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Parker vs Allen

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: trails (14.4× in Allen) and size (18.4× in Allen).

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Parker, TXHomes around $1.08MTexas · 5,999 people
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Allen, TXKnown for its schoolsTexas · 110,265 people
Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

The biggest differences

Where they part ways

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $3,500 more a month in Parker

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.

Parker$6,730/mo
Typical home $1.08M (Zillow) · tax rate 1.16%+ · Housing →
Allen$3,230/mo
Typical home $485K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.69% · or rent about $1,932/mo · Housing →

The difference: $3,500 a month, about $42,000 a year, between Parker and Allen.

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; “+” means the Census top-codes that town’s bill at $10,000, so its real rate is higher.

Report cards

Parker places higher on 9 of 19 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.

Where they are

Parker and Allen share a border

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

ParkerAllenParkerAllen
Parker ↔ Allen4.2 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
176 Parker residents work in Allen (6% of its workers)
Work & commute in Parker →
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
ParkerAllen
Snow a year0″3″
January low34°F—
July high92°F—
Growing season (days)254d—
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)71st60th
Outdoors & history
ParkerAllen
Trails1 mi12 mi
Conserved land0.3%6.5%
Settled19691953
National Register places—1
Archive photos6—
Community
ParkerAllen
Library hours a week—61 hrs
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

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.

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.

ParkerAllen
People
Population 5,999Lowest 110,265Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +43.3%Highest TX: +15.9% +24.2%Lowest TX: +15.9%
Median age 44.1±4Highest 24% above TX 38.4±0.9Lowest 8% above TX
Kids under 18 25.8%±7.1Highest TX: 25% 25.4%±1.6Lowest TX: 25%
Parker and Allen are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 19.7%±5.6Highest TX: 13.4% 11.4%±0.9Lowest TX: 13.4%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 63.3%Highest TX: 33.8% 57.5%Lowest TX: 33.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 9.1%±4.1Highest TX: 6.2% 6.8%±0.9Lowest TX: 6.2%
Parker and Allen are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $229,080±$45kHighest 192% above TX $130,901±$8kLowest 67% above TX
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $859,600±$88kHighest 203% above TX $464,100±$8kLowest 64% above TX
Rentmedian gross, monthly — $1,932±$59 38% above TX
Property taxmedian, yearly $10,000+Highest at least 136% above TX $7,844Lowest 85% above TX
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 100%±100Highest TX: 51.7% 53.9%±5.7Lowest TX: 51.7%
Parker and Allen are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 5.4%Lowest TX: 13.8% 6.1%Highest TX: 13.8%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 98.9%Highest TX: 62.6% 69.4%Lowest TX: 62.6%
Typical home builtmedian year 2004Highest 12 yrs newer than TX 2003Lowest 11 yrs newer than TX
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 27 minLowest about the TX average 28 minHighest 5% above TX
Work from home 36.5%±13Highest TX: 14.4% 26.7%±1.8Lowest TX: 14.4%
Parker and Allen are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 1%Lowest 10.7%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 13.8 miHighest 13.3 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.30Lowest 0.70Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Dallas (22%)Dallas (20%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 6% work in AllenFew work in Parker
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 0.3%Lowest 6.5%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 0.8 miLowest 11.5 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.1 miLowest 0.4 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 2Lowest 44Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 31.3Lowest 118Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #128 of 583 in TX#52 of 583 in TX
School district ALLEN ISDALLEN ISD · PLANO ISD
High school in town None in townAllen H S
Students per teacherat that high school — 19.8
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.

Parker neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Parker’s Town Square.

Allen neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Allen’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Parker and Allen

One tap adds it. Up to 4 towns at once.

Bordering Parker

Towns like Parker

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.

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