Normal vs Azle

Which is the better fit for you?

Normal, IL
64
Area Score
Top 32% nationally
Azle, TX
64
Area Score
Top 32% nationally

Want a third or fourth place beside these? Open them in the shortlist and add more.

Normal and Azle receive effectively the same standardized Area Score. Which fits you better depends on which dimensions you weight — the differences below are where they actually diverge.

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 Normal to Azle

It stays in this browser and is never sent anywhere.

Everyday prices
11% higher
Regional price level 102.5 against 92.1 (US = 100)
Income to keep the same purchasing power
Enter your household income to see it.
A new two-bedroom lease
+$421 a month
HUD benchmarks it at $1,723 in Azle against $1,302 in Normal.
The median home
34% more
$287,100 in Azle against $213,600 in Normal.
The weather you would swap
Winters 21°F milder
Normal January lows are 37°F in Azle against 16°F in Normal; July highs are 97°F against 86°F (summers 11°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.

28 occupations have a published median wage in both places. Start typing, or choose from the list.

Median wages are the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ metro figures for that occupation, not a job offer, and the price level is the regional index; neither includes taxes, benefits or how senior you are.

Signals

Normal
Azle
Opportunity: Azle is the more favorable of the two.
Opportunity
63 · Top 36%
vs
67 · Top 29%
Growth: Azle is the more favorable of the two.
Growth
45 · Bottom 39%
vs
53 · Top 43%
Climate: Azle is the more favorable of the two.
Climate
60 · Bottom 14%
vs
67 · Bottom 38%
Physical resilience: Normal is the more favorable of the two.
Physical resilience
80 · Top 23%
vs
67 · Top 40%
Housing affordability: Azle is the more favorable of the two.
Housing affordability
58 · Bottom 33%
vs
61 · Bottom 37%
Schools: Normal is the more favorable of the two.
Schools
61 · Top 34%
vs
59 · Top 38%
Access
97 · Top 31%
vs
97 · Top 32%
Economic stability: Normal is the more favorable of the two.
Economic stability
58 · Top 49%
vs
49 · Bottom 34%

Measured values

MetricNormalAzleSource period
Population53,56914,1262024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income — the two are too close to separate$64,785 ±$7,661$68,514 ±$11,0302024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income — the two are too close to separate$36,168 ±$3,195$36,001 ±$6,6542024 ACS 5-Year
Population density2,867/sq mi1,605/sq mi2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value$213,600$287,1002024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent$965 — more favorable$1,3332024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, two bedroom$1,302 — more favorable$1,723FY2026
Cost of living index92.1 — more favorable102.52023
Homeownership rate54.8%68.4%2024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment rate3.6% — more favorable3.9%July 2026
Employment change (year over year)+0.3%+0.4% — more favorableJuly 2026
Bachelor's degree or higher52.9% — more favorable22.0%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate — the two are too close to separate9.7% ±4%12.9% ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units permitted (12 months)1224712 months ending July 2026
Permits per 1,000 residents2.33.3 — more favorable12 months ending July 2026
Permit change (year over year)−14.1%−84.7%12 months ending July 2026
Average July high86°F97°F1991-2020 Normals
Average January low16°F37°F1991-2020 Normals
Annual precipitation39.4"32.6"1991-2020 Normals
Distance to major airport5 mi — more favorable14 miNASR current cycle
Average commute18.0 min — more favorable32.9 min2024 ACS 5-Year
Median age25.035.62024 ACS 5-Year
Students per teacher14.6 — more favorable15.02024-25 school year
Math proficiency40.2%50.7%2018-19 school year
Reading proficiency42.4%49.7%2018-19 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.

3 rows above show 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. The year-over-year change is not marked either: a percentage on fewer than 300 units swings on a handful of permits.

Illinois and Texas do not give the same test. Each state writes its own assessment and sets its own passing score, so the two proficiency rows above are not directly comparable — the difference between them partly measures which standard is harder. Students per teacher and the school count are unaffected, and each profile ranks its own proficiency within its own state.

Physical risk tradeoff

Normal

Elevated or high exposure: tornado.

Azle

No hazard reaches elevated exposure.

Your best match

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

Normal
—
Normal: Your Score
64
Area Score
Azle
—
Azle: Your Score
64
Area Score

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

Full profiles: Normal, IL · Azle, TX · How this is calculated: methodology