Though it began as an exurban development and a bedroom community, it has also attracted corporations and has several corporate campuses, most notably Occidental Petroleum Corporation, Chevron Phillips Chemical, Huntsman Corporation, Woodforest National Bank, Baker Hughes, McKesson Specialty Health, and Halliburton.

The Woodlands is located 28 miles (45 km) north of Houston along Interstate 45. The United States Census Bureau defines an urban area separate from the Houston urban area with The Woodlands as a principal city: The Woodlands– Conroe, TX urban area had a 2020 population of 402,454, making it the 103rd largest in the United States.

In 2021, The Howard Hughes Corporation estimated the population of The Woodlands was 119,000. Census, the township had a population of 114,436 people. The Woodlands is governed by The Woodlands Township, an organization that provides municipal services and is administered by an elected board of directors. The Woodlands is primarily located in Montgomery County, with portions extending into Harris County. state of Texas in the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan statistical area. The Woodlands is a special-purpose district and census-designated place (CDP) in the U.S.

The woodlands township map