City comparison
College Station, TX is about 80 miles (125 km) from Houston, TX in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 100 miles, or about 1 h 30 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 College Station, TX to Houston, TX takes about 9 min, covering roughly 80 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.
Houston has a population of 2,296,253, vs 120,451 in College Station — about 19.1× larger by population. By land area, Houston covers about 640 sq mi vs 51 sq mi for College Station.
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 | College Station | Houston | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,129/mo | $1,235/mo | 9.4% higher in Houston |
| Median home value | $305,800 | $235,000 | 30.1% higher in College Station |
| Median household income | $52,397 | $60,440 | 15.4% higher in Houston |
| Groceries index | 94.2 | 100.4 | 6.6% higher in Houston |
| Utilities index | 85.3 | 96.3 | 12.9% higher in Houston |
| Transportation index | 96.6 | 95.8 | 0.9% higher in College Station |
| Healthcare index | 96.1 | 95.2 | 1.0% higher in College Station |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in College Station, you'd need $115,456 in Houston to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
College Station, TX is about 13.4% cheaper overall than Houston, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 36% higher in Houston than in College Station. If you earn $80,000 in College Station, you'd need about $92,365 in Houston to keep the same standard of living.