Guest, Sign inJoin
Compare towns

Spring vs Houston

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: trails (17.9× in Houston) and size (33.9× in Houston).

×
Spring, TXAn outdoors townTexas · 68,580 people
×
Houston, TXA history townTexas · 2,328,253 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 $730 more a month in Spring

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.

Spring$2,430/mo
Typical home $363K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.74% · or rent about $1,711/mo · Housing →
Houston$1,700/mo
Typical home $262K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.51% · or rent about $1,361/mo · Housing →

The difference: $730 a month, about $8,700 a year, between Spring and Houston.

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

Spring places higher on 13 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.

Where they are

Spring and Houston share a border

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

SpringHoustonSpringHouston
Spring ↔ Houston19 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
15,575 Spring residents work in Houston (49.2% of its workers)
Work & commute in Spring →
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
SpringHouston
Snow a year0″0″
January low44°F—
July high95°F—
Growing season (days)300d—
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)63rd80th
Outdoors & history
SpringHouston
Conserved land17.5%10.5%
Settled—1836
National Register places1294
Archive photos66
Famous people born here—26
Community
SpringHouston
Library hours a week—44 hrs
Colleges in town—20
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined10

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.

SpringHouston
People
Population 68,580Lowest 2,328,253Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +15.2%Highest TX: +15.9% +9.8%Lowest TX: +15.9%
Median age 32.7±1.6Lowest 8% below TX 34.4±0.2Highest 3% below TX
Houston and Spring are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 27.8%±2.1Highest TX: 25% 23.4%±0.3Lowest TX: 25%
Age 65+ 10.2%±0.9Lowest TX: 13.4% 12.3%±0.2Highest TX: 13.4%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 25.6%Lowest TX: 33.8% 36.6%Highest TX: 33.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 4.3%±0.7Lowest TX: 6.2% 6.5%±0.2Highest TX: 6.2%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $88,997±$3kHighest 13% above TX $64,813±$822Lowest 17% below TX
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $231,500±$6kLowest 18% below TX $277,800±$3kHighest about the TX average
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,711±$68Highest 22% above TX $1,361±$8Lowest about the TX average
Property taxmedian, yearly $4,027Lowest 5% below TX $4,198Highest about the TX average
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 39.1%±5.3Lowest TX: 51.7% 54.1%±0.9Highest TX: 51.7%
Below poverty line 10.4%Lowest TX: 13.8% 19.9%Highest TX: 13.8%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 74.4%Highest TX: 62.6% 42.1%Lowest TX: 62.6%
Typical home builtmedian year 1993Highest 1 yr newer than TX 1982Lowest 10 yrs older than TX
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 34 minHighest 27% above TX 27 minLowest about the TX average
Work from home 10.7%±1.7Lowest TX: 14.4% 13%±0.3Highest TX: 14.4%
Work in townworking residents 1.3%Lowest 64.7%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 18.3 miHighest 10.3 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.14Lowest 2.00Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Houston (49%)Sugar Land (2%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 49% work in HoustonFew work in Spring
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 17.5%Highest 10.5%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 24.6 miLowest 440.3 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 1.1 miHighest 0.7 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 12Lowest 306Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 73.6Lowest 91.8Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #471 of 583 in TX#384 of 583 in TX
School district LEGACY SCHOOL OF SPORT SCIENCES · BROOKESMITH ISDTEXANS CAN ACADEMIES · RAUL YZAGUIRRE SCHOOLS FOR SUCCESS
High school in town Spring H SElsik H S
Students per teacherat that high school 20.1Highest 17.8Lowest
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.

Spring neighborsTown Square →
T Weaver · 5d

New to Spring Texas

1 neighbor in Spring can answer.

Houston neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Houston’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Spring and Houston

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

Towns like Spring

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.

Post to Spring

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in