Austin, TX vs San Antonio, TX

At $146,425 for a family of four, Austin, TX and San Antonio, TX sit far apart on comfortable income, with Austin’s figure 2.3× higher than San Antonio’s $62,745 in 2024 data. The same gap appears in the single-person comfortable income, where Austin’s $99,609 also runs 2.3× higher than San Antonio’s $42,684, placing Austin in the 85th percentile and San Antonio in the 34th percentile for both metrics. Median home values follow that pattern: Austin’s $512,700 is 2.3× higher than San Antonio’s $219,700, with Austin in the 83rd percentile and San Antonio in the 34th percentile.

Income differences are similarly wide. Median household income in Austin stands at $91,461, 45% higher than San Antonio’s $62,917, while per-capita income reaches $59,427 in Austin versus $32,983 in San Antonio, an 80% gap. Educational attainment diverges sharply, with 58.2% of Austin adults holding a bachelor’s degree or higher compared to 28.7% in San Antonio, a 29.5-point difference. Average household size runs opposite: San Antonio’s 2.6 persons is 22% larger than Austin’s 2.1, placing San Antonio in the 70th percentile and Austin in the 13th percentile. Cost of living reflects these gaps, with Austin’s index at 158 versus San Antonio’s 96, and median rent at $1,655 versus $1,258.

Other 2023 Census figures show San Antonio’s population at 1,458,954, 51% larger than Austin’s 967,862, though population density is similar at 2,978 and 2,879 per square mile. Unemployment runs close at 3.5% in Austin and 3.9% in San Antonio, while job growth differs, with San Antonio at +1.0% and Austin at -0.1%. Violent crime per 100,000 people is higher in San Antonio at 528 versus Austin’s 418, and property crime also runs higher there at 3,909 versus 3,077.