Harris County, Texas

Harris County
County
Downtown Houston, Harris County Courthouse
Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Texas
Texas's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 29°52′N 95°23′W / 29.86°N 95.39°W / 29.86; -95.39
Country	United States
State	Texas
Founded	December 22, 1836
Named for	John Richardson Harris
Seat	Houston
Largest city	Houston
Area
• Total	1,780.26 sq mi (4,610.9 km2)
• Land	1,706.96 sq mi (4,421.0 km2)
• Water	73.30 sq mi (189.8 km2)  4.2%
Population  (2020)
• Total	4,731,145
• Estimate  (2023)	4,835,125
• Density	2,830/sq mi (1,094/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional districts	2nd, 7th, 8th, 9th, 18th, 22nd, 29th, 36th, 38th
Website	www.harriscountytx.gov

Harris County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas; as of the 2020 census, the population was 4,731,145,^[1] making it the most populous county in Texas and the third-most populous county in the United States. Its county seat is Houston, the most populous city in Texas and fourth-most populous city in the United States. The county was founded in 1836 and organized in 1837.^[2][3] It is named for John Richardson Harris, who founded the town of Harrisburg on Buffalo Bayou in 1826.^[2] According to the July 2023 census estimate, Harris County's population has shifted to 4,835,125 comprising over 16% of Texas's population. Harris County is included in the nine-county Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area, which is the fifth-most populous metropolitan area in the United States.