize winners and ranks among the world's leading centers for biomedical research. Healthcare and medical research have become significant employers across the Metroplex, part of a deliberate strategy to build economic sectors beyond traditional Texas industries like energy and agriculture.

The Demographics of Change

The Metroplex's population has transformed as rapidly as its economy. In 2020, the racial composition was 42 percent non-Hispanic white, 29 percent Hispanic or Latino, 16 percent Black or African American, and 8 percent Asian. These numbers mark a dramatic shift from the more homogeneous Texas of earlier decades.

Immigration drives much of this diversity. In 2015 alone, more than 100,000 foreign-born residents moved to the area. The origins vary: 44 percent from Latin America, 36 percent from Asia, 13 percent from Africa, and 7 percent from Europe. The 2020 American Community Survey found that 18.5 percent of Metroplex residents were born outside the United States.

This diversity concentrates in particular ways. Certain suburbs have become majority-minority. Asian communities have flourished in Plano and Richardson. Hispanic neighborhoods stretch across parts of Dallas, Fort Worth, and the smaller cities in between. African American communities, some with roots stretching back to emancipation, anchor parts of southern Dallas and scattered suburbs.

Religious life reflects this complexity. The Metroplex claims the largest Christian population of any metropolitan area in the United States—78 percent identify with some Christian denomination. Baptist and Methodist churches dominate, anchoring two major private universities: Dallas Baptist University and Southern Methodist University, known as SMU. But the region has also become notably diverse religiously. Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Sikh, and Buddhist communities have established themselves, collectively forming about 4 percent of the population. Megachurches—those vast suburban congregations with thousands of members, stadium seating, and sophisticated media operations—have become a distinctive feature of the religious landscape. The Metroplex ranks second in Texas for megachurch concentration, trailing only greater Houston.

The region also hosts one of the largest LGBTQ communities in Texas, a fact that sometimes surprises those who assume conservative Texas offers an unwelcoming environment. Oak Lawn, a neighborhood in Dallas, has served as the heart of this community for decades, with its own distinctive culture, businesses, and annual Pride celebration.

The Bedroom Community Problem

Residents have developed their own shorthand for navigating this sprawl. Interstate 35, which runs north-south through Texas, splits into two branches through the Metroplex: I-35E passes through Dallas, while I-35W serves Fort Worth. Locals use this as a dividing line, referring to places as being on "the Dallas side" or "the Fort Worth side." The area between the two branches, anchored by Arlington, goes by "Mid-Cities."

Most incorporated cities in the Metroplex function as what urban planners call bedroom communities—places where people sleep but don't necessarily work. They drive to jobs elsewhere, contributing to some of the most congested highway networks in America. The names roll by on highway signs: Plano, Frisco, McKinney, Allen, Lewisville, Carrollton, Richardson, Garland, Mesquite, Grand Prairie, Irving. Some have grown enormous. Plano approaches 300,000 people. Frisco, which barely existed as a town in the 1990s, now exceeds 219,000.

The growth of these suburbs represents both the Metroplex's success and its challenges. People keep coming because housing remains relatively affordable compared to coastal cities, because jobs are plentiful, because the climate—despite the heat—beats harsh winters. But the infrastructure strains under the pressure. Highways that were built for smaller populations clog with traffic. Water supplies, drawn from man-made reservoirs and increasingly stretched groundwater, require constant management. Schools must absorb waves of new students.

The Economics of Attraction

What draws all these people and businesses? The answer involves a complex calculation that plays out millions of times in individual decisions.

Start with taxes. Texas has no state income tax. For a high earner relocating from California or New York, this can mean keeping an additional 10 percent or more of their salary. Property taxes are higher than in many states, but the total tax burden remains lower for most households.

Then consider housing costs. The median home price in the Metroplex, while rising rapidly, remains a fraction of Bay Area or New York levels. A corporate executive who sold a modest house in San Francisco could buy a mansion in Collin County and pocket the difference.

Business costs follow similar logic. Commercial real estate is cheaper. Labor costs are lower, partly because workers can afford to accept smaller salaries when their housing doesn't consume half their income. Regulations tend to be lighter. Building permits come faster.

The central location helps too. Dallas/Fort Worth Airport can reach most of the continental United States in three hours or less. For companies with national operations or customer bases, this matters. Texas is also large enough to serve as a market in itself—the Metroplex alone has more people than many European countries.

The Universities

The Metroplex claims the highest concentration of colleges and universities in Texas, a fact that often surprises those who associate the state with education deserts. The roster includes major research institutions, denominational colleges, community college systems, and specialized schools.

The University of Texas at Arlington serves as the largest university in the region, a sprawling commuter campus that has gradually built research credentials. UT Southwestern, mentioned earlier, dominates medical education and research. Southern Methodist University provides the Metroplex's entry in the elite private university category, with strong law and business schools and a picturesque campus in north Dallas. Texas Christian University, in Fort Worth, maintains its Methodist roots while competing for academic prestige.

Beyond these flagships, numerous smaller institutions serve various niches: Dallas Baptist University, the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas Woman's University, and a network of community colleges that provide affordable pathways into higher education and workforce training.

This educational infrastructure feeds the corporate economy. Companies relocating to the Metroplex can draw on a steady supply of graduates. The universities, in turn, benefit from corporate partnerships, research funding, and the simple presence of a large, wealthy population that sends its children to local schools.

The Broader Region

The official metropolitan statistical area captures only part of the economic reality. The federal government also defines a combined statistical area that sweeps even wider, incorporating 20 counties in North Central Texas and one county across the border in South Central Oklahoma. This larger region—spanning more than 16,000 square miles—had a population exceeding 8 million by 2020.

The outlying areas include smaller cities with their own identities: Sherman and Denison near the Oklahoma border, Corsicana to the southeast, Granbury to the southwest, and even Durant, Oklahoma, which has been swept into the DFW economic orbit. These places function somewhere between independence and satellite status—too far for daily commuting, perhaps, but tied into the Metroplex's labor markets, shopping centers, and cultural attractions.

What It Means

The Metroplex represents a particular vision of American development: growth without obvious limits, prosperity through attraction of people and capital, solutions to problems through more growth. Critics point to the sprawl, the car dependency, the environmental costs of all that concrete and air conditioning. Defenders note that millions of people have chosen this life, voting with their feet and their moving trucks.

The region's median household income exceeds the Texas average. Unemployment typically runs below national figures. Poverty, while present, is less prevalent than in many American metropolitan areas. These statistics don't capture everything—they miss the hidden struggles, the inequality between gleaming northern suburbs and struggling southern neighborhoods, the stress of commuting, the risks of building in tornado and drought territory. But they suggest why people keep coming.

The name stuck, by the way. "Metroplex" sounded awkward at first, a marketing invention rather than organic language. But four decades later, it's simply what people call the place. The advertising executive's gamble paid off. In a region built on boosters and big plans, even the name turned out to be a successful product launch.