Best PlacesSan Saba County, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in San Saba County, 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.
San Saba County ranks 2,055th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in San Saba County
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.
San Saba County's strengths and weaknesses
Where San Saba County ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 180 pleasant days a year, better than 98% of counties
- WalkabilityBetter than 91% of counties
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 90% of counties
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 90% of counties
- State fiscal healthBetter than 76% of counties
Where San Saba County ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 4% of counties
- Crime safetyBetter than only 10% of counties
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 12% of counties
- Low vacancyBetter than only 12% of counties
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 17% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in San Saba County
A household needs to earn about $44,000 a year to comfortably buy the median San Saba County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $60,707, 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 San Saba County's effective rate of 0.65%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in San Saba County
San Saba County's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for San Saba County.
Who works in San Saba County, and how
Work in San Saba County centers on retail trade and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 89%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in San Saba County
San Saba County has more restaurants and bars per resident than 78% of counties and more parkland per resident than 96% of counties. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of San Saba County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is San Saba County growing, and who is moving in?
San Saba County has lost about 6% of its population over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Nolan County, TX.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving San Saba County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in San Saba County, month by month
San Saba County sees roughly 180 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 99 degrees. January highs sit near 62, 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 | 62° | 47° | 36° |
| April | 82° | 68° | 56° |
| July | 99° | 85° | 73° |
| October | 84° | 69° | 56° |
Flying in and out of San Saba County
The nearest airport, Robert Gray AAF, is about 56 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Austin-Bergstrom International, about 94 miles away.
The best schools in and around San Saba County
Schools across San Saba County average a C+, better than 46% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Mason ElB+ · 55% proficient
- San Saba ElC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Mason J HB+ · 52% proficient
- San Saba MiddleC · 32% proficient
Top high schools
- Mason H SA− · 67% proficient
- San Saba H SB− · 40% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every San Saba County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
San Saba County 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 San Saba County against the other 3,143 counties.
Common questions about living in San Saba County
Is San Saba County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, San Saba County ranks 2,055th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on the weather, walkability, and a stable housing market, and lowest on summer heat and crime. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is San Saba County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $170,318. The overall cost of living runs about 11% below the national average. Set against a $60,707 median income, cost of living beats 19% of counties.
Is San Saba County safe?
San Saba County is safer than 10% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $628 per resident a year.
Compare San Saba County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to San Saba County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in San Saba County 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.
San Saba County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for San Saba County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in San Saba County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of San Saba County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in San Saba County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
San Saba County 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.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- 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.