City comparison
Houston, TX is about 250 miles (400 km) from McKinney, TX in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 300 miles, or about 5 h 15 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 Houston, TX to McKinney, TX takes about 30 min, covering roughly 250 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 196,160 in McKinney — about 11.7× larger by population. By land area, Houston covers about 640 sq mi vs 68 sq mi for McKinney.
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 | Houston | McKinney | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,235/mo | $1,740/mo | 40.9% higher in McKinney |
| Median home value | $235,000 | $400,400 | 70.4% higher in McKinney |
| Median household income | $60,440 | $113,286 | 87.4% higher in McKinney |
| Groceries index | 100.4 | 102.5 | 2.1% higher in McKinney |
| Utilities index | 96.3 | 91.1 | 5.7% higher in Houston |
| Transportation index | 95.8 | 99.8 | 4.2% higher in McKinney |
| Healthcare index | 95.2 | 99.2 | 4.3% higher in McKinney |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Houston, you'd need $107,834 in McKinney to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Houston, TX is about 7.3% cheaper overall than McKinney, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 15% higher in McKinney than in Houston. If you earn $80,000 in Houston, you'd need about $86,267 in McKinney to keep the same standard of living.