Plains City Hall, 2023
Plains’s story
120 years in pictures
The archive holds 3 old photos and papers going back to 2023.
- 1906Plains is settled
Population
1,323
2025 Census estimate · −2.4% since 2020
Typical home
$179K
+1.2% in a year
Household income
$77K
median
Median age
32.4
years
Jobs based here
449
Balanced
Is Plains a good place to live?
The best of Plains’ subject grades is an A+ for cost of living; the weakest is a D for health. On cost of living, just 5 of Texas’ 998 towns do better. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 82% of U.S. towns. Plains's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 96% of U.S. towns. Plains has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Plains stand out
Where Plains beats most towns.
Small town
1,323 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
How Plains grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Texas), ordered by how far Plains is from typical.
Cost of livingA+Open →HealthYoakum County Hospital 15.2 miles awayDOpen →WalkabilityEPA walkability 6.5 of 20; 0% of households have no car; 0% of workers walk, bike or ride transitC−Open →Jobs & income$77K median household incomeC−Open →SchoolsC−Open →Hazard riskdrought tops the listC+Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
OutdoorsC−Open →History1 notable person born hereDOpen →Civic life2.4 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsD−Open →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
Climate–Open →Housing market–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 32.4; 11% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Plains: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Plains, and how to reach them.
PowerXcel Energy13.9¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterCity of Plains water system21 health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet5 providers98% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpMondayTrash dayTown site
Register to voteIn personTexas has no online registration; you can register in person until 30 days before Election Day or by mail (postmarked 30 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereYoakum County Early Voting ClerkYoakum County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jun 2025
ZIP code7935579355 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Plains.
HealthD
Residents of Plains are less healthy than 87% of U.S. towns
Plains beats the Texas average on 0 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 15. 28% of Plains adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance, above both the Texas town median (18%) and the median of U.S. towns (8.1%). 17% of adults have diabetes in Plains.
13%healthier than U.S. townsDHealth Grade
| Plains | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 18% | 8.1% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 13% | 12% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 24% | 19% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 30% | 25% |
31 measures vs. Texas
0 better16 too close to call15 worse
| What stands out | Plains | TX |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 27.8% | 19.1% |
| More adults with heart disease | 7.8% | 5.6% |
| More adults in fair or poor health | 30.1% | 21.8% |
Yoakum County Hospital
15.2 mi away · emergency room
2 of 3
care shortages: dental, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
SchoolsC−
Public schools in Plains fall behind 76% of Texas districts
Its public schools are run by Plains ISD. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
24%of TX districts it outscoresC−School Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plains ElLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 201 | C− |
| Plains H SLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 129 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TX on state tests and graduation
HousingCost of living grade A+
The typical home in Plains is valued at about $179K
The typical Plains home is worth about $179,000, up 1.2% in a year, 40% below the Texas typical home. Plains’ median rent is $864 a month, where Texas’ towns sit at $1,208 a month and U.S. towns at $1,185 a month.
$179KZillow home value
| Plains | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $864 a month | $1,208 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 76% | 69% | 73% |
Typical home value
Plains$179K
Texas$296K
+1.2%
value change, 1 year
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Climate
In Plains, expect mild winters and hot summers
Plains has chilly winters and hot summers, with very little rain. The July high in Plains is 93°F.
3″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter28–57°
Spring45–76°
Summer65–93°
Fall46–74°
Nov 1
typical first frost
Apr 11
typical last frost
+1.5°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Work & commuteJobs & income grade C−
A job hub: Plains has 1.1 jobs for every working resident and draws in 350 commuters
About one in 4 of Plains’s working residents works in town. Since 2013, Plains has added 108 jobs, to 449 in 2023. Plains’ average trip to work is 29 minutes.
25%work in town
| Plains | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 25% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 29 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 12% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Plains25%
Lubbock10%
Denver City5%
Dallas3%
Seminole2%
38 mi
median commute distance
449
jobs based in Plains
Balanced
jobs vs. working residents
C−
Walkability grade: more walkable than 18% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade C+
Drought leads a moderate hazard risk in Plains
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 53% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Plains since 2004.
53risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
DroughtHailInland flooding
1
paid flood claims since 2004
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
0%conserved
0%
conserved · 0 of 953 acres
0.0 mi
of trails · 0 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Stanford Park | — | 16 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Plains
18pages on Plains
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Plains; the nearest are
University of the SouthwestUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Hobbs, NM35.5 mi$16,670 tuitionNew Mexico Junior CollegeCommunity college · Public · Hobbs, NM36.4 mi$1,440 in-state tuitionTexas Tech University Health Sciences CenterUniversity or college · Public · Lubbock60.4 mi
About 2 of every 100 Plains residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Texas.
About Plains
Town in Texas, United States
Plains is a town in and the county seat of Yoakum County of western Texas, United States. The city's population was 1,355 at the 2020 census. Yoakum County is in the Texas High Plains Wine country.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 1.0 sq mi
- Elevation
- 3,642 ft
- ZIP code
- 79355
- Area code
- 806
Questions about Plains
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Plains, TX expensive?
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 A+.