Austin, TX
This Texas city ranks among 10 best to live in the US. See full list, how others scored
See how the Austin skyline changes annually from ACL Fest 2024
It’s another year of Austin City Limits Music Festival, which means we have an updated photo from 2024 to show the change in Austin’s skyline since 2005.
A Texas city has been named among the top ten U.S. cities to live in over the next two years.
Ten Texas cities were included in the U.S. News & World Report’s 2025-2026 Best Places to Live list. For the annual rankings, U.S. News analyzed 150 major cities in the U.S. based on quality of life, job market, value of living and people’s desire to live in the area.
How did your city fare on the list? Here’s a breakdown of the data.
LIST: 10 best US cities to live
Texas’ capital secured a spot in the top 10 places to live, as determined by U.S. News.
- Naples, Florida
- Boise, Idaho
- Colorado Springs, Colorado
- Greenville, South Carolina
- Charlotte, North Carolina
- Raleigh, North Carolina
- Huntsville, Alabama
- Virginia Beach, Virginia
- Austin, Texas
- Boulder, Colorado
Austin offers healthy balance of work and pleasure, US News says
Austin had an overall score of 6.8 out of 10, compared to Naples’ score of 7.1. The Texas capital also scored 6.8 in the quality of life index, with a value index score of 6.3.
“With the slogan ‘Keep Austin Weird,’ this Texas city is laid-back to the point that if you’re dressing up, it must be a life event,” the U.S. News analysis says. “People here enjoy the outdoors, even more so with their dogs. Austin has a contagious vibrancy and enthusiasm.”
U.S. News notes Austin’s strongest assets are a mix of work and pleasure. The number of companies headquartered in Austin makes it attractive to working professionals, especially those in technology, government, education, and health care. But the capital is far from being “all work, no play.” Its claim as the live music capital of the world invites music lovers to take a listen, whether at the airport, along streets downtown, or at one of the approximate 200 venues throughout the area.
Austin also ranked no. 32 on U.S. News’ Best Places to Retire in 2025 list.
LIST: Best Texas cities to live
Here are the rankings and scores U.S. News gave for the ten Texas cities included in the list:
Ranking
City
Overall Score
Quality of Life
Value Index
#9
Austin
6.8
6.8
6.3
#48
McAllen
6.4
6.6
7.6
#62
El Paso
6.3
6.5
7.3
#77
Corpus Christi
6.2
5.8
7.0
#87
Brownsville
6.2
6.2
7.7
#89
San Antonio
6.1
6.1
6.8
#95
Dallas
6.1
6.4
5.6
#97
Houston
6.1
5.9
6.2
#99
Beaumont
6.1
5.5
7.3
#107
Killeen
6.0
5.9
7.3
Austin, TX
Judge Albright, who oversaw patent litigation boom in Texas, to resign
Austin, TX
Appeals court rules Texas can require public schools to display Ten Commandments in class
DALLAS (AP) — Texas can require the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public school classrooms, a U.S. appeals court ruled Tuesday in a victory for conservatives who have long sought to incorporate more religion into schools.
WATCH: Texas school board approves new course material that includes Bible passages
It sets up a potential clash at the U.S. Supreme Court over the issue in the future.
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals said in the decision that the law did not violate the First Amendment, which protects religious freedom and prevents the government from establishing a religion.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, called the ruling “a major victory for Texas and our moral values.”
“The Ten Commandments have had a profound impact on our nation, and it’s important that students learn from them every single day,” Paxton said.
Organizations representing the families who challenged the law, including the American Civil Liberties Union, said in a statement that they were “extremely disappointed” by the decision.
“The court’s ruling goes against fundamental First Amendment principles and binding U.S. Supreme Court authority. The First Amendment safeguards the separation of church and state, and the freedom of families to choose how, when and if to provide their children with religious instruction. This decision tramples those rights,” the statement said.
The law is among the pushes by Republicans, including President Donald Trump, to incorporate religion into public schools. Critics say it violates the separation of church and state while backers argue that the Ten Commandments are historical and part of the foundation of U.S. law.
The ruling, which reverses a district court’s judgment, comes after the full court heard arguments in January in the Texas case and a similar case in Louisiana. The appeals court in February cleared the way for Louisiana’s law, requiring displays of the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms. The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals voted 12-6 to lift a block that a lower court first placed on the law in 2024.
Texas law took effect on Sept. 1, marking the largest attempt in the nation to hang the Ten Commandments in public schools. About two dozen school districts had been barred from posting them after federal judges issued injunctions in two cases against the law but went up in many classrooms across the state as districts paid to have the posters printed themselves or accepted donations.
A free press is a cornerstone of a healthy democracy.
Support trusted journalism and civil dialogue.
Austin, TX
Texas DMV launches authorization system for automated commercial vehicles
Waymo self-driving car navigating city traffic, San Francisco, California, August 20, 2024. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, Texas – The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles is launching a new authorization system for companies looking to operate automated motor vehicles.
A new goes into effect next month that requires companies using automated vehicles to be authorized by TxDMV with the following requirements:
- Complies with all applicable Texas traffic and motor vehicle laws
- Is equipped with a recording device
- Uses an automated driving system that complies with federal law
- Can achieve minimal risk condition in the event of a system failure
- Has a proper title and registration
- Maintains motor vehicle insurance
The process allows companies to submit their applications online through the Texas Motor Carrier Credentialing System.
The new laws outlined in Senate Bill 2807 go into effect on May 28.
Automated vehicles in Texas
The backstory:
Autonomous driving services are already operating in major Texas cities. Dallas, Houston, Austin and San Antonio are all serviced by the driverless ride-share company Waymo.
In Austin, the service has received dozens of complaints about vehicles stalling, speeding and crashing.
There have also been complaints of vehicles illegally passing school buses.
In March, Swedish company Einride announced plans to bring autonomous freight trucks to Central Texas.
The Source: Information in this article comes from the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles and previous FOX Local reporting.
-
Health3 minutes agoHow Well Will You Age? Take Our Quiz to Find Out.
-
Culture15 minutes agoPoetry Challenge Day 4: What The Stars Can Teach Us About Love
-
Lifestyle21 minutes agoThe Japanese Designers Changing Men’s Wear
-
Education27 minutes agoOpinion | Yale Has Come Up With a Surefire Way to Make a Terrible Situation Worse
-
Technology33 minutes agoThe Iranian women Trump ‘saved’ from execution are simultaneously real and AI-manipulated
-
World39 minutes agoFormer Mexican beauty queen found shot dead as investigators examine possible family involvement: reports
-
Politics45 minutes agoManhattan DA’s office employee charged with sexual abuse after alleged incident on Queens subway
-
Health51 minutes agoRed hair may be increasing as study points to surprising evolution trend