Hays County, Texas

Hays County has a population of 268,638 and has grown 26.3% since the 2020 census. The median home is worth $399,800, about 4.5 times the county's median household income of $89,097.

Home price
$399,800
Income
$89,097
Population
268,638
Unemployment
4.4%

Housing

Home values, rent, property taxes, insurance and how local prices relate to local incomes.

Median home price$399,800county
Median gross rent$1,495county
Median year homes here were built2007county
Share of homes built before 198012.2%county
Share of homes that are manufactured or mobile5.9%county
Share of homes that are vacant4.6%county
Share of occupied homes that are rented35.9%county
Share of homes held for seasonal or occasional use0.7%county
Typical monthly rent$1,571county
HUD fair market rent, 2-bed$1,852county
HUD fair market rent, 1-bed$1,562county
HUD fair market rent, 3-bed$2,347county
Home insurance / yr$4,085(statewide)

Money

Household earnings and buying power. Adjusted income restates local income using the statewide cost-of-living index.

Cost of living92.1(statewide)
Median household income$89,097county
Family health premium / yr$24,106(statewide)
Infant childcare / yr$10,706(statewide)
Regular gas price / gal$3.557(statewide)
Poverty rate12.1%county

Jobs

What people here do for work, who they work for, whether they work from home, and how much of the local economy sits in one industry.

Workers who work from home18.1%county
Unemployment rate4.4%county
Share of adults in the labor force68.7%county
Share of workers who are self-employed7.1%county
Share of workers employed by government18.2%county
Share of workers in the largest industry21.7%county
Economic output per resident$56,967county

Taxes

State tax rules that can affect take-home pay, investments and everyday purchases.

Property tax rate1.66%county
Top state income tax0.00%(statewide)
Capital gains tax0.00%(statewide)
Combined sales tax8.20%(statewide)

Transportation

Distance to air travel and how people get around locally. Distances are straight-line from the county's population-weighted centre, so driving is further.

Mean commute time31.3 mincounty
Miles to nearest airport with airline service20 micounty
Passengers boarding at the nearest airline airport10678073county
Miles to nearest general aviation field8.9 micounty
Airports with airline service located here0county
General aviation airfields located here0county
Passenger train stations and the railway network1county
Miles to the nearest passenger rail station9.2 micounty
Households without a vehicle3.9%county
Traffic deaths20.1county
Change in traffic deaths per 100,000-1.0(statewide)

Schools

Public schools and colleges counted where they actually sit, plus the education level of adults who live here. Students per teacher is a staffing measure, not a quality ranking.

Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher43.2%county
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma or higher92.0%county
Public schools in the county60county
Public school enrollment46885county
Students per full-time teacher15.4county
Free lunch eligible46.5%county
Elementary schools33county
Middle schools11county
High schools9county
Institutions granting bachelor's degrees or above1county
Share of local colleges that are public100.0%county
Two-year institutions0county
Miles to the nearest bachelor's-granting institution8.0 micounty

Health

Primary care physicians44county
Medicare-certified hospitals in this county4county
Hospitals here with an emergency department4county
Average CMS star rating of hospitals here4county
Fine particulate matter9.2 µgcounty
Without health insurance11.6%county
Frequent mental distress18.2%county
No leisure-time physical activity23.8%county
Diagnosed diabetes10.9%county

Place

Who lives here and what the place is like: population, age, migration, safety and civic profile.

Population268,638county
Land area in square miles677county
People per square mile of land397.0county
Supermarkets and grocery stores20county
Convenience stores18county
Share living far from a food store15.4%county
Share living in a low-income, low-access tract20.2%county
Population change since 2020+26.3%county
Natural change per 1,000 residents6county
Net international migration per 1,000 residents3county
Median age34.1 yrscounty
Share of residents under 1822.4%county
Share of residents 65 and over12.2%county
Share of households that are one person23.5%county
Share of residents born outside the United States9.8%county
Second languages24.7%county
Share of residents on a religious body’s rolls39.1%county
Congregations per 100,000 residents59county
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents25county
Households that moved in13,744county
Households that moved away10,434county
Average income of arriving households$90,337county
Average income of departing households$74,800county
Homes authorised per 1,000 existing homes44county
Housing units authorised in the latest year4,595county
Share of permitted homes in multifamily buildings9.6%county
Violent crime rate389(statewide)

Weather

Measured annual temperature, precipitation and snowfall. These are climate facts, not a ranking.

Avg. annual temperature70.4°Fcounty
Annual precipitation26.1 incounty
Annual snowfall0.8 incounty
Average daily solar energy4.72 kWh/m²county
Days reaching 90°F140 dayscounty
Days at or below freezing17 dayscounty

Gardening

Plant hardiness zoneZone 8bcounty
Frost-free days263 dayscounty
Average last spring frostMar 3county
Average first fall frostNov 20county

Utilities

Average monthly electric bill$138county
Electric utilities serving this county3county
Electricity price per kWh12.0¢county
Household electricity use1,191 kWhcounty
Residential natural gas price$25.05(statewide)
Homes heated by electricity62.1%county
Homes heated by utility gas31.0%county
Homes heated by propane5.8%county
Homes heated by fuel oil0.0%county
Homes heated by wood0.1%county
Households with broadband92.9%county

Risk

Relative exposure to air pollution and natural hazards. Higher values indicate more measured risk, not a prediction.

Riverine flood risk93.2county
Coastal flood risk0.0county
Drought risk77.6county
Landslide risk43.5county
Hail risk96.8county
Earthquake risk25.8county
Tornado risk96.1county
Tropical cyclone risk63.9county
Extreme heat risk92.1county
Winter weather risk93.8county
Strong wind risk86.1county
Wildfire risk87.9county

Sports

Major pro teams based here0county
NFL teams based here0county
NBA teams based here0county
MLB teams based here0county
NHL teams based here0county
MLS soccer teams based here0county
Top-division college football teams1county
Second-tier college football teams0county
Affiliated minor league baseball teams0county
AHL teams based here0county
ECHL teams based here0county

Figures marked county are measured for Hays County directly. The rest are published at state level only and show the Texas figure — see methodology for each source and its limits.

Similar counties in Texas

Compare Hays with anywhere else

Put this county side by side with any other in the country, or weight the factors that matter to you and rank all 50 states.

Open Hays in the map