Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Pampa grades D overall, ranked 535th of 640 in Texas, mostly because of incomes and safety. The median household income is $57K, and 17% of residents live below the poverty line. It reports more crime per resident than 83% of U.S. towns, including 83 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. In its favor, homes are within reach, about $110K for a typical one, or 1.8 years of the Pampa area’s $60K median household income. 35% of working residents work locally in Pampa, where Texas’ towns sit at 8.3% and U.S. towns at 8%. Pampa's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 94% of U.S. towns. Pampa has 7 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Gray County Courthouse and Central Fire Station.
Where Pampa beats most towns.
Schneider Hotel
Zach ThomasEach subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Texas), ordered by how far Pampa is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 987 in 1920, a peak of 24,664 in 1960, 16,867 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1928 and 2 maps from 1963 on.
7 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Pampa, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Pampa.
Pampa has homes that are cheap against local pay, has seen reported crime fall by a fifth or more and has more 90° days than most of the country, though not than most of Texas.
At 1.8 years of the Pampa area’s $60K median household income, the typical home (about $110K) costs less against local pay than in 95% of Texas towns; that ratio is one input to its B+ for cost of living. Values rose 2.7% in the past year while the Texas typical home fell 1.5%.
The median rent in Pampa is $934 a month. The typical Pampa home is worth about $110,000, 63% below the Texas typical home.
| Pampa | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $934 a month | $1,208 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 74% | 69% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by Pampa ISD.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pampa J HLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 680 | C+ |
| Pampa H SLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,012 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TX on state tests and graduation
Reported crimes fell from 432 to 302 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Pampa’s violent crime rate is 5.1 per 1,000 residents. Pampa reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 83% report less. Pampa’s property crime rate is 13.4 per 1,000 residents.
| Pampa | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 5.1 per 1,000 residents | 1.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 13.4 per 1,000 residents | 10.7 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Pampa beats the Texas average on 1 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 13. 20% of adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance in Pampa.
| Pampa | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 8.1% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 30% | 25% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 24% | 19% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Pampa | TX |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 77.1% | 74.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.7% | 5.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The average commute for its 7,094 working residents takes 16.7 minutes, against 26.7 across Texas.
About one in 3 of Pampa’s working residents works in town. Jobs based in Pampa fell to 4,172 in 2023, 598 fewer than in 2013. The top destinations are Amarillo (14%), Borger (3%) and Lubbock (2%).
| Pampa | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $57,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The Pampa #2 weather station records that about 72 days a year reach 90°: more than most of the country, but fewer than 97% of Texas places with climate records. July afternoons average 92.8°: hotter than most of the country, but cooler than 88% of Texas places with climate records; January nights average 24.3°.
Pampa has chilly winters and hot summers, with very little rain. About 16 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Pampa | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 93°F | 95°F | 85°F |
| January low | 24°F | 37°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
0.6 miles of trail in 26 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Recreational Park, at 133 acres.
| Pampa | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 5.3% | 1.9% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Recreational Park | — | 133 |
| 2. Red Deer Park | — | 22 |
| 3. Highland Park | 0.1 mi | 19 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 56% of U.S. communities. Since 1999, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Pampa.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
None within 15 miles of Pampa; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Pampa residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Texas.
7 places in Pampa on the National Register of Historic Places.
18 notable people were born in Pampa.
City in Texas, United States
Pampa (from the Quechua: pampa, meaning "plain") is a city in Gray County, Texas, United States. Its population was 16,867 as of the 2020 census. Pampa is the county seat of Gray County and is the principal city of the Pampa micropolitan statistical area, which includes both Gray and Roberts Counties. Pampa is named after the Pampas Lowlands in Argentina, Uruguay, and southern Brazil. Each year in August, Pampa hosts the Top o' Texas Rodeo, which brings competitors from Texas and the surrounding states to Gray County. The White Deer Land Company Museum, which showcases ranching exhibits, is located in downtown Pampa.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Pampa grades D overall, better than 8% of U.S. towns and #535 of 640 in Texas. It grades C− for health, C− for safety and C for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
18 notable people were born here, including Zach Thomas and Kenneth Minihan.
