Austin, Texas
Cost of living, housing, income, commute, climate, and safety — compiled for relocators researching Austin.
Key figures
Each metric shows how Austin compares with the U.S. baseline (ACS/BLS nationals where available; catalog-city averages for crime, climate, and commute). Income, housing, population, and crime are for the incorporated city (city limits), not the broader metro/MSA — unemployment is county-level (BLS LAUS).
- Population
- 967,862City limits · not metro/MSA
- Median household income
- $91,461Incorporated place (ACS)16% above U.S. avgU.S. $78,538
- Housing cost index
- 146ACS home+rent vs U.S. (100 = avg)46% above U.S. avgU.S. 100
- Median home value
- $512,700City limits (ACS)69% above U.S. avgU.S. $303,400
- Median rent
- $1,655City limits (ACS)23% above U.S. avgU.S. $1,348
- Unemployment
- 3.5%County LAUS · not city-onlyNear U.S. avg (4.2 pts)U.S. 4.2 pts
- Avg commute
- 26 minNear U.S. avg (25 min)U.S. 25 min
- Walk Score
- 427% below U.S. avgU.S. 45
- Violent crime rate
- 400.9annualized per 100k · citywide33% below U.S. avgU.S. 602.7
- Property crime rate
- 3710.5annualized per 100k · citywide20% above U.S. avgU.S. 3084.9
- Summer high
- 96°F9.0°F above U.S. avgU.S. 87°F
- Winter low
- 44°F10.0°F above U.S. avgU.S. 34°F
- Annual rainfall
- 36.3 in10% above U.S. avgU.S. 32.9 in
- Sunny days
- 279Near U.S. avg (266)U.S. 266
Compare Austin with another city
Austin, Texas counts about 967,862 residents inside the city limits. Households here report a median income near $91,461; our housing-derived cost index is about 146 (well above the national housing-cost baseline). A typical home near $512,700 and rents around $1,655 frame most shortlists.
Hot summers, sprawling freeways, and no state income tax dominate comparisons. Roughly 279 sunny days a year give outdoor routines unusual calendar reliability. Commutes average near 26 minutes one-way, with walkability near 42/100. BLS LAUS puts recent unemployment around 3.5% for the surrounding county. Violent-offense rates near 400.9 per 100k sit in a mid-to-elevated band versus many peer cities in this catalog.
Ask locals about Downtown versus South Congress — those two pockets illustrate how different daily life can feel inside the same city limits, with East Austin as a common third option. Figures on this page are merged from Census ACS, BLS LAUS, FBI Crime Data Explorer, and NOAA Climate Normals — use them to compare Austin with nearby alternatives before you relocate.
Neighborhoods often researched
- Downtown
- South Congress
- East Austin
- Domain
Nearby & similar cities
Continue researching with these internal links — each page is a full data profile.
Sources
- Census / ACS: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 5-year (Austin city, 1600000US4805000)
- BLS: BLS LAUS LAUCN484530000000003 (Travis County, May 2026)
- Crime: FBI CIUS Table 8 (2019) city offenses known to law enforcement — rates per 100k; CDE API unavailable at enrich time
- Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 Monthly Normals (USW00013958 AUSTIN-CAMP MABRY)
Last updated 2026-07-28