Austin vs. Houston Summers (Dallas, San Antonio: 2013, how much, house)

[Denver303TJC]

Hi Y'all,

It's looking like the wife and I will be leaving Austin in January and will either move to DFW or Houston. After researching Dallas summers, I found out that they aren't as easy to get through as I thought originally (prone to tornadoes and humidity). I know most cities in TX are blazin' hot in the summer, but I wanted to know if compared to Austin, Houston is a whole 'nother world of hot and humid in the summer. I know Austin is more of the dry summer heat, but am unsure how much worse Houston summers are. I've heard it's very hot and humid in Houston, but is it something you can ever get used to? Also, if we looked for jobs in the far-out west sections of Houston (like Katy or Cypress), would that make even any difference in terms of humidity? (I'm trying to use my science brain to see if the humidity would be less if we managed to get away from the southern/central part of Houston)

I understand that come winter, Houston is a nice place to be; In contrast to DFW, which has ice storms and gets cold.

In a nutshell, if we can survive Austin summers (with minimal complaining), will Houston be bearable?

Thanks!

[Htown homie]

To me Austin is worse in the summer. I prefer the humidity over the dry heat. Houston can get rainy weather patterns and summer thunderstorms and cloud cover which makes it more bearable. For example, this August which was somewhat nice. July was hot as hell with no rain or cloud cover.

[predatorprey]

You'll be be fine

[PedroMartinez]

I lived in Austin for five years. There is no major difference. Houston seems hotter to me due to the higher humidity; however, it's not night and day, but it is noticeable.

[txdemo]

The worst part - many more mosquitoes in Houston.

[bu2]

Originally Posted by PedroMartinez

I lived in Austin for five years. There is no major difference. Houston seems hotter to me due to the higher humidity; however, it's not night and day, but it is noticeable.

This is about it. Austin in hotter on the thermometer. Houston is more humid and feels a little hotter.

I got acclimated to Houston. Most, but not all, people do.

[cBach]

It is less humid out West in Katy then East.

It is cooler down by Clearlake as there is a breeze off Galveston Bay.

[Jack Lance]

And here is the full ranking of all 361 metro areas by the Sperling Heat Index.

Rank Metro name Population Heat Index
1 Yuma, AZ 195,751 99.9
2 El Centro, CA 174,528 99.5
3 Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 4,192,887 97.7
4 Laredo, TX 250,304 96.1
5 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX 774,769 95.0
6 Las Vegas-Paradise, NV 1,951,269 94.4
7 Brownsville-Harlingen, TX 406,220 94.1
8 Corpus Christi, TX 428,185 93.6
9 Victoria, TX 115,384 93.2
10 Waco, TX 234,906 93.0
11 College Station-Bryan, TX 228,660 92.9
12 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 6,371,773 92.4
13 Wichita Falls, TX 151,306 92.4
14 Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX 5,946,800 92.3
15 Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL 618,754 92.2
16 Austin-Round Rock, TX1, 716,289 92.2
17 San Antonio, TX 2,142,508 92.1

There is virtually no difference in the overall heat index (Misery index) of the two metros...

Sizzling Cities ranked – our new Heat Index – Bert Sperling – searching for the Best Places

[westhou]

It's really hard to get used to. I have to stay indoors most of the summer unless I'm at the beach or the pool. Sitting outside in the afternoon in the summer gets incredibly uncomfortable after a few minutes. Also the threat of hurricanes every summer can be scary. They don't happen often but one every 10 years is still too much for me. But I'd gladly take a hurricane over a monster Dallas tornado any day. At least with a hurricane you have enough warning to prepare. Plus as long as you live far away from the coast you really only have to worry about power outages and street flooding. Your house won't get ripped away in Houston the same way a tornado will shred a home in Dallas. So with that said I'd easily take Houston summers over Dallas summers.

[houston-nomad]

Both are crazy hot. I think maybe evenings and mornings can be more comfortable in Austin since the humidity is lower. Make sure you have a neighborhood pool or a pool in your backyard, and find ways to enjoy the summer, because studies have shown that complaining about it doesn't make it stop.