What it's like to live in Gainesville
Gainesville is a small city in Texas with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, county unemployment below the national average, and crime rates well below the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Gainesville deals with household incomes below the national average, college degree attainment below the national average, a poverty rate above the national average, and hot summers.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Low unemployment in the county
- Low crime rates
- Short commutes
- Growing population
The not so good
- Below-average household incomes
- Low college degree attainment
- High poverty rate
- Hot summers
- Smaller place — fewer dining and entertainment options
- Car-dependent — few commuters use transit
How Gainesville compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Gainesville
Based on Gainesville's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$2,076
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $41,520 a year
- 42% of Gainesville renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$35,400
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $17,700
- Homes cost 3.0× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 27% below US
$1,038/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $1,038 a month. Factoring in local incomes, the value gets even better. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices here are genuinely accessible, with a median around $177,000. That kind of affordability is rare in today's market.
Median home value $177,000 · 42% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
3.7% county unemployment
Unemployment in Cooke County is 3.7%, a little below the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Cooke County (county-wide)
Safety▼ 36% below US
211 violent crimes per 100k
Pretty safe, all things considered. Violent crime sits below the national average, nothing alarming, just ordinary city-life awareness.
Property crime 1177/100k · Gainesville Police Department · 2025 data
Getting around▼ 15% below US
22 min average commute
Commutes are reasonable, averaging 22.2 minutes. Nothing heroic, and there's still time left over for a life after work. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 6% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are hot and humid, with highs regularly hitting 92°F, and winters are chilly but manageable, with lows around 34°F. Rainfall is regular throughout the year.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
1 hospital
There's one Medicare-certified hospital inside city limits, rated 4.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforce▼ 46% below US
19% bachelor's degree or higher
This is a working-class city, and college degree rates reflect that. Trades, manufacturing, and service industries tend to dominate the local economy, which is a strength for some fields and a real constraint for others.
Schools
6 public schools inside the boundary
There are 6 public schools inside the boundary and 1 private school. The student-to-teacher ratio is 16:1, close to 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 Chickasaw National Recreation Area (57 miles away).
Bottom line
Gainesville's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are household incomes below the national average and college degree attainment below the national average. A year of median rent ($1,038/mo) equals 21% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget and anyone prioritizing low crime.
Other places near Gainesville
All Texas guides →Moving to Denton →
29 mi away · pop. 152,866
Rent $1,420/mo · Income $76,019
Compare with Gainesville →Moving to Celina →
30 mi away · pop. 34,268
Rent $2,379/mo · Income $170,894
Compare with Gainesville →Moving to Sherman →
30 mi away · pop. 46,397
Rent $1,324/mo · Income $58,859
Compare with Gainesville →Moving to Little Elm →
34 mi away · pop. 54,820
Rent $1,953/mo · Income $119,219
Compare with Gainesville →Not sure Gainesville is the one?
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