About Benson, Arizona

---

Benson (pop. 5,355) is the third largest city in Cochise County. Of the county’s seven municipalities, Benson saw the fastest population growth from 2010 to 2020 and that is projected to continue in coming decades due primarily to Villages at Vigneto (a 28,000-home planned community in the city). In 2020, Benson overtook Bisbee as Cochise County's third largest municipality (after Sierra Vista and Douglas). Benson is also home to a large retired population and is a winter refuge for visitors from colder climates.

Benson is home to both large retail chain stores & our unique specialty shops along 4th Street. The city is conveniently located at the junctions of Interstate 10, AZ 80, AZ 90 , and the main line of the Union Pacific Railroad. The busiest stretch of highway in Cochise County is I-10 just west of Benson. The city has the only AMTRAK passenger station in Cochise County, making Benson the first & last stop for visitors to the region traveling by train.  

Fort Huachuca (an active U.S. Army and joint services installation located about 30 miles south of Benson) is the largest employer in Cochise County. The fort:

• develops and tests command, control, communications, computers, combat systems, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities;
• delivers intelligence and unmanned aircraft systems training and education;
• designs, develops and integrates intelligence capabilities, concepts and doctrine; and 
• provides support services to the Huachuca community to enable mission command in support of Army and joint operations and the continued evolution of Fort Huachuca.

Fort Huachuca trains over 9,000 students a year and at any given time has over 5,600 military, 8,000 civilians, and 11,000 family members.

In 2017, the Maguire Company released its Economic Impact of Arizona’s Principal Military Operations report, which estimated the annual direct, indirect, and induced impact of Fort Huachuca on Cochise County at $2.9 billion. The employment impact was estimated at 21,327 jobs countywide with $999.2 million in associated earnings.