Houston, the 2026 city reportUnited States · population 7.0 million metro · index 7.2 of 10

Houston in 200 words.

Houston scored 7.2 on the everycity index in 2026. The headline numbers: rent on a Montrose one bedroom runs 1,780 dollars a month, the monthly all in cost lands at 3,100 dollars for a single resident, the personal income tax position is zero state income tax (federal only, progressive 10 to 37 percent), and the safety score is 6.5 on the same 10 point scale we apply to Dallas, Austin, and Atlanta.

The case for Houston: the energy capital of the United States, the Texas Medical Center (the largest medical complex in the world by employment), and zero state income tax. Read Dallas vs Houston for the Texas peer benchmark and Houston vs Atlanta for the wider context. The case against, when there is one, is named in section 12.

The data feeding this report comes from our methodology page, with primary sources at the bottom of the page. Numbers are May 2026 unless stated otherwise.

One reading note. This is the long form report. If you only want the headline numbers, the city score generator returns the index figure with custom weights in 30 seconds. For the country context, United States places Houston on the national table. For the regional read, North America sets the broader comparison.

For new readers: this report sits inside Volume 04 of the everycity atlas. The methodology has been refreshed against the May 2026 Numbeo, Mercer, and OECD data drops. The next refresh ships August 2026.

A 10 point read on streets, day and night.

Houston scored 6.5 overall. The breakdown matters more than the headline.

Compared with the rest of the index, Houston sits in the middle band on overall safety. The safest cities ranking places Tokyo at 9.6 and Singapore at 9.5 at the top. For comparison with London at 7.4 and New York at 6.8, Houston sits at the same axis as New York. The variation across Houston neighborhoods is the most important variable: West University Place, Memorial, Bellaire, and the Heights score 7.5 plus; some inner loop zip codes score below 5.0.

Practical notes for new residents: avoid the standard precaution failures, particularly the unattended car parking at night, and carry comprehensive auto insurance from day one. The full safety methodology is on our methodology page. The solo female safety ranking and family safety ranking show how Houston compares on those axes specifically.

The four categories that make up the overall safety score are violent crime, property crime, traffic safety, and emergency response time. Houston is strongest on emergency response in West and Memorial districts, and weakest on traffic safety where the per capita road fatality figure is among the highest in the US for a metro of its size. The Houston safety deep dive walks the four categories with the underlying data from the Houston Police Department, FBI UCR, and the Numbeo Crime Index May 2026 release.

One pattern worth naming. Houston is geographically the largest US city by area in this index, and the safety variation across zip codes is correspondingly wide. The Houston after dark piece walks neighborhood by neighborhood with the actual incident data, and the residents we surveyed in 2026 most often pointed to the Montrose to Heights corridor as the consistent night safe zone.

Who pays, and how much the tax takes back.

Salary medians are May 2026, sourced from Glassdoor, Levels.fyi, and BLS data. Tax figures are from the IRS and Texas Comptroller.

The major employers in Houston are ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, Phillips 66, Halliburton, Marathon Oil, EOG Resources, Schlumberger, Baker Hughes, Sysco, Waste Management, plus the Texas Medical Center which is the largest medical complex in the world (106,000 employees, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Memorial Hermann, Houston Methodist, Texas Children's, Baylor College of Medicine), the NASA Johnson Space Center, and the Port of Houston. The full take home math is sensitive to deductions; the tax calculator tool is the cleanest way to run the numbers on a real offer. For benchmarking against other cities, the highest paying cities ranking and the Dallas vs Houston comparison cover the major destinations on the same chart.

Note on tax: Texas has zero state income tax. The trade off is the property tax bill, which is among the highest in the country at 2.0 to 2.4 percent of assessed value. For renters, the no state income tax benefit is direct. For homeowners, it depends on home value.

Working culture in Houston is its own variable. The energy sector culture, the medical sector culture, and the port and logistics sector all run on their own schedules. The Houston working culture guide covers the specifics. The shorter version: energy roles in Houston usually expect 50 to 65 hours a week, medical specialty roles often more, finance and tech roles 45 to 55. Negotiating a contract before signing applies more here than in most cities.

Career mobility for the relocated worker is worth pricing in before you sign. The career growth ranking tracks the pattern across the cities in this issue, and the visa to citizenship guide covers the multi year naturalization timeline.

One more lens. The dual income household question. The spouse visa guide covers the 30 most common destination cities.

The system, the cost, the wait.

Healthcare scored 8.4 on a 10 point scale, the highest healthcare score in any US metro. The methodology weights access, cost, and outcomes equally.

the Texas Medical Center is the largest medical complex in the world by employment, with MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston Methodist, Memorial Hermann, Texas Children's, Baylor St Luke's, the Methodist DeBakey Heart Center, and Baylor College of Medicine all clustered in one square mile. Premium private hospital admission runs 4,200 to 42,000 dollars per stay depending on procedure and insurance, with deductibles in the 1,200 to 5,200 dollar band. Outcome metrics for Houston place it at the top of US cities for cardiovascular surgery, oncology, and pediatric specialty care. The fastest route for routine specialist care under insurance is in network primary care plus referral; the cost runs 35 to 220 dollars for a co pay.

For new arrivals: the gap between employer coverage and start date is the most common headache. Pick up an interim international policy from SafetyWing or Cigna Global while your enrollment processes. The expat insurance guide covers the trade off. The best healthcare cities ranking places Houston on the regional table.

Dental and vision typically sit outside the main coverage. Dental cleaning runs 95 to 240 dollars, a filling 185 to 480, an annual eye exam 65 to 220. Cross check the Houston dental care guide before you book. For prescription medication, the local pharmacy network plus mail order is the standard.

Mental health services have a moderate wait. Expect two to six week waits for a new patient appointment with a psychiatrist in network. The expat mental health guide covers what private and public look like across our top 50 cities.

Medical tourism is a separate variable. Houston itself attracts medical tourists from Latin America and the Middle East for cancer treatment, cardiac procedures, and pediatric specialty care; MD Anderson alone treats more than 6,000 international patients a year. The Americas medical tourism guide covers the cost differentials.

Walk, ride, or drive.

Walkability 4.8, transit 5.0, bike 4.4. Car needed: Yes.

METRORail covers 38 stations across the Red, Purple, and Green lines, fare 1.25 dollars per ride and 96 dollars for a monthly pass; the network covers the Texas Medical Center, the central business district, the museum district, and the Stadium District. METRO buses cover the wider metro with 84 routes. Service is regular within the network but the system covers a smaller share of the metro than DC or New York. The bike network has expanded along Buffalo Bayou, the White Oak Bayou trail, and across the Heights with the BCycle bike share. For relocation scouting and the first two weeks, a rental from Discover Cars covers most needs at 35 to 78 dollars a day. Beyond that, a car in Houston is effectively required for any address outside the inner loop. The best public transport cities ranking places Houston on the global chart.

Airport access is the variable most travelers underweight. From a central Montrose one bedroom to George Bush Intercontinental, expect 30 to 65 minutes by car; to William P Hobby Airport for Southwest Airlines flights, 22 to 45 minutes. The Houston airport access guide walks the routes with the actual costs and times.

The walkability score lands where it does because Houston is a car city by design, with the largest metro footprint of any major US city. The Heights, Montrose, Midtown, and Rice Village are exceptions; the rest of the metro is built around the freeway grid. The most walkable cities ranking places Houston on the global walkability chart.

Internet, visas, and where to plug in.

Median internet speed 205 Mbps. Coworking density: 118 spaces. Visa: H1B, L1, O1, EB visas for the working immigrant; ESTA Visa Waiver Program for 90 day visits.

The remote work rating for Houston sits in the top tier. The internet speed of 205 Mbps comfortably beats most peers, with Comcast, AT&T Fiber, and EarthLink fiber coverage across the core neighborhoods; the coworking density is high; and the time zone (Central Standard) is workable for both East and West Coast meetings. For a privacy layer on local networks, NordVPN remains the cleanest option we have tested. The best cities for remote work ranking covers the full table.

For nomads: the visa story is the biggest variable. No dedicated digital nomad visa for the US. The H1B, L1, and O1 are the working visa categories; the EB green card categories are the standard immigration routes; the ESTA Visa Waiver Program covers 90 day visits for citizens of 41 eligible countries. The nomad visa guide 2026 tracks the eligibility and tax residency triggers across the 47 cities that now offer one. Watch the 183 day rule.

For coworking specifically, the density figure of 118 spaces hides a wide quality range. The premium operators (WeWork, Industrious, the Cannon, Spaces) run 460 to 820 dollars a month for a hot desk and 820 to 1,680 for a private booth. The mid market option runs 220 to 440 dollars a month for unlimited access plus mail handling. The Houston coworking guide tracks the specific operators with the floor plans and the monthly numbers. The best cities for digital nomads ranking keeps the macro view, with Houston placed on the same axis as Dallas, Austin, and Atlanta for direct comparison.

The other variable nomads underweight is internet reliability rather than peak speed. The cities with best internet speed piece breaks the Speedtest Global Index April 2026 data by outage hours rather than peak Mbps. Houston sits in the top decile for reliability, with the caveat that hurricane events cause outage spikes once every two to three years.