It’s no secret Texas doesn’t have state income taxes. This means living here is less expensive than most large cities in other states. Bonus: San Antonio has lower costs than other big Texas cities. Why? It’s still kind of an in-the-know secret. Austin and Dallas prices have skyrocketed thanks to the remote working boom/pandemic moves and general population growth. People who had an opportunity to ditch the overpriced, underwhelming homes in NYC, San Francisco, etc. did, and they moved to Dallas or Austin or Houston (or Florida). And don’t listen to anyone who says “It’s cheaper because it’s not Austin.” They don’t know what they’re talking about. You can save big and still have a ton of space, the Riverwalk, excellent Mexican food, and the Spurs. 

For all the pros that a low cost of living can offer, San Antonio does have its cons. First off, the city is huge. It’s 460 square miles and because it’s so large it can feel like you’re driving through one big suburb. It’s having a bit of an identity crisis and struggling to decide if it’s going to try to be like Houston or if it’s cool being a spread-out city with a small-town vibe. This means that the development Downtown has been booming with lofts and mixed-use apartments, but the suburbs are holding strong. So if you’re moving to Texas from a city like SF or NYC that has a high population in a small area, San Antonio can either be your haven or your headache.  



High Value

LookyLOO Review of San Antonio? 

San Antonio is large which can make it feel really spread out at times. Locals make it work by really relying on their neighborhood for that close-knit small-town feel. This way they get a little of both worlds: a neighborly community with a busy Downtown area for weekends. The city is diverse, with a large Hispanic population, but it can feel segregated. The northern suburbs are where a lot of the money is and the westside and southside get a bad rap at times. Besides being a hot spot for tourists looking for their history fix, San Antonio is also a huge draw for military families. There are a large number of bases in the area, giving San Antonio the nickname “Military City USA.” The defense industry has a huge impact on both the population and the economy of the city. 

If you want to see what's happening in San Antonio check out the [**calendar of events**](https://www.visitsanantonio.com/events-categories/): 

Lifestyle

A lot of San Antonio’s economy depends on the military bases in and around the city. There is Fort Sam Houston inside the city as well as other just outside city limits. Nicknamed “Military City USA,” a huge portion of the local economy is owed to the defense industry. Outside of defense, the top industries are healthcare, government services, financial services, oil and gas, and tourism. Over 20 million tourists visit the city yearly, mainly for the Alamo and the famous Riverwalk. The convention center also brings in a fair amount of people for events. Headquarters in the city include Valero, NuStar Energy, USAA, iHeartMedia, and the beloved H-E-B. Hulu, Toyota, Microsoft, and Wells Fargo also have a huge presence in the city although not headquartered there. The South Texas Medical Center also has a huge influence on the local economy and has a large area with hospitals, clinics, and research centers. 


Worklife

[**San Antonio Independent School District**](https://www.saisd.net/) scores a [**"C+" on niche.com.**](https://www.niche.com/k12/d/san-antonio-independent-school-district-tx/). It should be noted that districts with plenty of ESL students always struggle with standardized rankings regardless of the quality of the school experience. 

Texas in general and San Antonio in particular are big charter school regions, so know that lots of public school funding flows to these schools. They tend to rank best in the district for standardized performance. Some of the high performers include: 

-[**Young Women's Leadership Academy**](https://schools.saisd.net/page/023.homepage), an all-girls charter school that rates an [**"A" on niche.com**](https://www.niche.com/k12/young-womens-leadership-academy-san-antonio-tx/?map). 
-[**Travis Early College High School**](https://schools.saisd.net/page/022.homepage), a co-ed charter high school that rates an [**"A-" on niche.com**](https://www.niche.com/k12/travis-early-college-high-school-san-antonio-tx/?map). 

Schools

It’s no secret that Texas is becoming the state for transplants during the ongoing pandemic and remote work revolution. If you’re moving from a large city and looking to escape soulless skyscrapers without completely giving up your big city amenities, San Antonio is for you. You’ll get the inexpensive housing you’ve been missing, there are great jobs in healthcare and other industries, as well as no state income tax and great schools.

Remote Work Revolution

Why You Should Move Here Now?

**MonolithOfTyr**
Living in San Antonio
3y ago
✭✭✭✭

If it were my choice it'd be San Antonio or nothing. I moved here at age 13 with my family and have been here since. Now I have a family of my own and this city has become home.

Pros:

-Friendly as hell people
-Amazing food
-Touristy but not in a bad way
-Close to other nearby cities so day trips are easy
-Great schools from pre-k to university
-Affordable without feeling cheap
-Everything you'll need is always close by, including the world's greatest grocery store HEB
-Each side of town has its own quirks and charms

Cons:

-Growing homeless population
-Still affordable but prices are rising
-Very car dependent unless you're extremely lucky
For more reviews of what living in San Antonio is like from locals check out: [**The Reviews**](https://lookyloomove.com/locations/san-antonio/reviews)




San Antonio or Bust

Reviews of San Antonio from Locals

**The Best Thing About San Antonio?**

Low cost of living, no state income tax and The Spurs.

San Antonio is the 7th largest city in the U.S, but many who come here say it has a small town feel to it.

**The Worst Thing About San Antonio?** 

This is a huge city and the definition of urban sprawl. San Antonio is 31.4 miles east to west and 26 miles north to south according to GoogleEarth and is 460.9 sq mi. What does that mean for you? There’s traffic

The summers are humid and generally speaking mid 90s upwards. The rest of the year it’s pretty mild, but can be quite humid, which can make those lower temperature days still feel like Satan's sauna

**How You Living?** 

Texas was Mexico at one point in history so the demographics reflect that. This is illustrated everywhere you go, from food, culture, events, music, life.

**Why You Should Move Here Now?** 

The neighborhoods of San Antonio are beautiful, and as we noted about "Best Thing About San Antonio" you're going to save a ton of money on one of these beautiful homes if you're coming from another part of the country or even state (see Dallas/Houston/Austin). 

If you’re a young professional wanting to move to San Antonio you’re going to want to decide what’s more important to you: living near work (less commute) or living near bars/restaurants. If you’re lucky enough to accomplish both, do both. But San Antonio is still in Texas which means you’re going to need a car. We’d suggest starting your search in Tobin Hill. It’s north of Downtown which means you can avoid a lot of the Alamo tourism, but still close enough to the Riverwalk to give you happy hour and weekend options. If you are looking for a walkable area, try Pearl, a live-eat-shop area near the Riverwalk. 
- Tobin Hill
- Downtown
- Castle Hills


Young Professionals

Downtown

San Antonio's primary LGBTQ+ area, often called "The Strip/The Gay Strip" is part of the Tobin Hill neighborhood. Home to the Pride Parade as well as LGBTQ+ owned and supported bars, restaurants and clubs, this is where your search for a community in San Antonio starts. 
- Tobin Hill 

LGBTQ+

Tobin Hill 

Even though Texas, in general, is considered less expensive than other states, people wanting to start a family will want to keep price in mind when picking a neighborhood. With that in mind, we’d suggest starting your search in Alamo Heights, a super “Texas-y” neighborhood with tree-lined streets, great shopping centers, and amazing restaurants. Alamo Heights is more reasonably priced than neighboring Terrel Hills, but the good news is that they share a school system so you still get to benefit from the amazing education that neighborhood offers. Take your pick of bungalows, craftsman style flips, and more!
- Alamo Heights
- Oakpark
- Northwood


Young Families

Alamo Heights

There are a ton of great neighborhoods to choose from in San Antonio and the perk is that they all feel like mini suburbs, while still being minutes from downtown. Our suggestion is Jefferson/Woodlawn Lake. It’s just 10 minutes from downtown and the best kept secret in SA. While your friends are breaking the bank in Terrel Hills, you’ll have access to amazing walking trails, a lake with fishing, tennis courts, a swimming pool, and more. It’s peaceful and neighborly which is just what you might need to help you unwind from a stressful week. 
- Jefferson/Woodlawn Lake
- Hollywood Park
- Terrel Hills


Established Families

Jefferson-Woodlawn Lake

If you’re looking for some relaxation in your golden years, look no further than San Antonio. There are a ton of great neighborhoods close to downtown that have golf courses, parks, and shopping all within a good distance. Check out Oak Hills which was, at one time, all one big ranch. The streets go with the flow just like the residents and have a more winding layout than other traditional SA suburbs. Predominantly full of ranch homes, this neighborhood is close to an amazing golf course and shopping centers. 
- Oak Hills
- Stone Oak
- Olmos Park


Empty Nesters/Retirees

Oak Hills

San Antonio

**Pros and cons of living in San Antonio?**
**MonolithOfTyr** / Living in San Antonio / 3y ago
✭✭✭✭


If it were my choice it'd be San Antonio or nothing. I moved here at age 13 with my family and have been here since. Now I have a family of my own and this city has become home.

Pros:

-Friendly as hell people
-Amazing food
-Touristy but not in a bad way
-Close to other nearby cities so day trips are easy
-Great schools from pre-k to university
-Affordable without feeling cheap
-Everything you'll need is always close by, including the world's greatest grocery store HEB
-Each side of town has its own quirks and charms

Cons:

-Growing homeless population
-Still affordable but prices are rising
-Very car dependent unless you're extremely lucky



**What is it like to live in San Antonio?**
Updated 1yr ago
✭✭✭

San Antonio is an extremely large suburb around a medium sized city. If you think of cities like NYC or L.A. as “ 24 hour” cities because there’s always things happening, San Antonio is maybe a “16 hour” city. Which if you like quiet or a slower pace (me) is not a bad thing.

The city itself is very segmented and it can feel disjointed. An area with bars and entrainment here another there but nothing in between. It has isolated pockets of things to do, but those pockets can be a great time.

San Antonio is an interesting combination of liberal and conformist. They tend to vote Democrat but you don’t see the blue hair and artistic flair walking around the way you do in other places.

I’ve lived in many cities and the drivers in San Antonio are Hands-down the worst I’ve ever seen. Other cities people drive badly with a logic behind it. Traffic requires aggression or people are in a hurry, or whatever it may be. In San Antonio people will swerve across 4 empty lanes to crash into the only other person on the freeway for literally no reason. There’s a level of incompetence to the driving you will not find other places.

San Antonio has the worlds best BAR B Que and the world’s best Tex-Mex. They also have basically no Mexican food that isn’t Tex-Mex. You can’t find the sort of burritos, and enchiladas you find in other parts of the southwest. Everything has a gravy on like you get with chili con carne. Lots of cumin. That’s neither good nor bad. A lot of people LOVE it with good reason but people can be disappointed by the narrowness of the flavor profiles in this city. Make sure you like the food before you move here because things tend to taste the same everywhere. This idea will upset people that haven’t traveled much but it’s true.

If you’ve never lived in the South before there things about bugs and humidity and weather that can’t be explained. The heat sucks and the storms are fun.

There is almost no traffic outside of parts of northern San Antonio.

People are really interested in what High school you went to.

The cost of living is low but rising. The wages are also low so the cost of living being low only goes so far.

If you’re thinking of buying a home, the property taxes are so high that you might be better off buying in a different city.

Texas is “low tax” but the reality is I pay more to the state of Texas to live here then I have in any other state. There is talk of reform and some actual reform in the works to reduce the costs.

The people in San Antonio are fucking chill and really nice. It’s a mellow city that isn’t interested in pretentiousness. “Keep San Antonio Lame” Is a real thing.

It will look like there are stray dogs running through the streets everywhere, but most of those dogs have owners (the city did a study on it). It’s just that that’s the dog culture in San Antonio. If seeing loose/dead dogs in traffic will ruin your day that will be a real problem.

It’s much more of a small town than a big city. Whether that’s good or bad is up to you

**Oxford89** / Living in San Antonio / Edited 1y ago
✭✭✭✭

It's a hidden gem, an emerging metro of authentic coolness with a vibrant Hispanic culture. The San Antonio river is the heart of the city and the investment into the lower and upper reaches over the last 15 years has made it a destination for locals, not just tourists, to eat, drink, exercise, and relax on. We have one of the best annual events of any major city in Fiesta, which is a two weeks long excuse to drink, party, and celebrate culture all in the name of charity. We're centrally located in Texas which makes intrastate trips much easier than the would otherwise be. We have a love for sports, and a special obsession with the Spurs. The Tex Mex and especially our breakfast tacos are unrivaled. San Antonians have a ton of pride in their city and that brings a strong sense of community, so you'll find most locals to be incredibly friendly and generous. I was born here but have spent my life traveling throughout the US and the world, and I like to say that other places are great to visit but San Antonio is home.

Downsides... It can get hot as hell and you have to drive everywhere all the time. But traffic really is not bad outside of 4-6pm and it takes 20 mins to get anywhere you want to go. Also, everyone seems to know everyone.

**Nnikki-** / Living in San Antonio / 1y ago


Pros

Variety of Restaurants & Bars
Theme Parks Very Huge community for film, photography, models, and any artist to make up hair and clothes for photoshoots or events Fashion show annually for awards and nominations Fashion shows at public places for boutiques and clothing stores Downtown offers a lot of local art shows & The pearl Pickle ball is trending here We have mini festivals all around year especially when it’s crawfish season Car meets happen often Good selection of Church communities A lot of people here are into D&D

People are nice here. Very polite. The weather can get hot but enjoy the water parks and pools lol. Besides that, born and raised and I love it SA. Apartments rate fluctuate but you can find cheap ones. The rim or south of the rim area is worth looking into if your not tight on a budget. If you want to make friends, there’s good amount of apartments over by UTSA. A lot of college students hang out at the block and over in that area.

Cons

It’s hot in the summers and we have bipolar weather sometimes but it’s use getting use to. As well, some say traffic. It’s just morning rush-hour, and 5 o’clock rush-hour on 1604. Sometimes lunch hours makes the traffic heavy but ehh. Not bad. Military 1604 is an evitable of getting backed up all the way too Vance Jackson exit but that’s the normal. It ain’t terrible just stay in the left lane. You’ll be good. It won’t spare you too much time. Btw left lane for passing here. Just Fyi. Better be going 10/15 miles pass the speed limit lol. Or stay and watch the strobe lights go off with some beeps 💃🏼💃🏼💃🏼

San Antonio, Texas

SHOW ME YOUR SHOES!!!

Looklyloo Score: 83