Most Expensive Cities in Texas: 2024 Metro Ranking
Compare the most expensive cities and metro areas in Texas, ranked by the 2024 BEA cost-of-living index. 25 metro areas are available.
Where the Premium Lives in Texas
Housing creates the strongest upward pressure in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, at 117.9 against the national benchmark of 100. Its other components are local services 90.7 and tradable goods 102.8, so the top metro's premium is not interchangeable with a market led by another budget category.
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX leads Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, while Texarkana, TX-AR marks the other end of this 25-market list. The 19.1-point span shows a tiered market rather than one statewide price level.
Below the leader, the next comparison tier is Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, Midland, TX. Their order comes from overall RPP, while the table keeps goods, services, and rents visible so a reader can reject a superficially similar market with the wrong cost mix.
1 of 25 listed metros exceed the U.S. benchmark, so Texas crosses the national line. That mixed result makes the metro name more decision-relevant than the statewide label.
At Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX's price level, a national-average $100,000 lifestyle translates to about $103,090. Treat that as a purchasing-power screen, then verify occupation pay, current HUD rent, and state tax treatment before comparing an offer.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX has the highest overall Regional Price Parity in this Texas ranking at 103.1. The national average is 100, so this comparison identifies the highest relative price level among the metro areas BEA reports; it does not estimate a household budget or explain why local prices differ.
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX ranks first of 25 listed Texas metro areas by overall cost
- 1 of 25 listed metros are above the U.S. price-level benchmark
| # | Metro | Overall |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 103.1 |
| 2 | Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | 98.6 |
| 3 | Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | 98.1 |
| 4 | Midland, TX | 95.8 |
| 5 | San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 94.7 |
| 6 | Odessa, TX | 93.9 |
| 7 | Sherman-Denison, TX | 93.8 |
| 8 | Corpus Christi, TX | 92.7 |
| 9 | Waco, TX | 92.5 |
| 10 | San Angelo, TX | 92.5 |
| 11 | Tyler, TX | 92.2 |
| 12 | Amarillo, TX | 91.8 |
| 13 | Lubbock, TX | 91.3 |
| 14 | Killeen-Temple, TX | 91.1 |
| 15 | College Station-Bryan, TX | 91.0 |
| 16 | Abilene, TX | 90.4 |
| 17 | Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX | 90.0 |
| 18 | El Paso, TX | 89.9 |
| 19 | Victoria, TX | 89.8 |
| 20 | Wichita Falls, TX | 89.5 |
| 21 | Longview, TX | 89.5 |
| 22 | Laredo, TX | 87.0 |
| 23 | Brownsville-Harlingen, TX | 86.0 |
| 24 | McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX | 85.9 |
| 25 | Texarkana, TX-AR | 84.0 |
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Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities Index where national average = 100
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Every figure on PlainCost is rendered directly from BEA Regional Price Parity source data, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, our changelog, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-11. Rankings measure the published cost-of-living index only; we don't recommend where to live or rate any metro's quality of life.