Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington
Conurbation
From top: Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington, showcasing Downtown Dallas and Downtown Fort Worth, and the Arlington Entertainment District
Map of Dallas–Fort Worth, TX–OK CSA   City of Dallas   City of Fort Worth   Dallas–Plano–Irving, TX Metropolitan Division   Fort Worth–Arlington–Grapevine, TX Metropolitan Division   Sherman–Denison, TX MSA   Athens, TX µSA   Granbury, TX µSA   Corsicana, TX µSA   Durant, OK µSA   Gainesville, TX µSA   Sulphur Springs, TX µSA   Bonham, TX µSA   Mineral Wells, TX µSA
Country	United States
State	Texas
Principal cities[1]	Dallas Fort Worth Arlington Plano Irving Denton Richardson Grapevine
Area
• Urban	1,746.90 sq mi (4,524.44 km2)
• Metro	8,675 sq mi (22,468 km2)
Highest elevation	1,368 ft (417 m)
Population  (2020 census)[2][3]
• Conurbation	7,637,387 (4th)
• Urban	5,732,354 (6th)
• Urban density	3,281.45/sq mi (1,266.98/km2)
• Metro density	880.4/sq mi (339.9/km2)
• MSA	7,637,387 (4th)
• CSA	8,121,108 (7th)
GDP [4]
• MSA	$688.928 billion (2022)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
Area codes	214, 254, 430, 469, 682, 817, 903, 940, 945, 972

The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, officially designated Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget,^[a] is the most populous metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Texas and the Southern United States, encompassing 11 counties. Its historically dominant core cities are Dallas and Fort Worth.^[5] It is the economic and cultural hub of North Texas. Residents of the area also refer to it as DFW (airport code), or the Metroplex. The Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area's population was 7,637,387 according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2020 census,^[6] making it the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the U.S. and the fifteenth-largest in the Americas. In 2016, the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex had the highest annual population growth in the United States.^[7] By 2023, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area's population had increased to 8,100,037, with the highest numerical growth of any metropolitan area in the United States.^[8]

The metropolitan region's economy, also referred to as Silicon Prairie, is primarily based on banking, commerce, insurance, telecommunications, technology, energy, healthcare, medical research, transportation and logistics. As of 2022, Dallas–Fort Worth is home to 23 Fortune 500 companies, the 4th-largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies in the United States behind New York City (62), Chicago (35), and Houston (24).^[9] In 2016, the metropolitan economy surpassed Houston to become the fourth-largest in the U.S. The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex boasted a GDP of just over $620.6 billion in 2020.^[10] If the Metroplex were a sovereign state, it would have the twentieth largest economy in the world as of 2019. In 2015, the conurbated metropolitan area would rank the ninth-largest economy if it were a U.S. state.^[11] In 2020, Dallas–Fort Worth was recognized as the 36th best metropolitan area for STEM professionals in the U.S.^[12]

The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex comprises the highest concentration of colleges and universities in Texas. The UT Southwestern Medical Center is home to six Nobel Laureates and was ranked No. 1 in the world among healthcare institutions in biomedical sciences.^[13][14] The Metroplex is also the second most popular metropolis for megachurches in Texas (trailing the Greater Houston metropolitan area),^[15] ranked the largest Christian metropolitan statistical area in the U.S.,^[16][17][18] and has one of the largest LGBT communities in Texas since 2005.^{[19][20][21][22]}

Etymology

A portmanteau of metropolis and complex, the term metroplex is credited to Harve Chapman, an executive vice president with Dallas-based Tracy-Locke, one of three advertising agencies that worked with the North Texas Commission (NTC) on strategies to market the region.^[23] The NTC copyrighted the term "Southwest Metroplex" in 1972 as a replacement for the previously-ubiquitous "North Texas",^[24] which studies had shown lacked identifiability outside the state. In fact, only 38 percent of a survey group identified Dallas and Fort Worth as part of "North Texas", with the Texas Panhandle also a perceived correct answer, being the northernmost region of Texas.^[25]

Geography

The United States Census Bureau determined the Metroplex encompasses 9,286 square miles (24,100 km²) of total area; 8,991 sq mi (23,290 km²) is land, and 295 sq mi (760 km²) is covered by water. The conurbated metropolitan area is larger in area than the U.S. states of Rhode Island and Connecticut combined,^[26] and larger than New Jersey.^[26] If the metropolitan area were a sovereign state, it would rank the 162nd largest state by total area after Lebanon. The U.S. Office of Management and Budget combines the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex with the Sherman–Denison metropolitan area and seven micropolitan statistical areas to form the Dallas–Fort Worth TX–OK combined statistical area.

The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex overlooks mostly prairie land with a few rolling hills dotted by human-made lakes cut by streams, creeks and rivers surrounded by forested land. The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex is situated in the Texas blackland prairies region,^[27] so named for its fertile black soil found especially in the rural areas of Collin, Dallas, Ellis, Hunt, Kaufman, and Rockwall counties.

Many areas of Denton, Johnson, Parker, Tarrant, and Wise counties are located in the Fort Worth Prairie region of North Texas,^[28] which has less fertile and more rocky soil than that of the Texas blackland prairie; most of the rural land on the Fort Worth Prairie is ranch land. A large onshore natural gas field, the Barnett Shale, lies underneath this area; Denton, Tarrant and Wise counties feature many natural gas wells. Continuing land use change results in scattered crop fields surrounded by residential or commercial development. South of Dallas and Fort Worth is a line of rugged hills that goes north to south about 15 miles (24 km) that looks similar to the Texas Hill Country 200 miles (320 km) to the south.

Metropolitan divisions and counties

The Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area is formed by a combination of two separate metropolitan statistical divisions. The Dallas–Plano–Irving MDA and Fort Worth–Arlington–Grapevine MDA come together to form one full metropolitan area or conurbation.^[29][1]

Dallas–Plano–Irving metropolitan division

• Collin County
• Dallas County
• Denton County
• Ellis County
• Hunt County
• Kaufman County
• Rockwall County^[30][31]

Fort Worth–Arlington–Grapevine metropolitan division

• Johnson County
• Parker County
• Tarrant County
• Wise County

^[30][32]

Climate

Dallas–Fort Worth has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification: Cfa).

It is also continental, characterized by a relatively wide annual temperature range for the latitude. The Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex is located at the lower end of Tornado Alley, and can experience extreme weather.^[33]

In the Metroplex, summers are very hot and humid, although low humidity characteristics of desert locations can appear at any time of the year. July and August are typically the hottest months, with an average high of 96.0 °F (36 °C) and an average low of 76.7 °F (25 °C). Heat indexes regularly surpass 105 °F (41 °C) at the height of summer. The all-time record high is 113 °F (45 °C), set on June 26 and 27, 1980 during the Heat Wave of 1980 at nearby Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.^[34][35]

Winters in the area are cool to mild, with occasional cold spells. The average date of first frost is November 12, and the average date of last frost is March 12.^[36] January is typically the coldest month, with an average daytime high of 56.8 °F (14 °C) and an average nighttime low of 37.3 °F (3 °C). The normal daily average temperature in January is 47.0 °F (8 °C) but sharp swings in temperature can occur, as strong cold fronts known as "Blue Northers" pass through the Metroplex, forcing daytime highs below the 50 °F (10 °C) mark for several days at a time and often between days with high temperatures above 80 °F (27 °C). Snow accumulation is seen in the city in about 70% of winter seasons, and snowfall generally occurs 1–2 days out of the year for a seasonal average of 1.5 inches (4 cm). Some areas in the region, however, receive more than that, while other areas receive negligible snowfall or none at all.^[37] The all-time record low temperature within the city is −3 °F (−19 °C), set on January 18, 1930, however the temperature at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport reached −2 °F (−19 °C) on February 16, 2021, during Winter Storm Uri.