Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land
Houston, Texas — salaries, cost of living & taxes (2026)
Houston is the most affordable major U.S. metro relative to its income levels — a place where six-figure salaries still buy a 2,500-square-foot home in a good school district. It's also the most international city in Texas, with one of the country's largest medical complexes (the Texas Medical Center) and a global energy industry that anchors everything else.
The job market
Energy and oil/gas (ExxonMobil, Chevron, BP, hundreds of mid-cap E&P firms), the world's largest medical center (MD Anderson, Memorial Hermann, Houston Methodist), aerospace (NASA Johnson Space Center, Boeing), petrochemicals, and a growing tech and renewable-energy sector around the Energy Corridor and Ion district.
Top industries: Energy & oil/gas, Healthcare (Texas Medical Center), Aerospace, Manufacturing, Logistics.
Housing & cost of living
Median home prices around $335k make Houston the most affordable major Texas metro for buyers. The Inner Loop neighborhoods (Heights, Montrose, West U) command premiums; The Woodlands, Katy, and Sugar Land are popular family suburbs. Flood risk varies block-to-block — verify FEMA flood maps and elevation before buying.
Taxes in Houston
8.25% sales tax, ~2.09% effective property tax, no state income tax. Houston's property tax line is roughly average for Texas; the bigger cost surprise for new arrivals is home insurance, which runs higher than most U.S. cities due to hurricane and flood exposure.
Should you move here?
Best for engineers, medical professionals, and middle-class families who want strong career options at a much lower housing cost than Austin or Dallas. Plan for serious flood/insurance research before buying, and accept that summer humidity is real.
What people love: Strongest combination of high salaries (especially in energy and medicine) with below-average home prices among large U.S. metros.
What to watch out for: Hurricane and flood risk are real cost factors — flood insurance and elevation often matter more than property tax differences.
Estimate your Houston take-home
Texas charges $0 state income tax, but your federal bill is real. Drop in your salary to see what you keep:
Estimates use 2026 projected federal brackets, the standard deduction for your filing status, and current FICA rates. Texas has no state income tax, so your gross is not reduced by any state withholding.
Frequently asked questions
What's the median household income in Houston?
The median household income in Houston is approximately $60,500. That's a Census ACS estimate; individual neighborhoods vary widely.
What's the property tax rate in Houston?
Houston's effective property tax rate is approximately 2.09% — combined city, county, school district, and special-district rates. On a $400,000 home, that's roughly $8,360 per year. File for the homestead exemption to cap annual increases at 10% and lower the school district appraised value.
Does Houston have a city or local income tax?
No. Texas has no state income tax, and no Texas city levies a local income tax on wages. Sales tax in Houston is 8.25%.
How does Houston compare to other Texas cities for cost of living?
Houston's cost of living index is approximately 96 (U.S. average = 100). That's near the U.S. average — moderate by big-city standards.
Is Houston a good place for remote workers?
Houston works well for remote workers because Texas charges no state income tax. If you work for an out-of-state employer from Houston, your wages are Texas-source and untaxed at the state level — except for cases involving New York's convenience-of-employer rule. See our remote worker guide for details.