Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Metro Area Profile
7,442,788 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metropolitan area.
Physical-risk exposure is above the national median, driven mainly by inland flooding, hurricane and drought.
A major airport is 13 miles away, giving the area unusually direct access to the national air network.
Its Area Score of 66 places Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands in the top 50% of published metro profiles.
At a glance
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment of 5.2% is lower than 12% of the 99 measured US metros.
Employment fell 0.5% over the past year, to 3,716,242 employed residents.
36% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 82% of measured US metros.
Household income is higher than at least 85% of measured US metros.
| Metric | Value | Compared with peers | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income ±$590 | $82,168 | Top 15% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$283 | $42,619 | Top 19% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Poverty rate | 13.9% | Top 47% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute | 32.4 min | Top 4% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 36.0% | Top 18% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Employment | 3,716,242 | Top 4% | June 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years) | 4.0% | Top 12% | June 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year) | -0.5% | Top 37% | June 2026 |
| Labor force | 3,920,607 | Top 4% | June 2026 |
| Labor force participation | 66.4% | Top 13% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Mean annual wage | $67,610 | Top 35% | 2025 OEWS |
| Median annual wage | $49,410 | Bottom 49% | 2025 OEWS |
| Metro employment | 3,289,720 | Top 4% | 2025 OEWS |
| Unemployment change (year over year) | 0.7% | Top 16% | June 2026 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.2% | Top 12% | June 2026 |
| Occupation | People employed | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 105,810 | $27,570 |
| General and Operations Managers | 97,320 | $119,600 |
| Retail Salespersons | 78,960 | $31,340 |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | 72,970 | $36,890 |
| Registered Nurses | 65,910 | $99,830 |
| Customer Service Representatives | 65,510 | $40,380 |
Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated →Median rent of $1,430 takes 21% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.
A median home costs 3.6 times median household income here, above the historic benchmark of about three times income.
| Metric | Value | Compared with peers | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home price to income | 3.63 | Top 35% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate | 61.2% | Bottom 10% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±575 | 2,906,364 | Top 1% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median gross rent ±$6 | $1,430 | Top 11% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$1,513 | $298,000 | Top 26% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income | 20.9% | Top 21% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate | 8.4% | Bottom 28% | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated →An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.
Population has grown 9% since 2020, reaching 7,796,182 in 2024.
At 8.3 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metros.
Weather & climate
7 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 93°F and January a low of 46°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 55.6 inches.
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Annual precipitation | 55.6" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low | 46°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high | 93°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months | 7 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Seasonal temperature swing | 30°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, hurricane and drought.
Low or minimal exposure: tornado, lightning, heat wave, cold wave, ice storm, strong wind, hail, wildfire, earthquake, winter weather, coastal flooding.
Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.
Taxes
AreaProfile does not yet publish tax comparisons. No tax dataset has met the source admission test for coverage, methodology transparency and update cadence, and the product rule is to omit a dimension rather than estimate it. The Area Score is calculated without a tax component and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.
Nothing on AreaProfile is individualized tax advice.
Access
3 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 13 miles away.
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| George Bush Intcntl/Houston | IAH | 13 mi | 12,001 ft |
| Ellington | EFD | 17 mi | 9,001 ft |
| Sugar Land Rgnl | SGR | 23 mi | 8,000 ft |
Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.
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Data & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle | 28-day NASR cycle |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) | Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current) |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals | Every ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period) |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | June 2026 | Monthly |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics | 2025 OEWS | Annual (spring release) |
| Demographics | U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program | July 1, 2024 estimate | Annual (vintage released each spring) |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 | Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month |
| Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year | Annual (5-year estimates released each December) |
Profile recalculated August 29, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology or browse every source.