List of counties in Texas

The state of is divided into 254, more than any other. Texas was originally divided into, a unit of local under  and  rule. When the gained its independence in 1836, there were 23 municipalities, which became the original Texas counties. Many of these would later be divided into new counties. The most recent county to be created was in 1931.

Each county is run by a court consisting of four elected commissioners (one from each of four precincts drawn based on population) and a county  elected from all the voters of the county. In smaller counties, the county judge actually does perform judicial duties, but in larger counties the judge's role is limited to serving on the commissioners court. Certain officials, such as the and, are elected separately by the voters, but the commissioners court determines their office , and sets overall county policy. All county elections are partisan.

Counties in Texas also have less legal power than or towns. While the counties have power and control all  land within their boundaries, they have neither home rule authority nor  power. The county is responsible for providing essential services (except for fire and ambulance, which are often done by volunteer fire departments).

Unlike other states, Texas does not allow for governments. and counties (as well as other political entities) are permitted to enter "interlocal agreements" to share services (as an example, a city and a may enter into agreements with the county whereby the county bills for and collects es for the city and school district; thus, only one tax bill is sent instead of three). School districts are independent of county and city government (with the exception of the Stafford district, which is city controlled.

The (FIPS) code, which is used by the United States government to uniquely identify states and counties, is provided with each entry. Texas' code is 48, which when combined with any county code would be written as 48XXX. The FIPS code for each county links to census data for that county.

Defunct counties
There have been at least thirty-two counties established by Texas law that no longer exist. These fall into five categories: judicial counties; counties established by the Constitutional Convention of 1868–69; counties never organized and abolished by legislative act; counties whose territory is no longer considered part of the state.; and counties whose names have been changed.


 * formed in 1887 from . Annexed in 1897 to.
 * formed in 1858 in what is now and  and Abolished in 1866. Not to be confounded with
 * Formed in 1856. Abolished in 1899 and annexed to.
 * formed in 1887 from . Annexed in 1897 to.
 * formed in 1860. Separated from Texas by ruling in United States v. State of Texas,.
 * discovered in 1824 and misplaced in the upheavals of the 1840's. Perdido was reportedly abolished in 1858 and again in 1871. Records of annexation to are also inconclusive.
 * formed in 1848 from lands ceded by . It included the area of New Mexico east of the Rio Grande. Abolished under the.
 * formed in 1873 in the and abolished in 1876.
 * formed in 1850 from part of . Abolished under the.