El Paso vs San Antonio
The short version
- El Paso is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 5% lower than in the San Antonio area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $184,500 in El Paso and $235,700 in San Antonio.
- Households earn more in San Antonio ($65,056 vs $59,745 median).
- San Antonio has the warmer winter: January highs of 63°F vs 59°F.
- San Antonio is growing faster: +8% since 2020 vs +0.6%.
Side by side
| El Paso, TX | San Antonio, TX | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 683,012 | 1,548,422 |
| Growth since 2020 | +0.6% | +8% |
| People per square mile | 2,639 | 3,103 |
| Median age | 34.5 | 34.9 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 28% | 29% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $59,745 | $65,056 |
| Median home value | $184,500 | $235,700 |
| Home value to income | 3.1× | 3.6× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,073 | $1,324 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 89.9 | 94.7 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 71.2 | 94.6 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $67,400 | $71,000 |
| Homeowners | 61% | 52% |
| Top state income tax | None | None |
| Combined sales tax | 8.2% | 8.2% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 23.4 | 24.5 |
| Work from home | 9% | 14% |
| Take public transit | 1% | 2% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 6% | 6.2% |
| Poverty rate | 18.4% | 17.1% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 59° / 35° | 63° / 41° |
| July high / low | 96° / 73° | 95° / 75° |
| Precipitation per year | 9 in | 32 in |
| Snowfall per year | 3 in | 0 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 117 | 122 |
| Nights below freezing | 42 | 14 |
| Comfortable months | 4 | 6 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Relatively High | Relatively High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 95.5 | 99.4 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 18% | 42% |
| Home prices, past year | +2.2% | -0.5% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +48% | +29.3% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: El Paso: March to April and October to November. San Antonio: February to April and October to December.
Full monthly tables: El Paso weather by month and San Antonio weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $67,400 in El Paso and $71,000 in San Antonio. Moving from El Paso to San Antonio, you would need about $79,000 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between El Paso and San Antonio
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from El Paso and San Antonio.
Which would you pick?
One vote per person. Results show after you vote.