What it's like to live in Dallas
Dallas is a major city in Texas with a highly educated workforce and schools with smaller class sizes than the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Dallas deals with crime rates above the national average, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, and hot summers.
The good
- Highly educated workforce
- Low student-teacher ratio
The not so good
- Crime above national average
- Air quality concerns
- Hot summers
How Dallas compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Dallas
Based on Dallas's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$2,944
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $58,880 a year
- 49% of Dallas renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$64,140
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $32,070
- Homes cost 4.5× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of livingNear US average
$1,472/mo median rent
Rent is pretty middle of the road, at $1,472 a month median. Not a bargain, not a budget-buster. About typical for a city this size. Home prices are reasonable, with a median around $320,700. Not a steal, but not intimidating either.
Median home value $320,700 · 49% of renters cost-burdened
Job marketNear US average
4.0% unemployment
Unemployment here is 4.0%, close to the national average of 4.3%.
City-level (BLS)
Safety▲ 75% above US
577 violent crimes per 100k
Crime is worth weighing seriously here. Rates run above the national average, and while plenty of residents live comfortably, neighborhood selection matters a lot more than it does in a safer city.
Property crime 3077/100k · Dallas Police Department · 2025 data
Getting aroundNear US average
26 min average commute
Commutes run about average, at 25.7 minutes. Fine day to day, but it adds up over a year, and where someone lives relative to where they work starts to matter. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 16% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers run seriously hot, with average highs pushing 96°F, and winters are chilly but manageable, with lows around 40°F.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
18 hospitals
There are 18 Medicare-certified hospitals inside city limits. They average 3.4 out of 5 on Medicare's star rating.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforceNear US average
38% bachelor's degree or higher
Education levels run about average, with 38% college-educated. It's a mix of white-collar and blue-collar work, which can be an asset or a limitation depending on the field.
Schools
348 public schools inside the boundary
There are 348 public schools inside the boundary and 87 private schools. The student-to-teacher ratio is 14:1, well below the national average of 16:1. Smaller class sizes are generally a positive sign for a district.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Waco Mammoth National Monument (86 miles away).
Bottom line
Dallas's strongest point is a highly educated workforce; the main tradeoffs are crime rates above the national average and air quality that falls short of national benchmarks. A year of median rent ($1,472/mo) equals 25% of the median household income here, more than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit remote workers (16% of workers here already work from home).
Other places near Dallas
All Texas guides →Moving to University Park →
4 mi away · pop. 25,155
Rent $3,272/mo · Income $250,000+
Compare with Dallas →Moving to Balch Springs →
10 mi away · pop. 27,255
Rent $1,378/mo · Income $66,942
Compare with Dallas →Not sure Dallas is the one?
Put it side by side with another city.