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Sparks vs Elsa

621 miles apart. The biggest differences: jobs per worker (9.4× in Elsa) and average commute (8 min in Elsa).

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Sparks, TXHomes around $181KTexas · 4,134 people
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Elsa, TXA regional job hubTexas · 5,697 people
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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.

SparksHomes around $181K
Housing$181K typical home40% below the TX typical home Health74% of U.S. towns are healthieron CDC estimates Outdoors#192 most walkable in TX0.0 miles of trails across 1 parks and preserves All about Sparks →
ElsaA regional job hub
Work2,277 jobsbased in Elsa, a regional job hub Housing$140K typical home53% below the TX typical home Outdoors#75 most walkable in TX1.3 miles of trails across 1 parks and preserves All about Elsa →
The biggest differences

Where they differ most

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

Jobs per worker9.4×
Elsa is more of a job hub
Elsa 1.97Sparks 0.21
Average commute8 min
Elsa has the shorter commute
Sparks 21 minElsa 13 min
Growth since 2010+5 pts
Sparks has grown faster since 2010
Sparks +5.1%Elsa +0.1%
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $250 more a month in Sparks

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.

Sparks$1,220/mo
Typical home $181K (Zillow) · tax rate est. 1.8% · or rent about $1,080/mo · Housing →
Elsa$960/mo
Typical home $140K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.94% · or rent about $767/mo · Housing →

The difference: $250 a month, about $3,100 a year, between Sparks and Elsa.

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

Elsa places higher on 12 of 16 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
–SparksNot graded C−ElsaSafer than 15% of U.S. towns
Schools
–SparksNot graded DElsaBetter than 11% of districts in the state
Health
CSparksHealthier than 26% of U.S. towns C−ElsaHealthier than 25% of U.S. towns
4Sparks
12Elsa

Lists won, of 16 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Lowest obesityHealth · 652 towns #252#570 Most conserved landOutdoors · 572 towns #545#349 Cheapest rentCost of living · 624 towns #257#48 Shortest commuteGetting around · 653 towns #160#5 Most walkableOutdoors · 653 towns #192#75 Highest graduation rateSchools · 584 towns #339#431 Fastest growingGrowth · 640 towns #374#468 Most remote workersWork · 624 towns #540#449

Left end = #1 in Texas. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Sparks’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
SparksElsa
Snow a year3″0″
January low35°F49°F
July high96°F96°F
Growing season (days)261d355d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)14th67th
Outdoors & history
SparksElsa
Trails0 mi1 mi
Conserved land0.2%1.5%
Archive photos—24
Famous people born here—1
Community
SparksElsa
Library hours a week—42 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.

Where they are

621 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

SparksTXElsaTX
Sparks ↔ Elsa621 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.

SparksElsa
People
Population 4,134Lowest 5,697Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +5.1%Highest TX: +15.9% +0.1%Lowest TX: +15.9%
Median age 30.9±8.9Lowest 13% below TX 34±6.8Highest 4% below TX
Elsa and Sparks are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 34%±5.2Highest TX: 25% 29.6%±8.8Lowest TX: 25%
Sparks and Elsa are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 6.3%±2.7Lowest TX: 13.4% 13.1%±5.7Highest TX: 13.4%
Elsa and Sparks are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 4.5%Lowest TX: 33.8% 7.9%Highest TX: 33.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 12.9%±6.8Highest TX: 6.2% 7.5%±4.3Lowest TX: 6.2%
Sparks and Elsa are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $34,876±$23kLowest 56% below TX $42,439±$16kHighest 46% below TX
Elsa and Sparks are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $103,800±$11kHighest 63% below TX $81,600±$36kLowest 71% below TX
Sparks and Elsa are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,080±$194Highest 23% below TX $767±$494Lowest 45% below TX
Sparks and Elsa are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly — $1,582 63% below TX
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 84.3%±98Highest TX: 51.7% 81.8%±76.3Lowest TX: 51.7%
Sparks and Elsa are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 51.7%Highest TX: 13.8% 31.8%Lowest TX: 13.8%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 65.8%Lowest TX: 62.6% 71.2%Highest TX: 62.6%
Typical home builtmedian year 1998Highest 6 yrs newer than TX 1991Lowest 1 yr older than TX
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 21 minHighest 23% below TX 13 minLowest 53% below TX
Work from home 3.1%±2.8Lowest TX: 14.4% 5%±5.5Highest TX: 14.4%
Elsa and Sparks are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 0.6%Lowest 4.2%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 10.3 miLowest 16.3 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.21Lowest 1.97Highest
Top workplaceoutside town El Paso (71%)Edinburg (11%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in ElsaFew work in Sparks
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 0.2%Lowest 1.5%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 0.0 miLowest 1.3 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 miLowest 0.6 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 1 1
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 81.0Lowest 106Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading —#576 of 583 in TX
School district —EDCOUCH-ELSA ISD
High school in town —Edcouch-Elsa H S
Students per teacherat that high school — 12.3
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.

Sparks neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Sparks’s Town Square.

Elsa neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Elsa’s Town Square.

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Set another town beside Sparks and Elsa

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Towns like Sparks

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San Diego3,675 people · $86K 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.

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