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Texas›Travis County

Shady HollowTX

A town of 5,709.

Is Shady Hollow a good place to live?

For most people who can afford it, yes. Shady Hollow grades B overall, 142nd of 640 graded towns in Texas. The median household earns $170K. It is healthier than 96% of U.S. towns. The trade-off is money: the typical home is worth about $756K, 7.5 years of the Austin metro’s $100K median household income. 66% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Shady Hollow, against 23% in Texas’ towns and 29% across U.S. towns. Only 65 of Texas’ 1,000 towns score higher on the outdoors. The biggest park or preserve is Shady Hollow West Nature Preserve, at 24 acres.

Get outside

1 miles of trails in Shady Hollow

5.2% of the town is conserved land, across 5 parks and preserves.

Map of trails and conserved land in Shady HollowConservedTrails
1
Shady Hollow West Nature Preserve0.3 mi of trails · 24 acres
2
David C. Ellis Community Center0.3 mi of trails · 19 acres
3
Gatling Gun Park0.3 mi of trails · 8 acres
Trails © OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US

How Shady Hollow grades

Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Texas), ordered by how far Shady Hollow is from typical.

How grading works
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.

How TownRatings grades towns →

Nearby attractions

Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium and 45 more within 40 miles

Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Shady Hollow. Close and well known come first.

All 62 attractions →
Sources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits

Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium: Brint03, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Jacob's Well (Texas): Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0 · Moody Center: Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0 · Lady Bird Lake: Arvindn on en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lake Austin: Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0 · Texas State Cemetery: WhisperToMe, Public domain

Getting set up

Moving to Shady Hollow: who provides what

Shady Hollow is unincorporated, so Travis County and regional agencies provide most services.

PowerPedernales Electric Coop12.8¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterShady Hollow MUDNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet5 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesTravis CountyTravis County provides services here
SchoolsAustin Independent School DistrictWhich school depends on your addressNCES
Register to voteIn personTexas has no online registration; you can register in person until 30 days before Election Day or by mail (postmarked 30 days before).vote.gov
Who runs elections hereTravis County Early Voting ClerkTravis County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Mar 2024
ZIP codes78739, 7874878739 60% · 78748 40%Census 2020

EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.

The data

Ordered by what stands out in Shady Hollow.

Shady Hollow has less food insecurity than most of Texas and has more 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Texas.

HealthA+

Compared with most of Texas and the rest of the country, fewer of Shady Hollow’s adults sleep under 7 hours

Its widest gap with Texas is food insecurity: 6.4% of its 3,698 adults worry about having enough food, against 19.3% statewide. Against the 1,675 U.S. towns with household incomes like Shady Hollow’s, it is healthier than 67%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.

Among adults in Shady Hollow, 13% say their health is fair or poor. The town beats the Texas average on 23 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 13% of adults in Shady Hollow report frequent mental distress; 16% get no exercise outside work.

96%healthier than U.S. townsA+Health Grade
Shady HollowTexas townsU.S. towns
Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES)28%39%36%
Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES)13%18%17%
Get no exercise (CDC PLACES)16%30%25%
Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES)7.4%14%14%
31 measures vs. Texas
23 better5 too close to call3 worse
What stands outShady HollowTX
Fewer adults facing food insecurity6.4%19.3%
Fewer adults facing housing insecurity6.4%16.4%
More adults who have had cancer9.7%6.1%
Ascension Seton Southwest
4.7 mi away · emergency room
1 of 3
care shortages: mental health
97th
percentile among TX towns

CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA

SchoolsB−

Shady Hollow’s schools rank ahead of 52% of Texas districts

Austin ISD runs its public schools. Its one school is below. Shady Hollow’s only public school teaches 785 students.

52%of TX districts it outscoresB−School Grade
SchoolLevelStudentsLetter
Bailey MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8Grades 6–8785B−

NCES · EDFacts · graded within TX on state tests and graduation

OutdoorsA−

Conservation land takes up 5.2% of Shady Hollow

Walkers can cover 1.4 miles of trail in 5 parks and preserves. Shady Hollow’s concentration of trails comes in at 0.6 miles per square mile.

#128for trails in TX
Shady HollowTexas townsU.S. towns
Miles of trail per square mile0.6 miles per square mile0.30.4
Conserved land5.2%1.9%4.3%
5.2%
conserved · 71 of 1,379 acres
1.4 mi
of trails · 0.6 per sq mi
Biggest places to walkTrailsAcres
1. Shady Hollow West Nature Preserve0.3 mi24
2. David C. Ellis Community Center0.3 mi19
3. Gatling Gun Park0.3 mi8

Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US

Work & commuteJobs & income grade A+

About two in three of Shady Hollow’s working residents commute to Austin

Shady Hollow has 357 jobs for its 2,159 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. 38.4% of workers work from home, against 14.4% across Texas.

The top destinations are Austin (63%), San Antonio (4%) and Houston (3%). Most people who work leave Shady Hollow to do it: just 1% work in town. For residents in the town, the share who live below the poverty line is 5.5%. Jobs based in Shady Hollow grew to 357 in 2023, 108 more than in 2013.

1%work in town
Shady HollowTexas townsU.S. towns
Median household income$170,000$69,000$80,000
Below the poverty line5.5%12%9.6%
Average trip to work29 minutes25 minutes25 minutes
Working residents who work in town0.7%8.3%8%

Where working residents work

In Shady Hollow1%
Austin63%
San Antonio4%
Houston3%
Dallas2%
12 mi
median commute distance
357
jobs based in Shady Hollow
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
C
Walkability grade: more walkable than 27% of U.S. towns

Census LEHD 2023 · ACS

Climate

Shady Hollow has mild winters and hot summers

The Dripping Springs 6 E weather station, 8 miles away, records that about 106 days a year reach 90°, more than in 96% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 95.6°, hotter than in 97% of U.S. towns; January nights average 38.7°.

Shady Hollow’s peak summer temperature stands at 96°F. Snow is a rarity.

97°summer high
Shady HollowTexas townsU.S. towns
July high96°F95°F85°F
January low39°F37°F22°F

Typical low → high °F

Winter41–64°
Spring57–80°
Summer72–95°
Fall58–81°
Nov 13
typical first frost
Mar 17
typical last frost
+1.2°
vs. the 20th-century average
97°
typical summer high

NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020

Natural hazardsHazard risk grade C−

Natural hazards: high risk in Shady Hollow, mostly inland flooding

Of the losses FEMA expects in Shady Hollow, 65% come from inland flooding and 20% from tornadoes. On expected storm and flood damage, Shady Hollow sits above 63% of U.S. communities.

63risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
63High riskLowerHigher
Inland floodingTornadoesHail

FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA

HousingCost of living grade C−

Homes in Shady Hollow sell for about $705K

At 7.5 years of the Austin metro’s $100K median household income, the typical home costs more against local pay than in 95% of Texas towns; that ratio is one input to its C− for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $7,140, against $4,232 across Texas, another input to its cost-of-living grade.

In Shady Hollow, 95% of households are owner-occupiers. Homes sold in Shady Hollow spent a median 29 days on the market.

$705Kmedian sale price
Market temperature
Seller’s marketA seller's marketBuyer’sSeller’s
29
days on market
99.8%
sale-to-list price
7
homes sold in May

Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center

Keep exploring

Everything we know about Shady Hollow

16pages on Shady Hollow
After high school

Colleges nearby

8 within 15 miles of the center of Shady Hollow

A commuter town

99% of working residents leave Shady Hollow for work

Where Shady Hollow’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.

63% → Austin Austin 63% 4% → San Antonio San Antonio 4% 3% → Houston Houston 3% 2% → Dallas Dallas 2% 2% → Round Rock Round Rock 2% 1% → San Marcos San Marcos 1% Shady Hollow · 1% stay
357jobs based in Shady Hollow
1%of working residents work in town
12 mimedian commute distance

Census LEHD 2023

About Shady Hollow

CDP in Texas, United States

Official town website ↗

Shady Hollow is a census-designated place (CDP) in southwestern Travis County, Texas, United States, and is partially in the City of Austin. It is located ten miles (16 km) southwest of Downtown Austin, near the Travis/Hays county line. The population was 4,822 at the 2020 census.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)

Area
2.1 sq mi
Elevation
751 ft

Questions about Shady Hollow

Short answers, built from the data on this page.

Is Shady Hollow, TX a good place to live?

For most people who can afford it, yes. Shady Hollow grades B overall, better than 57% of U.S. towns and #142 of 640 in Texas. It grades A+ for health and B− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.

Is Shady Hollow, TX expensive?

Yes. The typical home is worth about $756,000, 155% above the Texas typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.