City comparison
Evanston, IL is about 950 miles (1,500 km) from Houston, TX in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 1,200 miles, or about 20 hours (about 2 days at 10 h/day) 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 Evanston, IL to Houston, TX takes about 1 h 54 min, covering roughly 950 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 77,181 in Evanston — about 29.8× larger by population. By land area, Houston covers about 640 sq mi vs 7.8 sq mi for Evanston.
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 | Evanston | Houston | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,625/mo | $1,235/mo | 31.6% higher in Evanston |
| Median home value | $454,600 | $235,000 | 93.4% higher in Evanston |
| Median household income | $93,188 | $60,440 | 54.2% higher in Evanston |
| Groceries index | 106.3 | 100.4 | 5.9% higher in Evanston |
| Utilities index | 84.3 | 96.3 | 14.2% higher in Houston |
| Transportation index | 100.2 | 95.8 | 4.6% higher in Evanston |
| Healthcare index | 100.4 | 95.2 | 5.5% higher in Evanston |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Evanston, you'd need $94,820 in Houston to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Houston, TX is about 5.2% cheaper overall than Evanston, IL, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 9% higher in Evanston than in Houston. If you earn $80,000 in Evanston, you'd need about $75,856 in Houston to keep the same standard of living.