Growth of the places we serve

We have been changing oil in Northern Nevada since 1983, and the region around our service centers looks very different now. To put numbers on it, we pulled the 2010 and 2020 decennial census counts from the Census Bureau for the counties, cities and census-designated places we serve, and set them beside the newer American Community Survey 5-year estimates for 2020-2024, which the generated table below lists. Census place boundaries sometimes change between counts, so we flag the places where a jump looks like a map change rather than growth.

Highlights

• Washoe County: 421,407 in 2010 to 486,492 in 2020, up 15.4 percent; the 2020-2024 survey estimates 497,200 (Census Bureau).
• Sparks: 90,264 to 108,445, up 20.1 percent, the fastest of the region's cities (2010 and 2020 Census).
• Reno: 225,221 to 264,165, up 17.3 percent; 273,212 in the 2020-2024 survey (Census Bureau).
• Lyon County: 51,980 to 59,235, up 14.0 percent, led by Fernley's 18.2 percent (2010 and 2020 Census).
• Carson City grew 6.1 percent and Douglas County 5.3 percent between the 2010 and 2020 counts (Census Bureau).

The data

U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, api.census.gov, retrieved 2026-10-15.

Ranked

• nevada-state3,184,612
• washoe-county497,200
• reno273,212
• sparks110,024
• lyon-county61,680
• carson-city-county58,384
• carson-city58,384
• douglas-county49,623
• fernley24,225
• sun-valley22,228
• spanish-springs17,980
• truckee17,066
• dayton15,781
• gardnerville-ranchos12,114
• cold-springs11,321
• incline-village9,272

The Truckee Meadows added 57,000 people in two cities

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Reno grew by 38,944 people to 264,165 and Sparks by 18,181 to 108,445 (Census Bureau). Together that is about 57,000 more residents in the two cities in ten years. Washoe County overall added 65,085 people, 15.4 percent.

Growth kept going after 2020. The 2020-2024 American Community Survey estimates Washoe County at 497,200 and Reno at 273,212, though survey estimates and census counts are measured differently and are best compared loosely.

• Spanish Springs CDP: 15,064 to 17,314, up 14.9 percent (2010 and 2020 Census)
• Cold Springs CDP: 8,544 to 10,153, up 18.8 percent
• Sun Valley CDP: 19,299 to 21,178, up 9.7 percent
• Incline Village CDP: 8,777 to 9,462, up 7.8 percent

The capital and Carson Valley grew slowly

Carson City went from 55,274 to 58,639, up 6.1 percent, and Douglas County from 46,997 to 49,488, up 5.3 percent (Census Bureau). Inside Douglas, Minden grew 14.7 percent to 3,442 and Gardnerville's town center 9.8 percent to 6,211, while the Gardnerville Ranchos held almost exactly steady at 11,318 and Johnson Lane dipped slightly to 6,409. Indian Hills grew 6.0 percent to 5,962.

Slow population growth does not mean fewer cars. Douglas County households average 2.25 vehicles, well above Washoe's 1.96 (ACS 2020-2024), and the county's median age of 55 points to households that keep vehicles for years. That shows up in our Gardnerville service center as older trucks, RVs and second cars that need service by the calendar.

Lyon County and the US 50 corridor

Lyon County grew 14.0 percent, from 51,980 to 59,235 (Census Bureau). Fernley led its cities at 18.2 percent, reaching 22,895. Silver Springs grew 6.3 percent. Dayton's census-designated place shows a jump from 8,964 to 15,153, but a change that large in one decade usually reflects a redrawn boundary as well as new homes, so we do not quote it as a growth rate.

Many of those residents commute along US 50 into Carson City or I-80 into Reno. Lyon County's mean commute is 29.4 minutes (ACS 2020-2024), and Dayton is about 18 minutes from our College Parkway service center by OpenStreetMap routing.

The small places that held still

Not everywhere grew. Verdi, Mogul and Lemmon Valley each changed by about 1 to 3 percent between the two censuses, slightly down in each case, and Storey County grew 2.3 percent to 4,104 (Census Bureau). Genoa's count rose from 939 to 1,343, another change that may reflect boundary work as much as building.

For us, the takeaway is simple: the region around all four service centers has more people and more vehicles than it did a decade ago, and the newest neighborhoods sit at the edges, often 10 to 30 minutes from a service center. That is why all four take cars without an appointment. See population of the places we serve for the current figures and the service area pages for each town.