Celina, Texas was the fastest-growing qualifying U.S. city from July 2024 to July 2025, increasing 24.6% to an estimated 64,427 residents. Fulshear ranked second at 21.0%, and Princeton ranked third at 18.1%.
Eight of the fifteen cities in the complete Census growth-rate list were in Texas. The top ten below shows why fast growth is increasingly an exurban story—and why anyone considering these cities should check housing, roads, schools, and utilities at the address level.
The ten fastest-growing U.S. cities
Celina added about 12,710 residents in one year. That was enough to rank fourth nationally by numeric gain as well as first by percentage. Fulshear similarly appeared in both lists, while the other percentage leaders remained smaller in total population.
North Texas growth reaches beyond the biggest cities
Celina, Princeton, Melissa, Anna, and Forney sit within the wider Dallas–Fort Worth region. Their growth reflects an expanding metro footprint, but the Census table does not assign a cause to each city. New housing, available land, jobs, roads, schools, and household preferences must be evaluated with separate local evidence.
The Texas Tribune reference tells the growth story through recognizable places and contrasts expanding outer cities with slower or declining larger cities. Moveline follows that readable approach while keeping the national top-ten table complete.
Percentage growth rewards a fast pace, not city size
Celina’s 24.6% rate means its estimated population grew by nearly one-quarter in a year. Charlotte added more residents—20,731—but its much larger starting population produced a 2.2% rate. Both results are significant, and they answer different questions.
Use percentage when comparing the intensity of growth across different-sized cities. Use numeric gain when estimating how many residents were added. Keep the 20,000-person starting threshold visible because very small places can post large percentages from a modest number of new residents.
Rapid growth can improve options and increase pressure
Before moving to a fast-growing city
Use the numeric-gain ranking to see which cities added the most people, then use the Moveline calculator for the transportation question.
Population growth does not set the moving price
More than one million moves a year are handled through Moveline’s U.S. agent network. The experience shows why a popular destination can still have very different prices and access conditions by address. That experience shows why demand data and moving prices must remain separate. Capacity, route, date, home size, city access, and included work determine the price for the move.
The ranking is an annual snapshot, not a forecast. Refresh it from the next complete Census city-and-town release and compare several periods before treating one year’s pace as permanent.
