What is the cost of living in Waco?

Waco has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 92.5, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 83.5, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $973/month.

What is the median salary in Waco?

The median salary in Waco is $60,744 annually (mean: $64,255). Top occupations include Fast Food and Counter Workers, General and Operations Managers, Stockers and Order Fillers.

The violent crime rate in the Waco area is 395 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 2058 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Waco?

The state of TX has 9,061 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 14.7:1. Charter schools make up 11.4% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Waco?

Infant center-based childcare in the Waco area averages $7,566 per year. Preschool averages $6,926/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Waco a good place to relocate?

Waco has a Life Score of 57.7/100 (C-), based on 7 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This is an above-average score, Waco outperforms most scored metros on the combined measure.

Where does Waco sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Waco ranks #233 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). That ordinal matches the /rankings/livability listing. See /methodology#corpus-placement for the exact sort basis.

Relocation profile · Federal data

Waco, TX

LiveAbility 48.9/100 places Waco #233 of 387 (middle third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

92.5
Cost index (US=100): $973
2BR rent / mo: $60,744
Median salary: 48.9
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Waco ranks #233 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (48.9/100), with its strongest marks in housing and climate.

#233
of 387 US metros · Near median: 31,290,831
metro-area population: 395
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 9,061
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: low hazard (0/100). Weigh every dimension against your own priorities, use the City Finder to re-rank by what matters to you.

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite (BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA inputs), Waco ranks #233 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 92.5 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $973/mo, median salary $60,744; LiveAbility Score 48.9/100, strongest in housing and climate.

Signature: LiveAbility 48.9/100 places Waco #233 of 387 (middle third).

Purchasing power sits mid-band: BEA RPP 92.5 between corpus terciles 91.5 and 97.0. Median 2BR rent $973/mo.

LiveAbility 48.9/100 keeps Waco in the middle third (#233 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Waco area is 117,690.

Waco vs all US metros by LiveAbility Score

Where this metro's LiveAbility Score falls among every scored US metro (composite placement, not a desirability verdict)

49 Top 60% higher than 40% of 387 US metros

Metros banded by LiveAbility Score (0–100)

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainRelocate LiveAbility Score · June 2026

Waco housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Waco MSA; housing RPP 83.5 (100 = national average); 2BR $973/mo.

Studio

$671

/month

1 Bedroom

$742

/month

2 Bedroom

$973

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,283

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,288

/month

Waco wages and employment

Waco posts 117,690 total employment with median salary $60,744.

Median Salary

$60,744

Mean Salary

$64,255

Total Employment

117,690

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$27,750
General and Operations Managers	$92,990
Stockers and Order Fillers	$37,500
Customer Service Representatives	$38,810
Retail Salespersons	$29,810

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Waco area from NCES.

Schools

9,061

Enrollment

5,491,723

Student:Teacher

14.7:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Waco area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$7,566

per year

Toddler (Center)

$7,109

per year

Preschool (Center)

$6,926

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Waco's composite Life Score is 57.7/100 (C-), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

59/100

Above average

Wages

34/100

Weak

Rent

95/100

Elite

Crime

30/100

Weak

Schools

43/100

Below average

Childcare

72/100

Strong

Environment

90/100

Elite

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Waco ranks #233 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 48.9/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Housing (95/100)

Housing

95
Climate

94
Cost of living

59
Schools

57
Job market

34
Safety

30
Air quality

11
Low hazard

0

What this shows Waco's strongest dimensions are housing and climate; its weakest among scored dims is low hazard at 0/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Waco to

Tyler Urban Honolulu Utica-Rome Valdosta Vallejo Victoria

Metros near Waco on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Waco on BEA RPP, LiveAbility, or BLS median salary, a different lens than the size-ranked list.

Similar cost of living (BEA RPP)

Similar LiveAbility score

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Waco cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Waco wages and LiveAbility inputs follow BLS OEWS plus the federal sources listed in methodology. This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Scores are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation. How this data is sourced.

Verify with BEA → · Verify with BLS → · Verify with HUD → · Verify with NOAA → · Verify with FEMA → · Verify with Census →

Thinking about Waco?

Waco runs a $60,744 median salary at a 92.5 cost index, ranking #233 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Waco's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Waco head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Waco
Abilene is the closest related metro in this corpus -- see how it stacks up. Abilene profile
A cheaper cost index and a higher LiveAbility score don't always point the same direction -- here's how to weigh the trade-off. Cost vs quality guide

Cost, salary and score figures are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation.