Houston firmly retains its spot as the fourth largest city in the nation with 2.3 million residents, according to population estimates released May 23 by the U.S. Census Bureau. The City of Houston increased its population by 8,057 residents to 2,325,502.

The top 20 most populous cities in the nation remained relatively the same as last year, with some shifting along the bottom. New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago remain the first, second and third most populous, respectively. Fort Worth rose two spots from 15th in 2017 to 13th in 2018, adding 19,500 residents in the past year, a 2.2 percent growth rate, the fastest among large cities. Other Texas cities in the top 20 include San Antonio as seventh, Dallas as ninth and Austin as 11th.

Between 2010 and 2015, Houston’s population grew at an average annual rate of 1.8 percent, or about 38,600 residents every year. But then the price of oil collapsed in 2014 and 2015, significant job losses occurred in 2016, Harvey descended in 2017 and Houston’s growth rate slowed to 0.6 percent or an average of 13,000 residents a year between 2015 and 2018.

Despite the city’s recent slow-down in population growth, Houston still holds the top spot for the largest increase in population between 2010 and 2018, adding nearly 232,000 people.