A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

Palestine$1,260/mo

Typical home $202K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.19% · or rent about $1,062/mo · Housing →

Gainesville$1,570/mo

Typical home $247K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.35% · or rent about $1,038/mo · Housing →

The difference: $310 a month, about $3,800 a year, between Gainesville and Palestine.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Gainesville places higher on 11 of 21 TX lists

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Texas ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Safety

C−PalestineSafer than 24% of U.S. towns C+GainesvilleSafer than 38% of U.S. towns

Schools

B−PalestineBetter than 52% of districts in the state C+GainesvilleBetter than 41% of districts in the state

Health

DPalestineHealthier than 11% of U.S. towns C−GainesvilleHealthier than 17% of U.S. towns

10Palestine

11Gainesville

Lists won, of 21 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Closest to a top hospitalHealth · 632 towns #545#51 Most conserved landOutdoors · 572 towns #96#367 Highest graduation rateSchools · 584 towns #179#431 Fastest growingGrowth · 640 towns #480#312 Highest incomeIncome · 653 towns #590#444 Lowest obesityHealth · 652 towns #495#363 SafestSafety · 470 towns #357#263 Best schoolsSchools · 583 towns #332#430

Left end = #1 in Texas. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Palestine’s rankings →

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

PalestineGainesville

Snow a year0″3″

January low35°F 32°F

July high94°F 94°F

Growing season (days)234d 242d

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)10th 50th

Outdoors & history

PalestineGainesville

Trails3 mi 1 mi

Conserved land7.2%1.3%

Settled1846 —

National Register places17 5

Community

PalestineGainesville

Library hours a week40 hrs 49 hrs

Colleges in town—1

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined0 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

157 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

PalestineTX GainesvilleTX

Palestine ↔ Gainesville157 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs Texas average

PalestineGainesville

People

Population 19,136Highest 17,883Lowest

Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census -0.9%Lowest TX: +15.9% +8.7%Highest TX: +15.9%

Median age 35.7±1.8Lowest about the TX average 36.5±2Highest about the TX average

Gainesville and Palestine are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 24.7%±2.7Highest TX: 25% 24.4%±2.7Lowest TX: 25%

Palestine and Gainesville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 15.2%±1.9Lowest TX: 13.4% 16.6%±2.1Highest TX: 13.4%

Gainesville and Palestine are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 16.6%Lowest TX: 33.8% 19.4%Highest TX: 33.8%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 2.8%±1.9Lowest TX: 6.2% 3.3%±1.1Highest TX: 6.2%

Gainesville and Palestine are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $44,981±$9kLowest 43% below TX $58,809±$4kHighest 25% below TX

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $166,000±$15kLowest 42% below TX $177,000±$23kHighest 38% below TX

Gainesville and Palestine are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,062±$106Highest 24% below TX $1,038±$100Lowest 26% below TX

Palestine and Gainesville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Property taxmedian, yearly $1,977Lowest 53% below TX $2,382Highest 44% below TX

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 57.9%±14.6Highest TX: 51.7% 43.1%±7.6Lowest TX: 51.7%

Palestine and Gainesville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Below poverty line 17.6%Lowest TX: 13.8% 19.1%Highest TX: 13.8%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 54.8%Lowest TX: 62.6% 57.6%Highest TX: 62.6%

Typical home builtmedian year 1976Highest 16 yrs older than TX 1971Lowest 21 yrs older than TX

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 21 minLowest 22% below TX 22 minHighest 17% below TX

Work from home 5.4%±2.3Lowest TX: 14.4% 5.6%±2.8Highest TX: 14.4%

Gainesville and Palestine are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 33.5%Highest 28.2%Lowest

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 40.3 miHighest 30.3 miLowest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 1.31Highest 1.24Lowest

Top workplaceoutside town Tyler (6%)Denton (6%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in GainesvilleFew work in Palestine

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 7.2%Highest 1.3%Lowest

Trailsmapped miles 2.8 miHighest 0.8 miLowest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.1 miHighest 0.0 miLowest

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 11Highest 9Lowest

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 56.8Highest 47.1Lowest

Schools

Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #332 of 583 in TX #430 of 583 in TX

School district ELKHART ISD · PALESTINE ISDCALLISBURG ISD · GAINESVILLE ISD

High school in town Palestine H SGainesville H S

Students per teacherat that high school 12.5Lowest 16.1Highest

Texas average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Palestine neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Palestine’s Town Square.

Gainesville neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Gainesville’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Towns like Palestine

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Orange19,177 people · $165K homes

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White Settlement18,150 people · $187K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Palestine vs Gainesville

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they differ most

A typical home costs $310 more a month in Gainesville

Gainesville places higher on 11 of 21 TX lists

What daily life feels like in each

157 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Set another town beside Palestine and Gainesville

Towns like Palestine

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