County outline
Where Gonzales County is located
Area breakdown
Land accounts for 99.7% of Gonzales County’s measured area and water for 0.3%. Its combined area converts to 2,770.9 square kilometers or approximately 684,707 acres.
Green: land · blue: water
| Measurement | Square miles | Square kilometers | Acres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land | 1,066.686 | 2,762.704 | 682,679 |
| Water | 3.168 | 8.205 | 2,027.5 |
| Total | 1,069.854 | 2,770.909 | 684,706.6 |
How Gonzales County compares
By original Census land area, Gonzales County ranks #54 of 254 in Texas and #607 of 3,222 nationally. National rankings include the 50 states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
Its land area is 1.174 times the Texas county-equivalent median of 908.7 square miles. It accounts for 0.4% of the combined county land area in the state.
See the complete Texas ranking · What counts as a county equivalent?
Population and density of Gonzales County
The Census Bureau estimates that 20,159 people lived in Gonzales County on July 1, 2025. That ranks #1,874 of 3,222 county equivalents nationally and #123 of 254 in Texas. Since the April 1, 2020 estimates base of 19,648, the population has grown by 511 (+2.6%), compared with +8.8% for Texas as a whole.
With 1,066.7 square miles of land, that is 19 people per square mile (7.3 per km²), placing Gonzales County #2,360 nationally for density and #140 in Texas. The median county equivalent has 47 people per square mile; the Texas median is 22. Put another way, there are about 34 acres of land per resident.
| July 1 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Estimate | 19,670 | 19,623 | 19,847 | 20,028 | 20,129 | 20,159 |
| Change | — | −47 | +224 | +181 | +101 | +30 |
U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 population estimates. Estimates are revised each year and are not decennial census counts. Density divides the whole population by the whole county’s land area, so it describes an average, not how settlement is distributed within the county. Population sources and methods.
Cities and towns in Gonzales County
4 incorporated places lie at least partly in Gonzales County. Together they are home to 11,100 people (55.1%); the other 9,059 (44.9%) live outside any incorporated place, in unincorporated communities and rural areas.
The largest is Gonzales city, with 7,239 residents in the county. Among places with at least 1,000 residents in 2020, Nixon city grew fastest since then (+2.2%).
| Incorporated place | Population 2025 | Since 2020 | Land mi² |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gonzales cityCounty seat | 7,239 | +1.2% | 6.08 |
| Nixon cityAlso in 1 other county | 2,406 | +2.2% | 1.563 |
| Waelder city | 954 | +2% | 1.279 |
| Smiley city | 501 | +3.9% | 0.521 |
Population: U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2025 subcounty estimates, counting only the part of each place inside Gonzales County. Land: 2026 Census Gazetteer, for the whole place even where it extends into other counties. How communities are listed.
Metropolitan area
Gonzales County is not part of any metropolitan or micropolitan statistical area in the Office of Management and Budget’s July 2023 delineation; 1,306 other county equivalents are also outside one. These areas are built around an urban core of at least 10,000 people plus the counties tied to it by commuting, so counties outside them are generally rural.
ZIP codes
15 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Gonzales County; 9 of them have most of their land inside the county, and the others mainly cover neighboring areas.
779547798477994781227814078159786147862978632786387864878658786777894178959
ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are the Census Bureau’s approximations of USPS ZIP Code service areas, from the 2020 Census relationship files. Lighter codes have less than half of their land in this county. Post-office-box and single-address ZIP Codes have no tabulation area.
Counties bordering Gonzales County
Gonzales County shares a land border with 7 county equivalents. It has more land than every one of them. The largest neighbor is Lavaca County (969.7 mi²) and the smallest is Caldwell County (544.5 mi²). Together with its neighbors, Gonzales County forms a block of 6,702.6 mi² of land, of which it holds 15.9%.
| Bordering county equivalent | Land mi² | Size vs. Gonzales | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lavaca County | 969.7 | 1.1× smaller | Compare |
| Fayette County | 949.9 | 1.1× smaller | Compare |
| DeWitt County | 909 | 1.2× smaller | Compare |
| Wilson County | 803.7 | 1.3× smaller | Compare |
| Karnes County | 747.8 | 1.4× smaller | Compare |
| Guadalupe County | 711.2 | 1.5× smaller | Compare |
| Caldwell County | 544.5 | 2× smaller | Compare |
How big is Gonzales County compared with U.S. states?
Gonzales County has more land than 1 of the 50 states. It is about 1 times the land area of Rhode Island (1,033.9 mi²), while Delaware, the next larger state, has 1.8 times as much land (1,948.6 mi²). Texas’s county land could hold about 245 areas the size of Gonzales County.
Another way to picture it: the same land area would fill a square about 32.7 miles (52.6 km) on each side. Real county shapes are rarely square, so this is a scale reference rather than a width or driving distance.
State figures are the sums of each state’s county-equivalent land measurements in the same Census release, so states and counties are compared on the same basis. Published state totals can differ slightly because of rounding. Compare all states · Counties bigger than entire states.
What stands out about Gonzales County?
Gonzales County has more land than 2,615 of the other 3,221 county equivalents in the dataset.
A median is the middle county-equivalent measurement, not the average of the largest and smallest. All three bars use the same linear scale. Very small areas may appear as a thin sliver; the labels retain their values.
Does including water change its rank?
Using land plus water places Gonzales County at #701 nationally by total area, 94 places farther from the top than its land rank. Other county equivalents gain more area when their water measurements are included.
Its water share is 0.3%, compared with a national county-equivalent median of 1.2% — 0.9 percentage points lower. This describes the statistical geography’s land/water mix, not flood exposure or developable land.
Closest positions in the national land ranking
These entries sit immediately beside Gonzales County in the national ranking. They can be in different states and are not necessarily geographic neighbors.
| Land rank | County equivalent | Land mi² | Comparison |
|---|---|---|---|
| #606 | Valencia County, New Mexico | 1,066.7 | Compare |
| #607 | Gonzales County, Texas | 1,066.7 | This county |
| #608 | McCulloch County, Texas | 1,065.6 | Compare |
Calculated from the same Census release as the area table. Total-area order uses original ALAND + AWATER; water shares and chart labels use published square miles. Calculation details.
Representative coordinates
The Census internal point is 29.462881, -97.490097. It represents a location inside the geography; it is not necessarily the centroid or the address of a courthouse.
Source and precision
U.S. Census Bureau, 2026 Gazetteer Files, Counties. Original ALAND: 2,762,704,877 m²; AWATER: 8,204,084 m². Rankings use ALAND; exact ties use ascending GEOID. Tables preserve Census-published square miles to three decimals, with conversions based on those values.
Common questions
How big is Gonzales County?
Gonzales County, Texas has 1,066.7 square miles (2,762.7 km²) of land and 3.168 square miles of water, for a total area of 1,069.9 square miles. It ranks #607 of 3,222 U.S. county equivalents by land area.
Is Gonzales County the largest county in Texas?
No. Gonzales County ranks #54 of 254 in Texas by land area. The largest is Brewster County, with 6,183.8 square miles of land.
What counties border Gonzales County?
Gonzales County shares a land border with DeWitt County, Guadalupe County, Caldwell County, Lavaca County, Fayette County, Wilson County, and Karnes County.
What is the population of Gonzales County?
The Census Bureau estimates Gonzales County had 20,159 residents on July 1, 2025, ranking #1,874 of 3,222 county equivalents. That is 19 people per square mile of land.
What is the county seat of Gonzales County?
The county seat of Gonzales County is Gonzales.
What cities and towns are in Gonzales County?
Gonzales County has 4 incorporated places. The most populous are Gonzales city, Nixon city, Waelder city, and Smiley city; 9,059 residents live outside any incorporated place.
Is Gonzales County part of a metropolitan area?
No. Gonzales County is outside every metropolitan and micropolitan statistical area in the July 2023 OMB delineation.
How many ZIP codes are in Gonzales County?
15 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas have land in Gonzales County, and 9 of them have most of their land inside the county. Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas approximate USPS ZIP Code areas.
How does Gonzales County compare with U.S. states?
It has more land than 1 of the 50 states, including Rhode Island (1,033.9 square miles of land).
How many acres of land are in Gonzales County?
The land measurement converts to approximately 682,679 acres. Including water, total area is approximately 684,707 acres. One square mile equals 640 acres.
Why might another source show a different area?
Check whether it reports land or total area, its Census vintage, and its rounding. Our guide explains how to reconcile county area figures.
Can this establish a property boundary?
No. Statistical measurements and generalized maps do not establish property lines. Consult the relevant local surveying or land-records authority.