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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Student life means every dollar counts. We scored 40 cities across Texas for rent, food, and cost of living. San Antonio (rent $1,361/mo, cost index 93) ranks #1 for 2026.
Student life means every dollar counts. We scored 40 cities across Texas for rent, food, and cost of living. San Antonio (rent $1,361/mo, cost index 93) ranks #1 for 2026.
A closer look at San Antonio: the cost index of 93 breaks down to a Housing index of 83 (strongest category) and a Healthcare index of 96 (weakest). Median rent is $1,361/month — 28% below the national median — while household income sits at $62,917, meaning locals spend about 26% of income on rent. That's within the recommended 30% threshold, though it doesn't leave much room.
What to do with this data: use the ranking as a shortlist, then dig into the city profiles for trend lines and category breakdowns. The difference between #1 and #5 is often smaller than the difference between "good on paper" and "actually fits my life." Compare your top picks with our calculator to see real take-home numbers.
#1 Ranked: San Antonio — cost index 93, rent $1,361/mo, income $62,917
Top 5 separated by only 2 points
Student-budget scoring: rent $1,361/mo, food index 91, cost index 93 — survival-level affordability
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
1,495,295 residents · Texas
A closer look at San Antonio: the cost index of 93 breaks down to a Housing index of 83 (strongest category) and a Healthcare index of 96 (weakest). Median rent is $1,361/month — 28% below the national median — while household income sits at $62,917, meaning locals spend about 26% of income on rent. That's within the recommended 30% threshold, though it doesn't leave much room.
678,958 residents · Texas
Why El Paso ranks #2: the numbers tell a clear story. At 94 on the cost index, residents save roughly 18% less than the typical American. Rent sits at $1,441/month while the median household pulls in $58,734/year. The Housing category is particularly strong at 84, though Healthcare (96) lags behind. Home prices average $231,886 — $235,484 below the national median (not adjusted for inflation, but still telling).
316,595 residents · Texas
Here's Corpus Christi by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 93. Rent: $1,433/month. Income: $66,325/year. Home price: $220,110. Population: 316,595. The strongest category is Housing at 82; the most expensive is Healthcare at 96. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $5,544 per year vs. Moving on. the national median. If two cities have the same income, this cost gap is the tiebreaker.
266,878 residents · Texas
What does daily life actually cost in Lubbock? Start with the 28% rent-to-income ratio — tight but manageable for most households. On the category level, Housing (index 79) is where the real savings show up, while Healthcare (index 94) is the line item most likely to surprise newcomers. Income at $60,487 and homes at $207,080 round out a profile that ranks #4 for clear reasons.
257,602 residents · Texas
Laredo is one of the cheaper options here. Rent is $1,327/month, which is lower than most cities in this ranking. The cost index is 91. Income sits at $63,264. About what you'd guess (that's pre-tax, of course).
Our persona scoring model weights cost of living, income, rent, healthcare costs, tax burden, and population size differently based on what matters most to students. Each factor contributes 10-25 points to a 0-100 composite score. Cities with the highest composite rank first. All data is sourced from federal agencies and verified research institutions. Cost of living indices are normalized to 100 (national median) using Zillow rent as the primary signal, with sub-category adjustments derived from regional BLS price data. Rankings are updated monthly as new data is released.
San Antonio ranks #1 in Texas for this analysis with a cost index of 93 and median income of $62,917.
San Antonio scores highest for students due to its below-average cost of living, median rent of $1,361/mo, and competitive median income of $62,917.
Our cost of living index uses real Zillow rent data as the foundation, indexed to 100 (national median). Sub-categories (housing, food, transport, utilities, healthcare) are derived from the overall index with regional adjustments. Data is updated monthly.
San Antonio (ranked #1) has a cost index of 93 and rent of $1,361/mo, while Sugar Land (ranked #40) has a cost index of 112 and rent of $1,990/mo — a 19-point difference in cost of living.
City data is refreshed monthly from Census Bureau population estimates, Zillow rent and home price indices, BLS salary data, and Tax Foundation tax rates. Last updated: 2026.
The median 1-bedroom rent in San Antonio is $1,361/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $534 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in San Antonio is $247,132, which is 3.9× the local median income. It's on the edge of affordability for median-income households. The national median home price is $467,370.
Texas has a 0% state income tax rate — one of the states with no income tax. Combined state and local sales tax averages 8.19%, and the effective property tax rate is 1.6%.
This ranking was generated using data current as of early 2026. Population and income data comes from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (5-year estimates). Rent and home price data is from Zillow's monthly releases. Tax rates are from the Tax Foundation's 2025 edition. Rankings are refreshed monthly.