Irvine, CA vs Watauga, TX

Side-by-side comparison of housing, income, commute, safety, and quality of life.

Score Snapshot

No universal winner

Scores summarize the published model. Use the objective metric differences below and your own priorities to choose.

Irvine

67.2

#1452 nationally

Watauga

80.2

#92 nationally

Watauga leads in cost of living index (101 vs 178). Irvine leads in median household income ($116,519 vs $88,775). Irvine leads in average commute (25.8 min vs 28.7 min).

Metric-by-Metric Breakdown

Metric	Irvine, CA	Watauga, TX
WhereAtHome Score	67.2 (#1452)	80.2 (#92)
Population	307,670	22,934
Typical Home Value (ZHVI)	$1,517,431	$276,575
Median Household Income	$116,519	$88,775
Average Commute	25.8 min	28.7 min
Walk Score	44	40
Crime Level	Very Low	3.1
School Rating	9.5	N/A
Cost of Living Index	178	101
Political lean County 2024 presidential margin — context only, not scored	D+2.6	R+5.1