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Place dossier plate
SheetTX-STERLING-CITY-TX · Sterling City, TX 1,173 pop · income 87th pct · 1 tracts
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 Sterling City
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Sterling City on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Benwood · lowest
39,474
Benwood · lowest
39,474 median HH income
30.7% of the leader · rank #1
Beckett Ridge · near
120,179
Beckett Ridge · near
120,179 median HH income
93.5% of the leader · rank #2
Danwood · near
120,188
Danwood · near
120,188 median HH income
93.5% of the leader · rank #3
Sterling City · this city
120,208
Sterling City · this city
120,208 median HH income
93.5% of the leader · rank #4
Saybrook Manor · near
120,208
Saybrook Manor · near
120,208 median HH income
93.5% of the leader · rank #5
Melvin · near
120,250
Melvin · near
120,250 median HH income
93.5% of the leader · rank #6
East Gull Lake · highest
128,548
East Gull Lake · highest
128,548 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
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Sterling City on ACS population and median household income
. 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: 1,173.
Measured against every US city with at least 1,000 residents, Sterling City lands in the 87th percentile for household income. Source: Census ACS.
87th
percentile, household income
20th
percentile, home value
40th
percentile, median rent
📝 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: Sterling City, TX
1,173 people live in Sterling City, Texas - a small town by U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 estimates. Sterling City households earn a median of $120,208 annually, placing it in the top quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 0.0%. Typical homes in Sterling City are valued around $127,600, and the median resident age is 30.2 years. About 21.8% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 58.7% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
The annual average temperature per NOAA climate normals runs 63.6°F with 20.4 inches of precipitation per year and 1.5 inches of snowfall.
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. Monthly utility costs average around $223 across Texas, per EIA 2023 residential energy estimates. The average commute for Sterling City workers runs 26.2 minutes, with 80.1% driving alone and 5.9% working from home. Natural-hazard exposure scores 49.0 out of 100 on FEMA's National Risk Index (Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Sterling City'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 schools and households to population change to climate and hazard context to within-city variation to work and mobility to housing and income to comparison shortlist; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Sterling City, city-specific coverage includes matched public-school count, annual population history, within-city Census tract profiles, commute-mode shares.
No matched row is reported here for FBI reported-crime rates, local building permits; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
1. Schools and households
What does the education layer cover for Sterling City?
The matched institution count is small, so district boundaries and schools outside the city line may matter more than the municipal count suggests. Use the number as a coverage cue, then verify attendance zones with the district before making a household decision.
The NCES join finds 2 public schools within the city match. 21.8% 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.
Is Sterling City growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -26 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -2.3% 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 downward. A falling count can reflect migration, household size, annexation boundaries, or estimation noise, so it is a prompt to inspect the full series rather than a claim about local economic health.
What can 1 Census tracts reveal inside Sterling City?
PlainCities matches 1 Census tracts to this city.
That layer breaks the citywide income, rent, and home-value medians into smaller Census geographies, which can reveal differences that one municipal median necessarily hides. A tract is a statistical area, not a locally defined neighborhood or a promise about conditions on a particular block. Start with the city profile for the broad comparison, then use the tract layer to test whether the same housing and income pattern is consistent across the city. Large within-city spreads are a reason to avoid treating any citywide median as a universal resident experience.
Which cities make useful reference points for Sterling City?
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.
Within Texas, the closest population matches are Chico (1,174 residents, $58,125 income); Southwest Sandhill (1,174 residents, $71,618 income); Berryville (1,176 residents, $64,028 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Palo, IA (1,173 residents); East Gull Lake, MN (1,173 residents); Elm City, NC (1,173 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.
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.
Climate and hazard context
What physical conditions frame life in Sterling City?
The two sources should not be blended into one comfort or safety score. Use the climate values for baseline conditions and the risk index as a prompt to inspect specific hazards, insurance, and local emergency guidance for a particular address.
NOAA normals put the annual mean temperature at 63.6°F, with 20.4 inches of precipitation and 1.5 inches of annual snowfall. FEMA's state-averaged National Risk Index score for Texas is 49.0 out of 100. Climate normals describe long-run weather; the FEMA score on PlainCities is a state average of county NRI inputs and combines hazards, exposure, vulnerability, and resilience.
FEMA risk index (state avg)
49.0
Annual precipitation
20.4 in
Mean temperature
63.6°F
NOAA Climate Normals and FEMA National Risk Index (state-averaged on PlainCities). Hazard context is not address-level.
What does the journey to work look like in Sterling City?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 80.1%. The reported mean trip to work is 26.2 minutes.
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
Drive alone
80.1%
Work from home
5.9%
Public transit
0.0%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 457 workers age 16+.
How far does income reach against housing in Sterling City?
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. The ratio makes housing the clearest place to start this profile, but a low multiple can coexist with slow demand, older stock, or household-level hardship. Compare the home-value distribution and same-state peer table before treating it as an advantage.
The home-value-to-income reference is relatively compact: the ACS median home value is 1.1 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 0.0%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
Value / income
1.1×
Home value
$127,600
Household income
$120,208
City-level Census ACS 2023 medians. The ratio divides two separate medians and is descriptive only.
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.
Poverty rate A+
0.0%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Household income A
$120,208
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
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.
Bachelor's+ share D
21.8%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Violent crime N/A
N/A
No FBI UCR violent-crime rate for this place (coverage is incomplete).
Sterling City profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Poverty rate: 100/100 (A+) · 0.0%
Household income: 86/100 (A) · $120,208
Cost of living: 53/100 (C-) · 97.1 index
Bachelor's+ share: 40/100 (D) · 21.8%
How does Sterling City compare to other US cities?
Where Sterling City sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income87% higher than other cities
Home value20% pricier than other cities
Median rent40% pricier than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Sterling City 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 Sterling City near the bottom of Texas's cities
Among the 1,663 Texas cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Sterling City ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Sterling City only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#139 of 1,520
91st percentile in Texas
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 1,663
0th percentile in Texas
Median Home Value
#932 of 1,505
38th percentile in Texas
Poverty Rate
#1,440 of 1,663
0th percentile in Texas
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#605 of 1,663
63rd 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
87th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
How Sterling City's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$127,600Among the most affordablemore affordable than 80% 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
Sterling City's home-value-to-income ratio: 1.1×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
affordable
< 3.0×
National rank
#55 of 15,516
More affordable than 100% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#55 of 11,323
Micro cities (under 10,000)
At 1.1×, Sterling City sits in the affordable band:
national rank #55 of 15,516 and #55 of 11,323micro cities (under 10,000).
The multiple is comparatively compact among tracked cities, but a low ratio can still coexist with slow demand or household-level hardship.
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
$120,208Sterling City, TX median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Sterling City, 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 Sterling City, TX.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)21.8%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)0.0%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)58.7%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
1,173
Median Income
$120,208
Median Home Value
$127,600
Median Age
30.2
Poverty Rate
0.0%
Labor force participation
58.7%
Bachelor's Degree+
21.8%
Climate
Avg Temperature
63.6°F
Annual Precipitation
20.4"
Annual Snowfall
1.5"
Schools
Total Schools
2
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Sterling City's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
1,120 residents
2021
1,113 residents
2022
1,143 residents
2023
1,112 residents
2024
1,112 residents
2025
1,094 residents
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Average Commute Time
26.2 minutes
Drive Alone
80.1%
Carpool
14.0%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.0%
Work from Home
5.9%
Based on 457 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 Sterling City. 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 Sterling City 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 Sterling City sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Sterling City 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, NOAA Climate Normals, 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.