Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 39/100
D−
Median home value$326,000
Houston $298,000
Median rent$1,298/mo
Houston $1,430/mo
Cost-burdened households44%
Houston 35%
Galveston
Galveston County53,424 residentsGalveston ISD
46
D
Suburbgrade score
38th of 48 Houston suburbs. Strongest on commute & transport, held back by amenities.
46
Houston median 53
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Galveston yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 46 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Galveston is like to live in, by category
Bars show Galveston against Houston. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 44/100
D
Within-state proficiency37th pct
Houston median 66th pct
Student–teacher ratio15.0
Houston median 15.6
Graduation rate88%
Houston median 93%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 70/100
B−
Housing cost index94
Houston 100
Eff. tax rate1.11%
Houston 1.53%
Local sales tax8.25%
Houston median 8.25%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 72/100
B−
Mean commute20.2 min
Houston 29.9 min
Under 30 minutes79%
Houston 51%
Transit stops / sq mi0.0
Houston median 0.0 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 15/100
F
Restaurants & cafés1
Houston median 27 · within 2 miles
Groceries1
Houston median 3 · within 2 miles
Parks2
Houston median 17 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 34/100
F
Median household income$55,631
Houston $82,168
Unemployment5.8%
Houston 6.2%
Professional occupations40%
Houston 42%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Galveston yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Galveston on amenities
Galveston's weakest grade is F. Five suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same six inputs.
SuburbAmenitiesOverall
League City23 mi from GalvestonC 60 C Alvin23 mi from GalvestonD− 50 D+ Dickinson19 mi from GalvestonF 50 D+ La Marque13 mi from GalvestonF 42 D− Santa Fe16 mi from GalvestonF 49 D+ Restaurants & cafés: OpenStreetMap Sep 2026 · Groceries: OpenStreetMap Sep 2026
Common questions about living in Galveston
Is Galveston, TX a good place to live?
Galveston scores 46 out of 100, 38th of 48 Houston suburbs. It is strongest on commute & transport and weakest on amenities. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Galveston expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B−. The median home is $326,000, 9% above the Houston median, and the effective property tax rate is 1.11%. $1,298/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Galveston?
Schools grade D. The districts serving Galveston sit at the 37th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 88% graduation rate and a 15.0 student–teacher ratio. Galveston is served by Galveston ISD. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Galveston?
The mean commute is 20.2 min, with 79% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 12% working from home. Transit density is 0.0 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Galveston?
Within two miles there are 1 groceries, 1 restaurants and cafés and 2 parks, which grades F on amenities.
Are the homes in Galveston old or new?
The median home in Galveston was built in 1973 — older than the Houston median of 1993. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 58% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.