Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
College Station is a city of 127,472, and it grades B overall, ranked 136th of 640 in Texas. Its schools outperform 76% of the state's and it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 81% of U.S. towns. The trade-off: the typical home is worth about $344K, 5.7 years of the College Station metro’s $60K median household income. 29% of residents live below the poverty line in College Station, against 12% in Texas’ towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. On hazard risk, just 77 of Texas’ 1,000 towns do better. College Station is home to Texas A&M University-College Station.
Where College Station beats most towns.
93,857 counted in 2010 and 120,511 in 2020; an estimated 127,472 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 5.8% since 2020, after 28.4% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Texas), ordered by how far College Station is from typical.
Its grades run from A for hazard risk (better than 89% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 2%), so the B overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 2,184 in 1940, 120,511 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1938 and 4 maps from 1956 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in College Station, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in College Station.
College Station carries less natural-hazard risk than nearly all of Texas (mostly inland flooding), is shaped by its college students and fares better on crime within Texas than nationally.
Its public schools are run by College Station ISD. Three of its 29 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wellborn MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 7–8 | Grades 7–8 | 843 | A |
| College Station H SLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,226 | A+ |
| Forest RidgeTop results in townGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 489 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TX on state tests and graduation
38 miles of trail in 67 parks and preserves. College Station’s trail density is 0.7 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is Lick Creek Park, 507 acres with 5.1 miles of trail.
| College Station | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.7 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6.1% | 1.9% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lick Creek Park | 5.1 mi | 507 |
| 2. Wolf Pen Creek Park | 1.7 mi | 83 |
| 3. Research Park | 1.3 mi | 43 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk lower than 92% of Texas towns, with expected losses of about $214 per resident a year; that rating is what its A for hazard risk is built on.
The FEMA risk score in College Station is 13 of 100. Since 1981, 124 flood insurance claims have been paid out in College Station.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Against the 6,103 U.S. towns with household incomes like College Station’s, it is healthier than 97%, so its B+ isn’t only a matter of income. Its widest gap with Texas is diabetes: 6.3% of its 99,951 adults have diabetes, against 12.7% statewide.
6.3% of adults have diabetes in College Station. Only 3 of the 641 Texas towns we compare have a lower share of adults who have high blood pressure than College Station. 27% of adults have obesity in College Station.
| College Station | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 6.3% | 13% | 12% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 18% | 17% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 35% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 69% | 74% | 79% |
| What stands out | College Station | TX |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with diabetes | 6.3% | 12.7% |
| Fewer adults who have had a stroke | 1.7% | 3.2% |
| More adults in frequent mental distress | 22.6% | 16.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The Washington Sp weather station, 20 miles away, records that about 118 days a year reach 90°, more than in 98% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 95°, hotter than in 96% of U.S. towns; January nights average 39.4°.
College Station has mild winters and hot summers. Snow is almost unheard of.
| College Station | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 39°F | 37°F | 22°F |
| July high | 95°F | 95°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 42,117 working residents takes 17.4 minutes, against 26.7 across Texas.
About one in 3 of College Station’s working residents works in town. Since 2013, College Station has added 2,604 jobs, to 50,721 in 2023. The top destinations are Bryan (17%), Houston (8%) and Austin (3%).
| College Station | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 35% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $51,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
64.7% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 51.7% across Texas.
35% of College Station households own their home. The typical College Station home is worth about $344,000, about the same as a year ago, 16% above the Texas typical home. 65% of College Station renter households spend 30% or more of their income on rent.
| College Station | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 35% | 69% | 73% |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 65% | 50% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
At 17 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 67% of Texas’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 1,884 to 1,276 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around College Station. Close and well known come first.
Big drawin town Stadium & arenaKyle Field
in town MuseumGeorge Bush Presidential Library
20 mi State parkWashington-on-the-Brazosin town GardenD. A. "Andy" Anderson Arboretum
20 mi MuseumStar of the Republic Museum
30 mi MuseumBrenham Heritage MuseumKyle Field: Janreagan at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · George Bush Presidential Library: Jujutacular, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Washington-on-the-Brazos: WhisperToMe, Public domain · Star of the Republic Museum: WhisperToMe, Public domain · Brenham Heritage Museum: Renelibrary, CC BY-SA 3.0
1 within 15 miles of the center of College Station
College town 39 of every 100 College Station residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Texas.
8 notable people were born in College Station.
City in Texas, United States
College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, United States, situated in East-Central Texas in the Brazos Valley, towards the eastern edge of the region known as the Texas Triangle. It is 83 miles (130 kilometers) northwest of Houston and 87 miles (140 km) east-northeast of Austin. As of the 2020 census, College Station had a population of 120,511. College Station and Bryan make up the Bryan-College Station metropolitan area, the 15th-largest metropolitan area in Texas, with an estimated population 287,476 as of 2026. College Station is home to the main campus of Texas A&M University, the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The city owes its name and existence to t…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with College Station.
| Town | TX rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| College Station | #136 | B | D− | B− | A− | B+ |
| Bryan | #563 | D | D | C | C− | C+ |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. College Station grades B overall, better than 58% of U.S. towns and #136 of 640 in Texas. It grades B+ for health, B− for safety and A− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
8 notable people were born here, including Tiffany Thornton and Alex Caruso.
