New businesses in Cameron County, Texas
From Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, the Texas Comptroller issued 2,437 new sales-tax permits to business locations in Cameron County. That ranks #13 of 254 Texas counties and is 1.5% of all new permits statewide.
- New permits rose 54% compared with the 12 months before (1,585 then).
- The busiest month was Sep 2026 (303); the slowest was Nov 2025 (111).
- Retail is over-represented: 1.2x its share statewide.
- Admin & support services is under-represented at 0.7x the state share, which can mean less local competition.
- 37% of new permits went to LLCs.
- The single most common new business type in Cameron County was All Other General Merchandise Stores (301 permits).
New permits by industry
| Industry | Permits | Share in Cameron County | Share in Texas |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retail | 1,203 | 49% | 42% |
| Food & lodging | 396 | 16% | 14% |
| Manufacturing | 170 | 7% | 6% |
| Other services (repair, personal care) | 167 | 7% | 8% |
| Wholesale | 120 | 5% | 5% |
| Construction | 74 | 3% | 4% |
| Arts & recreation | 64 | 3% | 3% |
| Admin & support services | 63 | 3% | 4% |
Most common new business types
| Business type (NAICS) | Code | New permits |
|---|---|---|
| All Other General Merchandise Stores | 452319 | 301 |
| Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses | 454110 | 156 |
| Used Merchandise Stores | 453310 | 118 |
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars | 722515 | 105 |
| Full-Service Restaurants | 722511 | 99 |
| Mobile Food Services | 722330 | 97 |
| Other Direct Selling Establishments | 454390 | 70 |
| All Other Miscellaneous Store Retailers (except Tobacco Stores) | 453998 | 51 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants | 722513 | 49 |
| Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Stores | 453220 | 47 |
Cities and towns with the most new permits
| City (mailing address) | New permits |
|---|---|
| Brownsville | 1,389 |
| Harlingen | 439 |
| San Benito | 206 |
| Los Fresnos | 138 |
| La Feria | 73 |
| South Padre Island | 40 |
| Port Isabel | 34 |
| Olmito | 25 |
Entity types
| Entity | Permits | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Sole proprietor | 1,382 | 57% |
| LLC | 895 | 37% |
| Corporation | 86 | 4% |
| Partnership | 63 | 3% |
| Nonprofit | 7 | 0% |
| Other | 4 | 0% |
Monthly new permits
| Month | New permits | |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 168 | |
| Nov 2025 | 111 | |
| Dec 2025 | 136 | |
| Jan 2026 | 193 | |
| Feb 2026 | 195 | |
| Mar 2026 | 233 | |
| Apr 2026 | 251 | |
| May 2026 | 170 | |
| Jun 2026 | 235 | |
| Jul 2026 | 195 | |
| Aug 2026 | 247 | |
| Sep 2026 | 303 |
Household income in Cameron County ZIP codes
Average adjusted gross income per tax return from IRS Statistics of Income (tax year 2022), for the ZIP codes where this county's new permits were mailed.
| ZIP | Town | Tax returns | Avg. income per return | New permits (12 mo) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 78521 | Brownsville | 38,820 | $40,642 | 500 |
| 78520 | Brownsville | 28,310 | $46,236 | 602 |
| 78526 | Brownvsille | 24,010 | $57,133 | 1 |
| 78550 | Harlingen | 21,320 | $49,236 | 291 |
| 78586 | Lozano | 20,590 | $40,275 | 1 |
| 78552 | Harlingen | 16,050 | $65,426 | 170 |
| 78570 | Mercedes | 13,460 | $35,832 | 160 |
| 78566 | Los Fresnos | 10,020 | $48,516 | 143 |
Get the names and addresses
The weekly paid list has every new business with its address, industry and entity type. Texas New Business Weekly · free sample.
Counties with similar volume
- Montgomery County: 4,380 new permits (#10)
- Hidalgo County: 4,241 new permits (#11)
- El Paso County: 3,883 new permits (#12)
- Bell County: 2,048 new permits (#14)
- Hays County: 1,789 new permits (#15)
- Brazoria County: 1,772 new permits (#16)
All Texas counties · Start a business in a Texas city · Texas ZIP code data
Free: Texas New Business Weekly, Free Edition
Every week: the top 25 new businesses in each big metro, counts by industry, and what's trending. Free, by email. Unsubscribe any time.
Get the free weekly email or grab a free Austin sample spreadsheet
Notes on the data
Counts are new outlet sales-tax permits issued by the Texas Comptroller from Oct 2025 to Sep 2026, from the public Active Sales Tax Permit Holders dataset. A permit can be a brand-new business, a new location of an existing one, or a re-permit. Because the source lists only permits that are still active, the prior-year count leaves out businesses that have since closed, so year-over-year growth reads somewhat high. Businesses that don't sell taxable goods or services (many professional firms) don't need a permit and aren't counted. Updated 2026-10-15.
Every new Texas business, every week
Name, address, industry and entity type for every new sales-tax permit, as an Excel file each Sunday. From $29/month.
Free weekly email: new Texas businesses, top 25 per metro, plus new free tools as we publish them. Subscribe free on Gumroad
Data from the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (public domain). Independent compilation, not affiliated with the State of Texas. Check the original source before relying on it. Not legal advice. Numbers are illustrative; your lender's statements control.