TX metros

Cost of living across major TX metropolitan areas.

What living in TX costs

Across the 17 TX metros we track, the typical cost-of-living index is 91.3 against a national metro median of 95.7 — about 5% cheaper than the typical US metro. That ranks TX 10 of the 48 states we cover, counting from the cheapest.

The state is not uniform: Brownsville, TX is the cheapest metro at 85.7, while Dallas, TX runs 102.5 — a spread of 20% between them.

A typical TX home costs $232,910, or about 3.7× median household income, and typical rent is $1,404/mo.

Taxes in TX

TX levies no state income tax, so the trade-off usually shows up in property and sales tax instead. Effective property tax runs about 1.7% of home value in a typical TX metro, and combined state and local sales tax is around 8.2%.

Property tax is the one that scales with housing, so it bites hardest in the pricier metros above. Per-metro figures are on each metro page.

Metro	COL index	Median home	Median rent
Dallas, TX	102.5	$366,823	$1,678
Houston, TX	99.7	$308,306	$1,639
San Antonio, TX	94.3	$280,297	$1,404
Austin, TX	98.3	$428,524	$1,635
McAllen, TX	86.1	$193,978	$1,128
El Paso, TX	90.8	$232,910	$1,520
Killeen, TX	92.3	$252,591	$1,328
Corpus Christi, TX	91.7	$225,070	$1,408
Brownsville, TX	85.7	$207,150	$1,460
Beaumont, TX	90.8	$185,608	$1,332
Lubbock, TX	91.0	$213,766	$1,420
Longview, TX	89.0	$220,865	$1,203
Waco, TX	91.1	$256,772	$1,404
College Station, TX	91.3	$310,961	$1,472
Amarillo, TX	91.4	$219,904	$1,293
Laredo, TX	88.3	$218,391	$1,369
Tyler, TX	93.0	$272,063	$1,391

Cities & towns in TX (211)

Local property tax, home values and school scores for each place.

Houston →San Antonio →Dallas →Austin →Fort Worth →El Paso →Arlington →Corpus Christi →Plano →Lubbock →Laredo →Irving →Garland →Frisco →Amarillo →Grand Prairie →McKinney →Brownsville →Killeen →Pasadena →Mesquite →McAllen →Denton →Waco →Carrollton →Lewisville →Pearland →Round Rock →College Station →The Woodlands →Richardson →Beaumont →League City →Sugar Land →Tyler →Allen →Edinburg →New Braunfels →Conroe →Atascocita →Mission →Bryan →Baytown →Temple →Longview →Pharr →Flower Mound →Cedar Park →Missouri City →Mansfield →Georgetown →Harlingen →North Richland Hills →San Marcos →Pflugerville →Spring →Rowlett →Leander →Euless →Wylie →Port Arthur →DeSoto →Galveston →Texas City →Grapevine →Bedford →Burleson →Cedar Hill →Kyle →Little Elm →Rockwall →Haltom City →Keller →The Colony →Channelview →Schertz →Coppell →Waxahachie →Lancaster →Friendswood →Weslaco →Duncanville →Hurst →Rosenberg →Mission Bend →Copperas Cove →Farmers Branch →La Porte →San Juan →Midlothian →Socorro →Timberwood Park →Deer Park →Harker Heights →Cibolo →Weatherford →Canyon Lake →Cleburne →Prosper →Southlake →Seguin →Hutto →Greenville →Converse →Lake Jackson →Sachse →Alvin →Balch Springs →Colleyville →Fort Hood →Forney →University Park →San Benito →Cloverleaf →Benbrook →Saginaw →Fresno →Marshall →Watauga →Sienna →Belton →Katy →Pecan Grove →Horizon City →Corinth →Brushy Creek →Fulshear →Celina →Dickinson →Murphy →Ennis →Portland →Alamo →Universal City →Angleton →Orange →Fate →Cinco Ranch →Lakeway →Seagoville →Anna →Nederland →Alton →Boerne →La Marque →Princeton →Crowley →White Settlement →Terrell →Steiner Ranch →Stafford →Bellaire →Groves →Addison →Donna →Humble →Taylor →Glenn Heights →Mercedes →South Houston →Hewitt →Highland Village →Gatesville →Live Oak →Rendon →Aldine →Manor →Palmview →Melissa →Canyon →Royse City →Buda →West University Place →Red Oak →Lockhart →Hidalgo →Wells Branch →Forest Hill →Port Neches →Lumberton →Seabrook →Azle →Kilgore →Henderson →Trophy Club →Santa Fe →Tomball →Levelland →Fort Bliss →Robinson →Webster →Richmond →Lantana →Four Corners →Leon Valley →Manvel →Selma →Hornsby Bend →Freeport →Pleasanton →Clute →La Homa →Galena Park →Bellmead →Fairview →Bacliff →Rockport →Robstown →San Elizario →Scenic Oaks →Elgin →