Bell County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. It is in Central Texas and its county seat is Belton. As of the 2020 census, its population was 370,647. Bell County is part of the Killeen–Temple, Texas, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county was founded in 1850 and is named for Peter Hansborough Bell, the third governor of Texas. In 2010, the center of population of Texas was located in Bell County, near the town of Holland.