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Austin is not comparable to Dallas and Houston. Metro Dallas is more populous than the entire Bay Area, San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose metros, and Houston is just a few hundred thousand lower in population. Austin is about a million and a half.
Culturewise, Austin is no Sacramento, in fact, you could call it the Berkeley of Texas.
Weatherwise, I'd say that Sacramento in August is hotter than Any of the Texas cities mentioned, but less humid.
I lived in Sacramento for several years, and I don't remember it being particularly cosmopolitan, especially in comparison to the Bay Area. Houston has attracted many immigrants from around the world, but the bulk of its immigration is from Mexico, with smaller numbers of Desi and East Asians. Dallas would be similar.
I don't believe anyone has defined precisely the word "diversity", nor is it quantifiable. So it is impossible to say that one metro is more diverse than another. Would Houston be more diverse if it had fewer Mexican immigrants and more Mongolian immigrants?
Houston has the most humidity, the Dallas area has almost the same weather as Sacramento, with exception to the lack of night time cooling in the summer months.
Traffic is a little worse in Houston, but not much. It's important to try and live closer to your work or within acceptable commute time. If you move then you could always do a 6 month lease until you find work then move.
Both areas are very widespread metros so traffic is heavy during rush hours.
Diversity is wide ranging in both areas. Houston is most diverse. Houston has many more Asians than DFW. Both areas are very diverse as most of Texas is heavy Hispanic and White....Houston, Dallas and East Texas have large Black populations, but still much smaller in numbers compared to Hispanics and Whites.
The severe weather systems are rare. Oklahoma and Kansas get lot's of tornadoes during in storm season, but in Texas not near as much as OK and KS. Texas is the 2nd most populated state in the USA so there doesn't seem much concern for the 25+million living here.
This made me laugh! I think it's so amusing to hear Dallasites try and compare their weather to anywhere in California. Yes the humidity in Dallas is a little less than Houston but it is nowhere near the Mediterranean climate they wish it to be. The weather in Dallas and Houston SUCKS compared to California. Sorry but that's just the way it is.
You cant go wrong with either Dallas or Houston compared to CA. Houston is much more humid than Dallas and both are more so than Sac. The economy is good here and the cost of living compared to CA is much lower and more than makes up for the weather. Both are diverse and integrated with people from all over the globe or all nationalities living here for a good reason. So yes even someone from CA can manage to live here and be happy despite the weather
As a resident of Sacramento for 7 years, and a resident of the Bay area for longer than that, I can assure everyone there is no such thing as a generic California weather.
Even in LA county, there are different kinds of climates. The beach area can be 70 degres while the San Fernando valley is pushing 100.
The California Central Valley, 80% of the state's area, has summers about as hot as Texas. It's not exactly the same... The humidity is a bit lower, sort of like West Texas, and in the winter, the fog banks are so thick, you can barely see the car ahead of you on the freeway.
The California coastal waters are freezing, and even as far south as Los Angeles, you can only stay in the water for so long. In the Bay Area, if you try to go in the water, you'll die of hypothermia without a wet suit. I much prefer Corpus beaches, even Galveston, to any California beach. The Sacramento beaches on Folsom lake are about as good as the Dallas lake beaches, though.
The climate in the mountains has no possible resemblance to the climate in San Diego, as you might imagine.
Sacramento summers, in the Central Valley, are blistering hot, much hotter than Dallas, but less humid, so the heat index is roughly the same. Winter temperatures are about the same, with highs in the low 50s. The difference is the winter fog and the absence of Blue Northers from Canada.
In terms of terrain, Sacramento and the rest of the Central Valley is flat. Maybe on a clear day, from a certain point in town, you can make out a clear haze that might be the Sierras. It is possible, though, to drive an hour or two into foothill country, sort of like driving north of Dallas into the Arbuckles in Oklahoma, or west to Palo Pinto county.
As a resident of Sacramento for 7 years, and a resident of the Bay area for longer than that, I can assure everyone there is no such thing as a generic California weather.
Even in LA county, there are different kinds of climates. The beach area can be 70 degres while the San Fernando valley is pushing 100.
The California Central Valley, 80% of the state's area, has summers about as hot as Texas. It's not exactly the same... The humidity is a bit lower, sort of like West Texas, and in the winter, the fog banks are so thick, you can barely see the car ahead of you on the freeway.
The California coastal waters are freezing, and even as far south as Los Angeles, you can only stay in the water for so long. In the Bay Area, if you try to go in the water, you'll die of hypothermia without a wet suit. I much prefer Corpus beaches, even Galveston, to any California beach. The Sacramento beaches on Folsom lake are about as good as the Dallas lake beaches, though.
The climate in the mountains has no possible resemblance to the climate in San Diego, as you might imagine.
Sacramento summers, in the Central Valley, are blistering hot, much hotter than Dallas, but less humid, so the heat index is roughly the same. Winter temperatures are about the same, with highs in the low 50s. The difference is the winter fog and the absence of Blue Northers from Canada.
In terms of terrain, Sacramento and the rest of the Central Valley is flat. Maybe on a clear day, from a certain point in town, you can make out a clear haze that might be the Sierras. It is possible, though, to drive an hour or two into foothill country, sort of like driving north of Dallas into the Arbuckles in Oklahoma, or west to Palo Pinto county.
Like you I love the DFW area, but youre painting it more rosy than it actually is.
The weather here cannot be compared to Sacramento. Not saying there are no similarities, but they are very different weather wise. However, if youre trying to say that Dallas weather is closer to Sacramento weather than Houston, I would agree.
Like you I love the DFW area, but youre painting it more rosy than it actually is.
The weather here cannot be compared to Sacramento. Not saying there are no similarities, but they are very different weather wise. However, if youre trying to say that Dallas weather is closer to Sacramento weather than Houston, I would agree.
Since I gave a pretty extensive description of the Sacramento weather I lived in, I'd like to hear your details. What are your disagreements with me, specifically.
Sac and the Central valley are foggy in the winter, and there are no Blue Northers, the local term for sudden cold fronts that usually dissipate in a day or two. Sac summers are exceedingly hot, since the valley is isolated from the cold Pacific ocean by coastal mountain ranges, and the winters are fairly moderate and similar to Dallas winters, high temps in the upper 50's. The occasional Buue Northers are an exception to that rule. The Central Valley summer temps are generally hotter than Texas for two reasons. First, the cold maritime air from the Pacific ocean cannot get thru the coastal ranges to moderate the valley, and since the valley is entirely surrounded by mountains, cooler air cannot come down to the valley from the north in the same way that cooler Canadian air occasionally moderates Texas. Basically, the sun heats the Central valley just as the sun heats a car interior with the windows shut.
Imagine the valley and also Texas as receiving more heat from the sun than more northern areas. The natural tendency is for heat to flow towards cold, and that is how Texas heat flows to the Canadian Arctic across thousands of miles of flat prairie. The Central Valley heat cannot flow north, and remains trapped in the Valley, and you get temps over 110 in many years.
Actually, there is a third reason. The moisture rich Pacific air can't carry any humidity across the coastal ranges, so the valley is much less humid than the Cali coast. The drier air has more extremes in temperature, especially toward higher temps. This is the same phenomenon that makes Houston slightly cooler than Dallas in the summer... It's greater humidity moderates a rise in temperature...
Now if you disagree with any of the points above, please state which ones, and what your interpretation is. And if you have any additional info that enhances the differences, please tell us what it is.
Since I gave a pretty extensive description of the Sacramento weather I lived in, I'd like to hear your details. What are your disagreements with me, specifically.
Sac and the Central valley are foggy in the winter, and there are no Blue Northers, the local term for sudden cold fronts that usually dissipate in a day or two. Sac summers are exceedingly hot, since the valley is isolated from the cold Pacific ocean by coastal mountain ranges, and the winters are fairly moderate and similar to Dallas winters, high temps in the upper 50's. The occasional Buue Northers are an exception to that rule. The Central Valley summer temps are generally hotter than Texas for two reasons. First, the cold maritime air from the Pacific ocean cannot get thru the coastal ranges to moderate the valley, and since the valley is entirely surrounded by mountains, cooler air cannot come down to the valley from the north in the same way that cooler Canadian air occasionally moderates Texas. Basically, the sun heats the Central valley just as the sun heats a car interior with the windows shut.
Imagine the valley and also Texas as receiving more heat from the sun than more northern areas. The natural tendency is for heat to flow towards cold, and that is how Texas heat flows to the Canadian Arctic across thousands of miles of flat prairie. The Central Valley heat cannot flow north, and remains trapped in the Valley, and you get temps over 110 in many years.
Actually, there is a third reason. The moisture rich Pacific air can't carry any humidity across the coastal ranges, so the valley is much less humid than the Cali coast. The drier air has more extremes in temperature, especially toward higher temps. This is the same phenomenon that makes Houston slightly cooler than Dallas in the summer... It's greater humidity moderates a rise in temperature...
Now if you disagree with any of the points above, please state which ones, and what your interpretation is. And if you have any additional info that enhances the differences, please tell us what it is.
Dallas has a humid subtropical climate where Sacramento has a Mediterranean climate. The dew points (which give humid air that uncomfortable feeling) will also be higher in Dallas.
Dallas has a humid subtropical climate where Sacramento has a Mediterranean climate. The dew points (which give humid air that uncomfortable feeling) will also be higher in Dallas.
the two climate types are similar, even if not identical. Sacramento is classified as a Csa climate, whereas Dallas is a Cfa climate. Pretty close. To learn more, look up the Koppen classification in Wikipedia.
The difference between the humid subtropical climate and Sacramento's Med climate is the lack of summer rain storms in Sac, whereas Dallas has thunderstorms in the summertime.
Other than that, the two areas will feel about the same, since the lower humidity in Sac will moderate the higher temperature, giving us about the same comfort index in the summer. Winter temperatures will be about the same in both areas. The presence of summer rains is an advantage for Dallas, since it gives a temporary break to the high temps, and provides some variability to break the monotony.
Dew point and humidity are just different ways to measure, or describe, the same phenomenon, the degree to which the air can absorb more water. In the case of human comfort, it is about how well the air can dry your perspiration, which is the way your body gets rid of internal heat, and cools your skin. A lower humidity level and a higher air temperature balances out.
I think you'll agree that the two weather patterns are comparable, even if they are not identical, and we compare them to discover their similarities and differences.
Sacramento is Hot in the Summer and Cold in the Winter and Mild in Spring and Fall.....and Dallas is the exact same....sure there will be a few differences, but Sacramento is very comparable to Dallas weather wise. P.S. Sacramento Winters may not match the temps in Dallas, but it's so DAMP that 40 degrees sends a deep chill into your bones...it almost feels colder than a Dallas 30 Degrees in winter.
Does the affordability make up for the severe weather systems in the areas?
Both have severe weather in storms. Houston, being coastal, is by far the more frequent and intense. If thunderstorms and massive lightening striking near you is a problem then you might want to consider Colorado.
In Houston, those storms are some of the most magnificent shows on earth. When in the work place, I've seen L.A. transplants head for inner rooms during thunderstorms.
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