Living here
Cost of living in McAllen
Housing is cheaper than the US average. Rents, home prices, taxes and how far a paycheck goes.
Median rent
$1,017/mo
25% below US
Median home value
$173,800
43% below US
Median household income
$60,165
23% below US
Rent as share of income
20%
US 21%
Home price to income
2.9×
US 3.9×
Sales tax
8.25%
Rent by number of bedrooms
HUD 2027 fair market rents for McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX MSA (gross rent including utilities, near the 40th percentile of local rents). Source: HUD USER.
How McAllen compares
- McAllen$1,017
- Texas$1,339
- United States$1,348
- Brownsville$906
- New Braunfels$1,536
- Sugar Land$1,939
- Austin$1,655
- Pearland$1,759
- Cedar Park$1,753
- Galveston$1,278
- Georgetown$1,671
- McAllen$173,800
- Texas$260,400
- United States$303,400
- Brownsville$122,400
- New Braunfels$315,100
- Sugar Land$406,600
- Austin$512,700
- Pearland$330,900
- Cedar Park$474,800
- Galveston$294,300
- Georgetown$398,600
Taxes
Compare with nearby cities
Questions
Is McAllen expensive to live in?
Housing in McAllen is cheaper than the national average: median rent is $1,017 (25% below US) and the median home value is $173,800 (43% below US).
How much is rent in McAllen?
The median gross rent is $1,017 a month. HUD’s 2027 fair market rents for the area are studio $801, 1 bedroom $806, 2 bedrooms $1,017, 3 bedrooms $1,305, 4 bedrooms $1,439.
How much of their income do renters spend in McAllen?
At the median, a year’s rent ($12,204) equals about 20% of the median household income ($60,165); nationally it’s about 21%.
What are taxes like in McAllen?
Sales tax is 8.25% and property taxes run about 1.78% of home value a year.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-year estimates; HUD fair market rents; Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts - City Sales and Use Tax rates (city-rates.xlsx, updated Oct 6, 2026; cross-checked with EDI current rate file taxrates.txt, 2026 Q4).