Best PlacesHico, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Hico, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Hico ranks 16,829th of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on walkability by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Hico
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
Hico's strengths and weaknesses
Where Hico ranks high
- WalkabilityBetter than 96% of towns
- Nice weatherabout 159 pleasant days a year, better than 95% of towns
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 92% of towns
- Internet speedBetter than 89% of towns
- Short commute21.0 minutes each way, better than 84% of towns
Where Hico ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 7% of towns
- Air qualityBetter than only 9% of towns
- Crime safetyBetter than only 21% of towns
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 22% of towns
- Tree shadeBetter than only 24% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in Hico
A household needs to earn about $63,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Hico home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $72,449, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Hico's effective rate of 0.83%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Hico
Hico's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Hico.
Who works in Hico, and how
Work in Hico centers on education and construction. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in Hico
Hico has more restaurants and bars per resident than 94% of towns and more parkland per resident than 99% of towns. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of Hico and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Hico, month by month
Hico sees roughly 159 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 96 degrees. January highs sit near 60, with lows near 36. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 60° | 46° | 36° |
| April | 78° | 65° | 54° |
| July | 96° | 84° | 73° |
| October | 81° | 67° | 56° |
Flying in and out of Hico
The nearest airport, Waco Regional, is about 54 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Dallas-Fort Worth International, about 86 miles away.
The best schools in and around Hico
Schools across Hico average a B−, better than 60% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Dublin ElA · 68% proficient
- Hook ElB+ · 54% proficient
- Ann Whitney ElB− · 43% proficient
Top middle schools
- Dublin IntB+ · 51% proficient
- Hamilton J HB+ · 50% proficient
- Gilbert IntC+ · 39% proficient
Top high schools
- Hamilton H SA− · 62% proficient
- Stephenville H SB+ · 57% proficient
- Dublin H SB+ · 55% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Hico school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Hico measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Hico against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in Hico
Is Hico a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Hico ranks 16,829th of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on walkability, the weather, and low taxes, and lowest on summer heat and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Hico expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $239,266. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $72,449 median income, cost of living beats 51% of towns.
Is Hico safe?
Hico is safer than 21% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $508 per resident a year.
Compare Hico with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Hico. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Hico represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Hico detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Hico: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Hico: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Hico: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Hico: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Hico detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.