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Place dossier plate
SheetTX-ALTO-TX · Alto, TX 825 pop · income 30th pct
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Alto
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Alto on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Meigs · lowest
28,125
Meigs · lowest
28,125 median HH income
35.8% of the leader · rank #1
Alto · this city
56,719
Alto · this city
56,719 median HH income
72.2% of the leader · rank #2
Toledo · near
56,719
Toledo · near
56,719 median HH income
72.2% of the leader · rank #3
Hollyvilla · near
56,719
Hollyvilla · near
56,719 median HH income
72.2% of the leader · rank #4
Buffalo Lake · near
56,719
Buffalo Lake · near
56,719 median HH income
72.2% of the leader · rank #5
Interlaken · near
56,719
Interlaken · near
56,719 median HH income
72.2% of the leader · rank #6
Bremond · highest
78,611
Bremond · highest
78,611 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Alto on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 825.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Alto - the verdict
Out of every US city with 1,000+ residents, Alto places in the 30th percentile for household income and the 43rd percentile for safety. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
30th
percentile, household income
36th
percentile, home value
40th
percentile, median rent
43rd
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Alto, TX
825 people live in Alto, Texas - a small town by U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Households in Alto report a median income of $56,719 per year, below the median for U.S. cities on this measure, with a poverty rate of 30.6%. Typical homes in Alto are valued around $177,800, and the median resident age is 35.2 years. About 17.6% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 52.5% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Alto reports a comparatively low crime rate: the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program logs 1599.2 total incidents per 100,000 residents here, below the national average (agency reporting is voluntary, so this measures reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
Texas tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: the state registers 97.1 on a 100-equals-national-average index (Near Average) per BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $1,149 per month statewide. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in Texas run around $223, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 49.0 out of 100 (Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Alto's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from comparison shortlist to schools and households to population change to work and mobility to reported crime to housing and income; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Alto, city-specific coverage includes matched public-school count, annual population history, FBI reported-crime rates, commute-mode shares.
No matched row is reported here for local building permits, within-city Census tract profiles; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
1. Comparison shortlist
Which cities make useful reference points for Alto?
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
Within Texas, the closest population matches are Bremond (824 residents, $78,611 income); Ector (826 residents, $61,731 income); Knox City (822 residents, $41,477 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Valley Head, AL (825 residents); Funston, GA (825 residents); Meigs, GA (825 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
The city has a broader matched school footprint, but count alone does not describe performance, capacity, program availability, or attendance boundaries. This profile deliberately avoids converting it into an unsupported family-friendliness score.
The NCES join finds 3 public schools within the city match. 17.6% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +37 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +3.6% change. No comparable local building-permit series is available here, so population change should not be read as a housing-supply measure. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Recent estimates point upward. Growth can increase housing demand and service needs, but the permit record must move in the same direction before calling it a supply response; the two series measure different things.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 70.2%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. Remote work has a visible role in the local pattern. That can reduce commute exposure for some workers, but it says nothing about job availability or broadband quality; read it alongside income and housing rather than as a stand-alone lifestyle score.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Reported crime
What can the FBI record say about safety in Alto?
The joined FBI UCR record reports 1599.2 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, below the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 30% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
Total reported rate
1599.2
Violent rate
282.2
Property rate
1317.0
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, incidents per 100,000. Voluntary agency reporting; not a danger score.
How far does income reach against housing in Alto?
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 3.1 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 30.6%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
Value / income
3.1×
Home value
$177,800
Household income
$56,719
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
Below median income · poverty 30.6% (Highest-decile poverty)
Cost of Living Index (state)
97.1 (US=100)
Near national cost · BEA RPP 2024, Texas average
F
City profile score · Alto, TX
29/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Cost of living C-
97.1 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Violent crime F
282 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Household income F
$56,719
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bachelor's+ share F
17.6%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Poverty rate F
30.6%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Alto profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Cost of living: 53/100 (C-) · 97.1 index
Violent crime: 36/100 (F) · 282 /100k
Household income: 30/100 (F) · $56,719
Bachelor's+ share: 27/100 (F) · 17.6%
Poverty rate: 0/100 (F) · 30.6%
Where Alto sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Alto's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Alto highlighted among 24 peers.Read the chart values
Alto, TX (this city): home $177,800, crime 1,599/100k
Bremond, TX : home $92,400, crime 1,026/100k
Ector, TX : home $148,100, crime 378/100k
Knox City, TX : home $59,300, crime 672/100k
New York, NY : home $751,700, crime 3,039/100k
Los Angeles, CA : home $879,500, crime 2,212/100k
Chicago, IL : home $315,200, crime 4,012/100k
Houston, TX : home $253,400, crime 5,442/100k
Phoenix, AZ : home $381,900, crime 3,125/100k
Philadelphia, PA : home $232,400, crime 5,457/100k
San Antonio, TX : home $219,700, crime 5,218/100k
San Diego, CA : home $848,500, crime 2,082/100k
Dallas, TX : home $295,300, crime 4,010/100k
San Jose, CA : home $1,187,800, crime 3,195/100k
Austin, TX : home $512,700, crime 3,709/100k
Fort Worth, TX : home $277,300, crime 3,158/100k
Columbus, OH : home $234,500, crime 3,088/100k
Indianapolis, IN : home $207,000, crime 4,214/100k
San Francisco, CA : home $1,380,500, crime 4,526/100k
Seattle, WA : home $912,100, crime 5,783/100k
Denver, CO : home $586,700, crime 5,755/100k
Oklahoma City, OK : home $215,100, crime 3,570/100k
El Paso, TX : home $171,700, crime 1,772/100k
Washington, DC : home $724,600, crime 4,514/100k
How does Alto compare to other US cities?
Here's how Alto stacks up against the full field of US cities (population 1,000+), computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income30% higher than other cities
Home value36% pricier than other cities
Median rent40% pricier than other cities
Safety43% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
National percentiles can mask local variation. Looking only at Texas, Alto ranks #364 of 624 Texas cities by lowest crime rate - a narrower, more locally useful cut than the national comparison above.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Alto against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Texas only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Texas-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Alto near the bottom of Texas's cities
Among the 1,663 Texas cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Alto ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Alto only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#949 of 1,520
38th percentile in Texas
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 1,663
0th percentile in Texas
Median Home Value
#653 of 1,505
57th percentile in Texas
Poverty Rate
#123 of 1,663
93rd percentile in Texas
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#791 of 1,663
52nd percentile in Texas
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Texas only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
30th percentile nationally for median household income · 43rd percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Alto's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Alto's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Alto's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$177,800Among the most affordablemore affordable than 64% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Alto's home-value-to-income ratio: 3.1×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#7,368 of 15,516
More affordable than 53% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#6,124 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 3.1×, Alto sits in the moderate band:
national rank #7,368 of 15,516 and #6,124 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$56,719Alto, TX median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Alto, TX median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Alto, TX.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)17.6%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)30.6%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)52.5%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
825
Median Income
$56,719
Median Home Value
$177,800
Median Age
35.2
Poverty Rate
30.6%
Labor force participation
52.5%
Bachelor's Degree+
17.6%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
1599.2
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
282.2
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
1317.0
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Schools
Total Schools
3
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Alto's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
1,026 residents
2021
1,033 residents
2022
1,041 residents
2023
1,055 residents
2024
1,062 residents
2025
1,063 residents
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
70.2%
Carpool
11.7%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.0%
Work from Home
17.2%
Other
0.9%
Based on 326 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Texas statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $223
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Texas at $223 (electricity about $130 , water and sewer about $48 ).
These are Texas statewide averages, not a meter reading for Alto. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Texas's BEA cost-of-living index is 97.1 (Near Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Alto is $1,149/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Texas statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 49.0 / 100 (Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Texas statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Alto sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Alto compares to similar-size Texas cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NCES CCD, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.