Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 2,752, settled in 1835. 2.3 times the nonprofits per person than the typical Texas town.
Refugio gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $126K for a typical one, or 2.1 years of the county’s $60K median household income. It grades C overall, 338th of 640 graded towns in Texas. The low prices come with trade-offs. Residents are less healthy than 90% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates, and FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 84% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. On the plus side, it is more walkable than 88% of U.S. towns. 25% of residents live below the poverty line in Refugio, above both Texas’ towns (12%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). On civic life, just 8 of Texas’ 791 towns do better. Refugio has 4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Refugio County Courthouse and Amon B. King's Men Monument.
Where Refugio beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Texas), ordered by how far Refugio is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Its founding year, 1835, comes before those of 96% of the Texas towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 455 in 1880, a peak of 4,944 in 1960, 2,712 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1850 and 3 maps from 1954 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Refugio, 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 Refugio.
Refugio trades lower home prices for longer drives to work and has more 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Texas (mostly hurricanes).
Homes are within reach (about $126K for the typical one, B+ for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 37 miles. At 2.1 years of the county’s $60K median household income, the typical home (about $126K) costs less against local pay than in 91% of Texas towns; that ratio is one input to its B+ for cost of living.
The median rent in Refugio is $747 a month. Typical home values fell 8.1% in the year to September 2026. 59% of households own their home in Refugio.
| Refugio | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $747 a month | $1,208 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 59% | 69% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by Refugio ISD. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Refugio ElLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 300 | B− |
| Refugio H SLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 222 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TX on state tests and graduation
Against the 5,290 U.S. towns with household incomes like Refugio’s, it is less healthy than 72%, so its D isn’t only a matter of income.
19% of Refugio adults have diabetes. Refugio beats the Texas average on 1 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 18. 27% of Refugio adults 18 to 64 have no health insurance.
| Refugio | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 13% | 12% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 18% | 8.1% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 24% | 19% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 30% | 25% |
| What stands out | Refugio | TX |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 78.6% | 74.1% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 19.2% | 12.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 98% of Texas towns; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
Since 1978, 23 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Refugio.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Refugio 2 Nw weather station records that about 110 days a year reach 90°, more than in 96% of U.S. towns. January nights average 45°, milder than in 97% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 93.9°.
Refugio has warm winters and hot summers. Refugio’s January low is 45°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Refugio | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 45°F | 37°F | 22°F |
| July high | 94°F | 95°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Refugio has about as many jobs (1,130) as working residents, but only 318 people both live and work here. Jobs based here fell from 1,494 in 2013 to 1,130.
About one in 3 of Refugio’s working residents works in town. Jobs based in Refugio fell to 1,130 in 2023, 364 fewer than in 2013. The top destinations are Corpus Christi (11%), San Antonio (5%) and Victoria (4%).
| Refugio | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 29% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lions City Park | — | 10 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
None within 15 miles of Refugio; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Refugio residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Texas.
4 places in Refugio on the National Register of Historic Places.
7 notable people were born in Refugio.
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Refugio grades C overall, better than 25% of U.S. towns and #338 of 640 in Texas. It grades D for health, B− for safety and C+ for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
7 notable people were born here, including Nolan Ryan and Jack Starrett.
