Temple, Texas
Temple is a city in Bell County, in the Blackland Prairie of central Texas about 34 miles southwest of Waco. Founded as a railroad town, it became a major medical center and is home to a large Scott and White hospital complex and the Baylor Scott and White health system, alongside a still-active rail and industrial base. The city sits on gently rolling prairie between Waco and the Austin metro area, along the Interstate 35 corridor.
Place essentials
Official Census snapshot- Census place type
- City
- July 2025 population
- 98,412
- Change from 2020 base
- +19.7%
- Land area
- 74.2 sq. mi.
- County footprint
- Bell County
Place type, county footprint, and land area use the Census Bureau's January 1, 2025 geography. Population uses Vintage 2025 estimates through July 1, 2025; change compares that estimate with the April 1, 2020 estimates base. Geography file | Population file
Property here runs through the appraisal district and tax office for Bell County. The homestead exemption, appraisal cap, protests, and any MUD, PID, or special districts all sit at the parcel level.
Official routes
Use the office for the parcel address; a mailing city is not always the governing city.
Local character
Start with Temple itself
A few landmarks, stories, and everyday places that help give Temple its shape.
River Park
Bend of the River Gives Temple a Leon River Park
Reuben D. Talasek Bend of the River is a 30-acre Temple park on the Leon River, donated by the Talasek family in 2011.
Temple Park
Lions Park is Temple's everything-at-once park
Temple's 108-acre Lions Park brings fields, trails, disc golf, a dog park, playgrounds, picnic shelters, and a pond into one busy park.
Then zoom out to Bell County
History / Military
Fort Hood and Bell County's military history
Fort Hood, established in 1942 near Killeen, transformed Bell County from a farming region into one of the most military-connected communities in the United States.
Property tax
How the homestead exemption cuts your property tax in Bell County
Texas law gives homeowners who live in their own home a significant exemption from school district property taxes, and Bell County residents must file with Bell CAD to claim it.
History / Courthouse
Bell County Courthouse: Belton's 1884 landmark
The Bell County Courthouse in Belton, completed in 1884 from local limestone, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 and anchors the county seat's historic downtown.
Nearby
Places near Temple
Nearby counties
Local notes for nearby counties
Next steps for Temple
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