Abilene vs Laredo
Metro-area medians — Abilene, TX Metro Area vs Laredo, TX Metro Area — not the cities proper.
Abilene comes out ahead, winning 5 of the 8 clearly-decided measures.
Laredo is about 4% cheaper to live in, while Abilene households earn about 5% more. Adjusted for local prices, a typical paycheck stretches about as far in either.
Their widest everyday difference: Abilene is more educated — 26.8% of adults hold a bachelor's degree versus 23.3%.
For your salary & household
Enter your pay and household size to see what it's really worth here — the numbers update live and the link stays shareable.
On $75,000 for just you, Laredo leaves you about $2,659/yr better off after tax and local prices.
Take-home estimates a single filer taking the standard deduction (2025 federal brackets, FICA, and state income tax) and isn't tax advice. “Real value” rebases take-home to average U.S. prices using the BEA cost-of-living index; the per-person figure uses the OECD square-root equivalence scale.
Choose Abilene for
- + Livability (CityLedger)
- + Median household income
- + Median home value
- + Bachelor's degree or higher
- + Average commute
Choose Laredo for
- + Cost of living (price level, US = 100)
- + Median rent
- + Unemployment
More comparisons
Metros closest to Abilene and Laredo on cost, income, size, and education.
Abilene vs Laredo — frequently asked
- Is Abilene cheaper than Laredo?
- Laredo is cheaper: its overall cost of living runs about 4% below Abilene's (BEA Regional Price Parities).
- Which has higher household income, Abilene or Laredo?
- Abilene has the higher median household income — $63,390 versus $60,580 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS), about 5% more.
- Does a paycheck go further in Abilene or Laredo?
- It is roughly a wash. After adjusting income for local prices, a typical paycheck is worth about the same in both metros ($70,150 versus $69,667).
- Which has cheaper rent, Abilene or Laredo?
- Laredo has cheaper rent — a median of $1,056/mo versus $1,173/mo (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS).