Is Amarillo Texas A Large City Or A Small Town? The Answer Is Yes

When you move to Amarillo, Texas, you really only get one description of the city from anyone who has been here for any extended amount of time. People who were born here, and people who are just now on the other side of 12 months of being here all say the same thing.

It's a big small town.

So, is Amarillo a large city or a small town? The answer is yes.

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Yellow City Has A Bit Of Girth To It

When it comes to the literal size of Amarillo, it's not bad. It isn't the biggest you've ever seen (I lived in Kansas City for a while), but it isn't small. Something you have to keep in mind is that Amarillo is constantly growing.

We're like the universe post-big bang. Infinitely expanding from a central point.

While I haven't personally gone out and measured for myself, the information I've been able to find states that Amarillo is roughly 99 square miles and some change.

I expect that number to go up once Amarillo and Canyon officially merge to become Canyarillo or Amaranyon.

How Many People Live In Amarillo, Texas?

When it comes to population size, the 2020 census has us at just under 269,000 (268,691 to be exact).

We've got the 14th biggest populace in the state of Texas, and it's no surprise we're the biggest city in the panhandle. No offense to anyone else up here.

But does that make Amarillo a large city?

A Lot Of Land, A Lot Of People, Small Town Charm

I grew up in a small town whose welcome sign listed the population size as just under 4,000. There's not a lot different between those 4,000 people and many of the people you'll meet in Amarillo.

Go downtown on any given Sunday morning. The streets are empty. Nothing is open. As one YouTuber put it recently, the place looks abandoned.

Apparently, he didn't get close enough to a church.

At this moment in time, the biggest drama we have going in town is a drag show that's going to be here at the end of the month on the 29th. Even the mayor has gotten involved, and wrote a letter about it. Apparently, it's a big deal.

Still, not bad for a city of almost 270,000 people. We could definitely have bigger problems than a one-off drag show. Guess we're lucky that way.

Get off the busy highways, and there are those of us who still wave when we drive past people. We open doors for each other. People still say please and thank you, sir and ma'am.

Everyone knows everyone, or at least has a mutual friend who has yet to make the connection. High school football is still the hottest ticket in town.

So while Amarillo may spread itself out across several square miles of Texas panhandle, and there may be more than a quarter million people who call it home, there is still that small town charm that Yellow City just can't seem to shake.