Forest Bridge in, 2005
The Woodlands’s story
52 years in pictures
Census counts: 8,443 in 1980, 114,436 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2005 and 2 maps from 1961 on.
- 1974The Woodlands is settled
The WoodlandsTX
A city of 121,002, settled in 1974. 12.4% of it is conserved land.
4 bordering townsMap →
Photo: Philcomanforterie · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
121,002
Census survey, 2020–24
Median home value
$512K
Census ACS
Household income
$141K
median
Median age
40.6
years
Jobs based here
64,597
Balanced
TownGrade
A−
#54 of 640 in TX
What is it like to live in The Woodlands?
The Woodlands is a city of 121,002, and it grades A− overall, 54th among Texas's 640 graded towns. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 94% of the country and the median household earns $141K. The trade-off: the typical home is worth about $512K, 6.2 years of the Houston metro’s $82K median household income. 66% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in The Woodlands, above both Texas’ towns (23%) and U.S. towns (29%). On the outdoors, just 9 of Texas’ 1,000 towns do better. The Woodlands is home to Lone Star College System.
What makes The Woodlands stand out
Where The Woodlands beats most towns.
A growing town
The Woodlands has grown 22% from 2010 to 2020
93,847 counted in 2010 and 114,436 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
How The Woodlands grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Texas), ordered by how far The Woodlands is from typical.
HealthCHI St. Lukes Lakeside Hospital 3.6 miles awayAOpen →Cost of livingDOpen →Jobs & incomeAOpen →SchoolsA−Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 8.5 of 20; 4% of households have no car; 2% of workers walk, bike or ride transitB+Open →Hazard riskinland flooding tops the listB−Open →
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 →
Getting set up
Moving to The Woodlands: who provides what
The Woodlands is unincorporated, so Harris County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerEntergy Texas13.9¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterMontgomery County MUD 47No health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet8 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesHarris CountyHarris County provides services here
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.govWho runs elections hereMontgomery County Early Voting ClerkMontgomery County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Sep 2024
ZIP codes77382, 77381, 77380, 7738977382 33% · 77381 28% · 77380 15% · 77389 9%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 The Woodlands.
The Woodlands has milder winter nights than nearly all U.S. towns and has less food insecurity than most of Texas, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Texas.
OutdoorsA+
Trail density in The Woodlands is higher than in the typical Texas or U.S. town
Its A+ for the outdoors ranks #9 of 642 in Texas.
George Mitchell Nature Preserve, at 2,129 acres with 24.5 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. Walkers can cover 146 miles of trail in 90 parks and preserves.
#6for trails in TX
12.4%
conserved · 3,463 of 27,966 acres
146 mi
of trails · 3.3 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. George Mitchell Nature Preserve | 24.5 mi | 2,129 |
| 2. Bear Branch Park | 1.1 mi | 19 |
| 3. Cattail Park | 0.7 mi | 13 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
SchoolsA−
The Woodlands’ public schools outperform 78% of Texas districts
The public schools here belong to Conroe ISD. Three of its 41 schools are below, each with the reason it’s listed. The 6 public schools in The Woodlands teach 5,815 students between them.
78%of TX districts it outscoresA−School Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| McCullough J HLargest public middle schoolGrades 7–8 | Grades 7–8 | 2,195 | A+ |
| The Woodlands H SLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 4,444 | A+ |
| Creekside Forest ElTop results in townGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 676 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within TX on state tests and graduation
HealthA
The Woodlands earns an A for health
Its widest gap with Texas is food insecurity: 8.7% of its 84,570 adults worry about having enough food, against 19.3% statewide.
A tenth of The Woodlands adults report frequent physical distress. The town beats the Texas average on 20 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 1. Two figures for adults here: 18% get no exercise outside work, 14% report frequent mental distress.
94%healthier than U.S. townsAHealth Grade
| The Woodlands | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 15% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 30% | 25% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 18% | 17% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 24% | 19% |
31 measures vs. Texas
20 better10 too close to call1 worse
| What stands out | The Woodlands | TX |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.7% | 19.3% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 8.8% | 19.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 8.1% | 6.1% |
CHI St. Lukes Lakeside Hospital
3.6 mi away · emergency room
1 of 3
care shortages: mental health
96th
percentile among TX towns
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Climate
The climate in The Woodlands brings mild winters and hot summers
January nights average 42.1°, milder than in 95% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 94.2°.
For The Woodlands, the midsummer high is 94°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
95°summer high
| The Woodlands | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 42°F | 37°F | 22°F |
| July high | 94°F | 95°F | 85°F |
Typical low → high °F
Winter44–64°
Spring59–79°
Summer73–94°
Fall59–81°
Dec 3
typical first frost
Feb 19
typical last frost
+1.4°
vs. the 20th-century average
95°
typical summer high
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Work & commuteJobs & income grade A
About one in three of The Woodlands’ working residents commute to Houston
Jobs based here grew from 43,989 in 2013 to 64,597.
The top destinations are Houston (32%), Conroe (8%) and Austin (2%). Only 15% of working residents stay in The Woodlands for work; the rest commute out. This Texas town had 64,597 jobs in 2023, up 20,608 from 2013. For workers here, the share who do their job from home is 22%.
15%work in town
| The Woodlands | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $141,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 22% | 9.6% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 5.6% | 12% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 8.3% | 8% |
Where working residents work
In The Woodlands15%
Houston32%
Conroe8%
Austin2%
Shenandoah2%
18 mi
median commute distance
64,597
jobs based in The Woodlands
Balanced
jobs vs. working residents
B+
Walkability grade: more walkable than 69% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
HousingCost of living grade D
A home in The Woodlands sells for about $680K at the median
At 6.2 years of the Houston metro’s $82K median household income, the typical home costs more against local pay than in 91% of Texas towns; that ratio is one input to its D for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $8,062, against $4,232 across Texas, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The Woodlands’ rent at the middle of the market stands at $1,822 a month. A home in The Woodlands typically sold within 21 days of listing. Sellers in The Woodlands got 98% of the asking price, typically.
$680Kmedian sale price
| The Woodlands | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,822 a month | $1,206 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 47% | 51% | 48% |
Market temperature
21
days on market
98%
sale-to-list price
191
homes sold in May
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B−
The biggest natural risk in The Woodlands is inland flooding, at a moderate overall level
Since 1978, 361 flood insurance claims have been paid out in The Woodlands. Storm and flood damage is expected to run higher than in half of U.S. communities. Expected losses in The Woodlands break down as 48% from inland flooding and 24% from tornadoes. Households here have drawn federal disaster aid in 9 declared disasters, most recently in 2024.
50risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingTornadoesHurricanes
361
paid flood claims since 1978
9
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Nearby attractions
All 56 attractions →Daikin Park and 45 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around The Woodlands. Close and well known come first.
Big draw30 mi Stadium & arenaDaikin Park
Big draw34 mi Stadium & arenaReliant Stadium
30 mi Stadium & arenaToyota Center
in town TheatreCynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
31 mi MuseumRothko Chapel
31 mi Stadium & arenaShell Energy StadiumSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Daikin Park: Delaywaves, CC BY 3.0 · Reliant Stadium: User eschipul on Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Toyota Center: Ed Uthman from Houston, TX, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion: WhisperToMe, CC0 · Rothko Chapel: Unknown, Public domain · Shell Energy Stadium: HDFC PR, CC BY-SA 4.0
Keep exploring
Everything we know about The Woodlands
18pages on The Woodlands
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
3 within 15 miles of the center of The Woodlands
Lone Star College SystemCommunity college · Public · The WoodlandsIn town$3,330 in-state tuitionGrace School of TheologyUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · The WoodlandsIn town$7,720 tuitionCommonwealth Institute of Funeral ServiceCommunity college · Private nonprofit · Houston13.5 mi$15,313 tuition
About 5 of every 100 The Woodlands residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Texas.
Get outside
146 miles of trails in The Woodlands
12.4% of the town is conserved land, across 90 parks and preserves.
2
Bear Branch Park1.1 mi of trails · 19 acres
Trails © OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Famous people from The Woodlands
8 notable people were born in The Woodlands.
M
Mallory BechtelAmerican actress and singer · born 1999R
Rusty PierceAmerican soccer player · born 1979S
Sean GlennonAmerican football player · born 1985About The Woodlands
CDP and SPD in Texas, United States
The Woodlands is a special-purpose district and census-designated place in the U.S. state of Texas. The Woodlands is primarily located in Montgomery County, with portions extending into Harris County, within the Greater Houston metropolitan area. The population was 114,436 at the 2020 census. The Woodlands area is governed by The Woodlands Township, an organization that provides municipal services and is administered by an elected board of directors. The United States Census Bureau defines an urban area separate from the Houston urban area with The Woodlands as a principal city: The Woodlands–Conroe urban area had a population of 402,454 in 2020, making it the 103rd-largest in the United St…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1974
- Area
- 44 sq mi
- Elevation
- 164 ft
- Area code
- 281 713 832 936
The Woodlands’s neighbors
4 towns share a border with The Woodlands.
At #54 in TX, it grades higher overall than all 4 graded towns on its borders; Oak Ridge North (B+) comes closest.
ShenandoahConroeHoustonOak Ridge NorthThe Woodlands
How the neighbors grade
| Town | TX rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Woodlands | #54 | A− | D | — | A− | A |
| Shenandoah | #334 | C | D | D− | A− | A |
| Conroe | #261 | C+ | D | C+ | A− | B− |
| Houston | #606 | D− | C− | D− | C− | C+ |
| Oak Ridge North | #82 | B+ | C | C+ | A− | A− |
The Woodlands reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare The Woodlands with a neighbor →
Questions about The Woodlands
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is The Woodlands, TX a good place to live?
By most measures, yes. The Woodlands grades A− overall, better than 76% of U.S. towns and #54 of 640 in Texas. It grades A for health and A− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Is The Woodlands, TX expensive?
Yes. The typical home is worth about $512,000, 73% 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 D.
What is The Woodlands, TX known for?
8 notable people were born here, including Kirby Bliss Blanton and Danny Amendola.