Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 36/100
F
Median home value$277,800
Houston $298,000
Median rent$1,361/mo
Houston $1,430/mo
Cost-burdened households41%
Houston 35%
Houston
Harris County2,328,253 residents2 school districts
56
C−
Suburbgrade score
19th of 48 Houston suburbs. Strongest on amenities, held back by housing & affordability.
56
Houston median 53
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Houston yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 56 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 Houston is like to live in, by category
Bars show Houston against Houston. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 55/100
C−
Within-state proficiency46th pct
Houston median 66th pct
Student–teacher ratio15.2
Houston median 15.6
Graduation rate85%
Houston median 93%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 66/100
C+
Housing cost index97
Houston 100
Eff. tax rate1.41%
Houston 1.53%
Local sales tax8.25%
Houston median 8.25%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 52/100
D+
Mean commute27.2 min
Houston 29.9 min
Under 30 minutes57%
Houston 51%
Transit stops / sq mi3.4
Houston median 0.0 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 95/100
A+
Restaurants & cafés275
Houston median 27 · within 2 miles
Groceries13
Houston median 3 · within 2 miles
Parks118
Houston median 17 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 40/100
D−
Median household income$64,813
Houston $82,168
Unemployment6.9%
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 Houston 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 Houston on housing & affordability
Houston's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbHousingOverall
West University Place5 mi from HoustonA+ 71 B− Bellaire7 mi from HoustonA 68 B− Sienna22 mi from HoustonA− 54 C− Iowa Colony24 mi from HoustonB 53 C− Cinco Ranch23 mi from HoustonB 66 C+ Sugar Land20 mi from HoustonB− 66 C+ Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Ownership rate: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Houston
Is Houston, TX a good place to live?
Houston scores 56 out of 100, 19th of 48 Houston suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on housing & affordability. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Houston expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades C+. The median home is $277,800, 7% below the Houston median, and the effective property tax rate is 1.41%. $1,361/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Houston?
Schools grade C−. The districts serving Houston sit at the 46th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 85% graduation rate and a 15.2 student–teacher ratio. Houston is served by Houston ISD and Katy ISD. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Houston?
The mean commute is 27.2 min, with 57% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 13% working from home. Transit density is 3.4 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Houston?
Within two miles there are 13 groceries, 275 restaurants and cafés and 118 parks, which grades A+ on amenities.
Are the homes in Houston old or new?
The median home in Houston was built in 1982 — 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. 48% 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.