Laredo is a city in and the county seat of Webb County, Texas, United States, on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Laredo has the distinction of flying seven flags. Founded in 1755, Laredo grew from a village to the capital of the brief Republic of the Rio Grande to the largest inland port on the Mexican border. Laredo's economy is based on international trade with Mexico. Many major transportation companies have a facility in Laredo. The city is on the southern end of I-35, which makes it close to the manufacturers in northern Mexico. It has four international bridges and one railway bridge.
According to the 2010 census, the city population was 236,091, making it the 10th-most populous city in Texas and third-most populated on the Mexican border, after San Diego, California, and El Paso, Texas. Its metropolitan area is the 178th-largest in the
U.S. and includes all of Webb County, with a population of 250,304. Laredo is also part of the cross-border Laredo–Nuevo Laredo Metropolitan Area with an estimated population of 636,516.