Best PlacesWest Gate, Austin, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around West Gate, Austin, 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.
West Gate, Austin ranks 1,878th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on cell coverage by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in West Gate, Austin
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.
West Gate, Austin's strengths and weaknesses
Where West Gate, Austin ranks high
- Cell coverageBetter than 94% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than 93% of neighborhoods
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- State fiscal healthBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
Where West Gate, Austin ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 3% of neighborhoods
- Air qualityBetter than only 25% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 27% of neighborhoods
- Local economyBetter than only 28% of neighborhoods
- School gradeC−, better than only 29% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in West Gate, Austin
A household needs to earn about $165,000 a year to comfortably buy the median West Gate, Austin home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $75,006, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 West Gate, Austin's effective rate of 1.24%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in West Gate, Austin
West Gate, Austin runs older than the country, 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 West Gate, Austin.
Who works in West Gate, Austin, and how
Work in West Gate, Austin centers on retail trade and professional & technical. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 55%
- Work from home 38%
- Transit, walk, or bike 7%
Life in West Gate, Austin
West Gate, Austin has more restaurants and bars per resident than 74% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of West Gate, Austin and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in West Gate, Austin, month by month
West Gate, Austin sees roughly 157 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 99 degrees. January highs sit near 64, with lows near 43. The comfortable stretch runs February through April and October through December.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 64° | 52° | 43° |
| April | 82° | 70° | 60° |
| July | 99° | 86° | 76° |
| October | 85° | 72° | 62° |
Flying in and out of West Gate, Austin
Austin-Bergstrom International sits about 8 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 10.7 million passengers in 2025, with 127 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around West Gate, Austin
Schools across West Gate, Austin average a C−, better than 29% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Sunset Valley ElC · 35% proficient
- Cunningham ElC− · 29% proficient
- Joslin ElD · 20% proficient
Top middle schools
- Hill Country MiddleA+ · 75% proficient
- Small MiddleC+ · 37% proficient
- Covington MiddleC− · 28% proficient
Top high schools
- Crockett EchsC · 34% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every West Gate, Austin school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
West Gate, Austin 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 West Gate, Austin against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in West Gate, Austin
Is West Gate, Austin a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, West Gate, Austin ranks 1,878th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on cell coverage, fast internet, and a stable housing market, 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 West Gate, Austin expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $595,044. The overall cost of living runs about 9% below the national average. Set against a $75,006 median income, cost of living beats 64% of neighborhoods.
Is West Gate, Austin safe?
Yes, West Gate, Austin is safer than 57% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $477 per resident a year.
Compare West Gate, Austin with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to West Gate, Austin. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in West Gate, Austin 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.
West Gate, Austin detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for West Gate, Austin: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in West Gate, Austin: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of West Gate, Austin: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in West Gate, Austin: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
West Gate, Austin 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.