Cleburne vs Fort Worth

Which is the better fit for you?

Cleburne, TX
63
Area Score
Top 36% nationally
Fort Worth, TX
62
Area Score
Top 39% nationally

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Cleburne receives the higher standardized Area Score. That reflects AreaProfile's weighting, not a judgment about which place is better to live in.

If you are moving

What the difference in prices, rent, homes and weather comes to, using the published figures for the two places. Add your income to see what it would take to keep pace.

Moving from Cleburne to Fort Worth

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Everyday prices
About the same
Regional price level 102.5 against 102.5 (US = 100). Both places sit in the same price region, so the index cannot tell them apart.
Income to keep the same purchasing power
Enter your household income to see it.
A new two-bedroom lease
+$594 a month
HUD benchmarks it at $2,144 in Fort Worth against $1,550 in Cleburne.
The median home
37% more
$303,000 in Fort Worth against $221,100 in Cleburne.
The weather you would swap
Winters 4°F milder
Normal January lows are 37°F in Fort Worth against 33°F in Cleburne; July highs are 97°F against 95°F (summers 2°F hotter).

These are differences between published figures, not a forecast of your budget. Income and sales taxes, commuting, schools, insurance and the job you would actually get are not in them, and a price index describes a metropolitan area, so two places in one metro read the same. HUD’s rent is a benchmark for a new lease, not a listing.

Signals

Cleburne
Fort Worth
Opportunity: Cleburne is the more favorable of the two.
Opportunity
65 · Top 33%
vs
61 · Top 40%
Growth: Fort Worth is the more favorable of the two.
Growth
77 · Top 7%
vs
78 · Top 6%
Climate: Cleburne is the more favorable of the two.
Climate
68 · Bottom 42%
vs
67 · Bottom 39%
Physical resilience: Cleburne is the more favorable of the two.
Physical resilience
73 · Top 33%
vs
56 · Bottom 48%
Housing affordability: Cleburne is the more favorable of the two.
Housing affordability
68 · Top 45%
vs
67 · Top 50%
Schools: Fort Worth is the more favorable of the two.
Schools
22 · Bottom 15%
vs
35 · Bottom 31%
Access: Fort Worth is the more favorable of the two.
Access
78 · Bottom 19%
vs
96 · Top 34%
Economic stability
49 · Bottom 34%
vs
49 · Bottom 34%

Measured values

MetricCleburneFort WorthSource period
Population34,344963,1942024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income$70,656$79,507 — more favorable2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income$32,059$38,724 — more favorable2024 ACS 5-Year
Population density1,035/sq mi2,737/sq mi2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value$221,100$303,0002024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent$1,322 — more favorable$1,5092024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, two bedroom$1,550 — more favorable$2,144FY2026
Cost of living index102.5102.52023
Homeownership rate60.4%57.0%2024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment rate4.1% — more favorable4.8%July 2026
Employment change (year over year)+0.3% — more favorable+0.2%July 2026
Bachelor's degree or higher20.3%32.0% — more favorable2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate — the two are too close to separate10.1% ±3%12.5% ±0.6%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units permitted (12 months)55110,86712 months ending July 2026
Permits per 1,000 residents16.0 — more favorable11.312 months ending July 2026
Permit change (year over year)−8.6%+4.0% — more favorable12 months ending July 2026
Average July high95°F97°F1991-2020 Normals
Average January low33°F37°F1991-2020 Normals
Distance to major airport43 mi14 mi — more favorableNASR current cycle
Average commute26.6 min — more favorable29.3 min2024 ACS 5-Year
Median age35.033.62024 ACS 5-Year
Public schools113412024-25 school year
Students per teacher13.5 — more favorable15.72024-25 school year
Math proficiency35.9%44.1% — more favorable2018-19 school year
Reading proficiency35.5%43.4% — more favorable2018-19 school year
Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility70.4%66.4%2024-25 school year

A bolded value is the more favorable of the two where the metric has a clear direction. Metrics like population and density have no inherent better or worse and are shown unweighted.

One row above shows both figures with a ± margin and neither in bold. Those come from the American Community Survey, which samples rather than counts, and the gap between the two is smaller than the uncertainty on the figures themselves — so the survey did not find a difference to report, and calling either one the winner would be reading a result out of noise.

The number of units permitted is not marked because the larger place always permits more; the per-resident rate is the fair comparison.

Physical risk tradeoff

Cleburne

Elevated or high exposure: wildfire.

Fort Worth

Elevated or high exposure: hail.

Your best match

Weight what matters to you. Your preferences stay in this browser and never change either Area Score.

Cleburne
—
Cleburne: Your Score
63
Area Score
Fort Worth
—
Fort Worth: Your Score
62
Area Score

Select your priorities to see which of the two fits them better.

Full profiles: Cleburne, TX · Fort Worth, TX · How this is calculated: methodology