Austin, TX

Austin is the best college town in America, study says. See where your Texas town ranks

Published

1 year ago

October 29, 2024

Austin is the best college town in America, study says. See where your Texas town ranks

Sorry, Lubbock, Dallas, San Antonio, Corpus Christi and everyone else — Austin has been named the best college town in the country. But don’t worry; several Texas cities scored high in other categories.

A great college experience depends on a variety of factors, such as students’ living expenses, academic and employment opportunities, and social environment. A WalletHub analysis considered these to determine the best college towns in America for 2025.

“Picking the right college is crucial, but it’s also important to make sure that the surrounding college town will be a place where you’ll truly love spending your college years,” WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo explained. “Towns with a low cost of living, plenty of activities and large student populations can make your college experience a lot less stressful and a lot more enjoyable. In addition, cities with a great economic environment can make it easier to get a job during or immediately after college.”

WalletHub gathered data on more than 400 U.S. cities based on 31 academic, social and economic indicators.

How did Texas cities rank among others? Here’s a breakdown.

People are also reading: These 5 Texas universities rank among top 100 US News best colleges for 2025. See list

LIST: Top 5 college towns in America

Joining Austin among the top five college towns were two in Florida, one in Michigan and one in North Carolina:

Austin
Ann Arbor, Mich.
Orlando, Fla.
Tampa, Fla.
Raleigh, N.C.

Austin scores high in academic, economic opportunities and social environment

Overall, Austin scored 65.16 points out of 100 and ranked 14th for academic and economic opportunities. The Texas capital has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country and claims the fifth-best annual job growth rate.

The capital of Texas also ranked high (17th) for its social environment. It has plenty of attractions, sports clubs and shopping centers to help students relax from the stress of a classroom. Did we mention Austin also has one of the lowest average prices for pizza? Students can also participate in or watch several top-level sports teams.

Austin ranks 17th for its quality of higher education. And with an annual average of $30,138, it has the 49th cheapest in-state tuition (including room and board).

However, like several high-ranking cities, Austin was somewhere in the middle in terms of wallet friendliness (191 out of 415).

Read more: UT-Austin ranks second in best Texas colleges, study shows. See which school ranks first

Brownsville has lowest cost of living for young people

Brownsville claimed the cheapest cost of living for college-age people, according to the WalletHub analysis. Its cost was three times lower than that of Stanford, the college town with the highest cost of living. Five California towns tied for the highest cost of living for this demographic: Stanford, Sunnyvale, Santa Monica, San Francisco and Santa Clara.

The college towns with the lowest cost of living for young people are as follows:

Brownsville
Springfield, Mo.
Lansing, Mich.
Jackson, Miss.
Cleveland

College Station is fourth-best small college town

The WalletHub analysis also categorized U.S. college towns by size. While Austin was named the best large college town, College Station ranked fourth among small college towns.

However, some other Texas cities ranked low among the roughly 200 small college towns, including Huntsville (157th), Beaumont (155th), San Angelo (149th) and Nacogdoches (144th).

LIST: Best and worst college towns in Texas

Here’s how Texas college towns ranked overall:

Austin (1st overall)
College Station (23rd overall)
Houston (54th overall)
San Antonio (81st overall)
Fort Worth (86th overall)
Dallas (98th overall)
San Marcos (100th overall)
Killeen (102nd overall)
Bryan (109th overall)
McAllen (122nd overall)
Carrollton (124th overall)
Corpus Christi (134th overall)
Pasadena (135th overall)
Lubbock (136th overall)
Laredo (156th overall)
McKinney (165th overall)
Brownsville (166th overall)
Denton (168th overall)
Amarillo (170th overall)
El Paso (176th overall)
Waco (177th overall)
Irving (182nd overall)
Arlington (209th overall)
Garland (218th overall)
Grand Prairie (226th overall)
Pearland (237th overall)
Richardson (248th overall)
Wichita Falls (250th overall)
Tyler (262nd overall)
Edinburg (292nd overall)
Abilene (317th overall)
Mesquite (325th overall)
Nacogdoches (327th overall)
San Angelo (339th overall)
Beaumont (355th overall)
Huntsville (359th overall)

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Austin, TX

Will the rest of Austin allergies seasons be as bad as cedar this year?

Published

5 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Will the rest of Austin allergies seasons be as bad as cedar this year?

Austin had a particularly itchy and drippy cedar fever season to start the year. Many winter days, from late December into February, had high or very high ashe juniper (aka cedar) pollen counts.

Central Texas has a year-round allergy season with mold popping up at any time. For the more traditional spring and fall allergy seasons, forecasters at AccuWeather are predicting some of the allergens across the country will be worse this year than average.

Texas, though, is a different story.

For grass allergies, which happen now through September, AccuWeather estimates Austin will have an average season. However, just west of the Interstate 35 corridor in the Hill Country to almost El Paso, that season is expected to be worse than normal.

“Texas may experience above-average grass pollen for a few weeks,” AccuWeather’s allergy report said, “though the season could be shorter-lived compared to northern areas.”

It all depends on the weather

How much rain we get in the next six months and the perennial Texas heat will all affect the growing season for grasses and weeds, as well as the amount of pollen trees produce. The Farmers’ Almanac and the Old Farmers Almanac are both predicting a wetter and warmer spring.

Rain helps plants grow, which can increase pollen production over time. However, rainfall during allergy season can also bring temporary relief by washing pollen out of the air. That’s what we’re expecting this weekend, with our first meaningful rain chance in nearly three weeks. Tree and weed pollen levels might briefly drop, but mold could spike because it thrives in damp, humid weather.

If spring continues with excessive heat like we saw in February, it could limit the growth of some plants and trees. Extreme heat can reduce how much they grow, and how much pollen they produce. On the other hand, if we get a healthy balance of rain and only slightly above-normal temperatures — not extreme heat — pollen counts could climb. That’s especially true as we head into April, typically our windiest month of the year, which helps spread pollen more easily.

How can you treat allergies in Austin?

If you are feeling the effects of allergies, here are some things you can do to lessen them:

Start taking allergy medication at least two weeks before your allergen’s season is supposed to start. Keep taking your allergy medication throughout your allergen’s season, even on low-pollen days.
Vary your allergy medication. You can take a nasal spray, an eye drop and an oral antihistamine at the same time to treat the different symptoms. If one kind of allergy medication isn’t working, consult your doctor about whether you should add a second one or switch out the medication.
Take a shower before going to bed.
Take off outside clothes or shoes when you get into the house.
Do a daily nasal wash such as a neti pot or saline spray.
Consider seeing an allergist to get drops or shots to lessen your reaction to the allergen.

Consider these household tips to improve your chances of keeping allergens away:

Change the filters in your house regularly during cedar fever season.
Vacuum and sweep regularly.
Change your sheets, especially your pillow regularly.
Keep doors and windows closed.
Clean out the vents in your home.
Have your home tested for indoor allergens such as mold.
Wash and brush the animals in your house to lessen the amount of allergens in the air.
Wear a mask outside or inside while you are trying to lessen the pollen or mold indoors.

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Austin, TX

Texas Primary: Breakdown of Texas races

Published

17 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Democrats tried to stop a mid-decade redistricting effort, but were unsuccessful. Now, we are starting to see some of the candidates emerging in those newly drawn districts. FOX 7 Austin’s Rudy Koski gives a full breakdown.

Posted March 3, 2026 10:32pm CST

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Austin, TX

Remembering Jorge Pederson: Minnesota MMA fighter killed in Austin, Texas, shooting

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Remembering Jorge Pederson: Minnesota MMA fighter killed in Austin, Texas, shooting

ROCHESTER, Minn. (KTTC) – A shooting on West Sixth Street in Austin, Texas, early Sunday morning, killed three people and injured more than a dozen others, according to the Austin Police Department. APD confirmed one of the victims was 30-year-old Jorge Pederson, a Minnesota man who worked as an MMA fighter for the Med City Fighting Championships.

“You meet tons of fighters and there are people that stand above the rest that you find you enjoy or find the most amusing,” MCFC Co-Owner Matthew Vogt said. “He was definitely one of them.”

According to Vogt, Pederson was also the owner of a Minnesota business called Metro Movers. Vogt said the MMA competitor touched everyone’s hearts since his first day of fighting professionally in Rochester.

“As soon as we met him when it was the weighing time, we just loved the guy already because he had a great mission or spirit about him,” Vogt said. “He was a funny guy and great fighter.”

Vogt told KTTC when he first saw the news that Pederson was killed, he could not believe what he saw.

“I was looking, like, ‘Wait a minute. Is this one of his shenanigans or did something actually happen there?’” Vogt said, recalling the moment he saw a social media post regarding the shooting in Austin. “I confirmed with a few people and I’m just like, sometimes, some things happen that you don’t even like, you don’t even know how to respond to it because it’s just so out of left field that you don’t immediately have a response to it.”

MCFC confirmed there is an online fundraiser dedicated to supporting Pederson’s family. As of Tuesday afternoon, more than $10,000 has been raised.

“He was someone that always could make anybody laugh,” Vogt said. “Support his family through the fundraiser and take a look at his Instagram especially to see how funny he was.”

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