City comparison
Austin, TX is about 125 miles (225 km) from Huntsville, TX in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 175 miles, or about 2 h 45 min behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Austin, TX to Huntsville, TX takes about 16 min, covering roughly 125 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
Austin has a population of 958,202, vs 46,202 in Huntsville — about 20.7× larger by population. By land area, Austin covers about 325 sq mi vs 42 sq mi for Huntsville.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Austin | Huntsville | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,549/mo | $970/mo | 59.7% higher in Austin |
| Median home value | $461,500 | $207,300 | 122.6% higher in Austin |
| Median household income | $86,556 | $37,419 | 131.3% higher in Austin |
| Groceries index | 94.2 | 100.5 | 6.6% higher in Huntsville |
| Utilities index | 83.2 | 95.2 | 14.5% higher in Huntsville |
| Transportation index | 96.6 | 96.0 | 0.6% higher in Austin |
| Healthcare index | 96.1 | 95.5 | 0.6% higher in Austin |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Austin, you'd need $94,385 in Huntsville to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Huntsville, TX is about 5.6% cheaper overall than Austin, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 18% higher in Austin than in Huntsville. If you earn $80,000 in Austin, you'd need about $75,508 in Huntsville to keep the same standard of living.