TX · El Paso County · 678,815 (2020) · 23rd-largest US city · Mountain time
El Paso, Texas
El Paso stands on the Rio Grande at the far western tip of Texas, facing Ciudad Juárez in Mexico and touching New Mexico. It is the sixth-largest city in Texas and the twenty-third in the United States.
- State
- Texas
- County
- El Paso County
- Population (2020)
- 678,815
- Rank
- 23rd in the US
- Coordinates
- 31.76°N, 106.48°W
- Time zone
- Mountain
- Metro area
- about 870,000
- State capital
- No – Austin
Where El Paso is
El Paso is at 31.76°N, 106.49°W in El Paso County, of which it is the county seat. It occupies the pass — el paso del norte — where the Rio Grande cuts between the Franklin Mountains and the Sierra de Juárez, at about 3,740 feet above sea level, higher than any other large Texas city. The Rio Grande forms the international border with Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, immediately south of downtown, and the New Mexico line is a few miles north and west. El Paso is closer to Albuquerque (265 miles), Phoenix (430 miles) and San Diego than to Austin, the state capital, which is 575 miles east.
Population and rank
The 2020 Census counted 678,815 residents, ranking El Paso 23rd in the US and sixth in Texas. The El Paso metropolitan area (El Paso and Hudspeth counties) has about 870,000 people; with Ciudad Juárez, which has around 1.5 million, the binational conurbation exceeds 2.5 million — one of the largest on any international border. Las Cruces, New Mexico, 45 miles northwest, is often counted in the wider region. About 80 percent of the city's residents are Hispanic or Latino, the highest share of any large US city.
Geography
- Rio Grande — the river enters the pass from New Mexico, turns southeast at the city and from here to the Gulf forms the Texas–Mexico border; upstream it is heavily diverted for irrigation and often nearly dry. See the Rio Grande map.
- Franklin Mountains — a 23-mile ridge rising to North Franklin Peak (7,192 ft) inside the city limits, protected as the largest urban state park in the country.
- Chihuahuan Desert — El Paso lies in the largest North American desert; annual rainfall is under 10 inches. See US deserts.
- Hueco Tanks — granite outcrops 30 miles east with natural rock basins and ancient rock art.
Nearest large cities
El Paso is nearer to three other states' big cities than to any other Texas city on this list. Distances are approximate road miles from downtown.
| City | State | Road distance (mi) | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Albuquerque | NM | 265 | N |
| Tucson | AZ | 320 | W |
| Phoenix | AZ | 430 | W |
| San Antonio | TX | 550 | E |
| Austin | TX | 575 | E |
Is El Paso the state capital?
No. Texas's capital is Austin, 575 miles east — roughly the distance from Austin to New Orleans. El Paso is the seat of El Paso County. It is unusual in a second way: El Paso and Hudspeth counties keep Mountain Time, while the other 252 Texas counties are on Central, so clocks in El Paso are an hour behind Austin.
Related maps
- Texas map — the state with all 254 counties.
- Austin — the state capital, 575 miles east.
- US cities map.
- Rio Grande and US deserts maps.
- Nearby: Albuquerque, Tucson, New Mexico.
- Southwest region · Mountain Time Zone (the rest of Texas is on Central).