City comparison
Houston, TX is about 175 miles (275 km) from Tyler, TX in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 225 miles, or about 3 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 Houston, TX to Tyler, TX takes about 21 min, covering roughly 175 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 106,440 in Tyler — about 21.6× larger by population. By land area, Houston covers about 640 sq mi vs 58 sq mi for Tyler.
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 | Tyler | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,235/mo | $1,113/mo | 11.0% higher in Houston |
| Median home value | $235,000 | $205,200 | 14.5% higher in Houston |
| Median household income | $60,440 | $63,056 | 4.3% higher in Tyler |
| Groceries index | 100.4 | 94.2 | 6.6% higher in Houston |
| Utilities index | 96.3 | 84.0 | 14.7% higher in Houston |
| Transportation index | 95.8 | 96.6 | 0.9% higher in Tyler |
| Healthcare index | 95.2 | 96.1 | 1.0% higher in Tyler |
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 $88,304 in Tyler to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Tyler, TX is about 11.7% cheaper overall than Houston, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 29% higher in Houston than in Tyler. If you earn $80,000 in Houston, you'd need about $70,643 in Tyler to keep the same standard of living.