Plains, the county seat of Yoakum County, is on US 82 thirteen miles east of the New Mexico border and fifty-nine miles southwest of Lubbock in the central part of the county.
Since the discovery of oil in 1936, both the town and the county have grown steadily, although the lack of a railroad has kept the area from growing as rapidly as surrounding counties. Plains had a population of 150 in 1939, 480 in 1947, and 1,500 in 1980. In 1990 the population was 1,422.
Agriculture and oil account for most of the taxable revenue of Plains, although employment fluctuates with the growing season.