About Austin, TX

Austin is the capital of Texas and is the fourth largest city in the state and the sixteenth most populous city in the nation. This great city has many things to offer from its educational facilities and world-renowned entertainment complexes offering live music, the arts, and culture, to all kinds of outdoor adventure. Austin's population of 1.4 million people includes a highly trained workforce in areas of technology, manufacturing, and research. Companies flock to the area for Austin's excellent quality of life, moderate cost of living, vast resources, and the laid-back lifestyle. Austin also has many local sports teams and includes some of the best neighborhoods to live in.

Austin Location

Austin resides in Travis County and is located in the Central Texas Hill Country, and is approximately 230 miles from Mexico and less than 200 miles from 3 of the 10 largest U.S. cities. Dallas to its north, San Antonio to its south, and Houston to its southeast.

Austin Weather

Austin averages 300 days of sunshine each year, about 33.78 inches of rainfall and it rarely snows.

Austin Government

The City of Austin has a council-manager form of government. The City Council includes seven Council Members, including the Mayor. Council Members are elected at-large for staggered three-year terms. The Council Members' offices are in Austin City Hall, located at 301 W. Second St., Austin, Texas 78701. The mailing address for all Council Members and the City Manager is P.O. Box 1088, Austin, Texas 78767.

The City Manager is appointed by the City Council and has the overall responsibility for the management of all City employees and the administration of all City affairs. The City Manager's office is also in the Municipal Building.

Austin Local Sports Teams

Please visit our Austin TX Sports page for Local Sports Teams.

Austin Accolades

Austin ranks as the 4th Best City in Overall Standard of Living by Expansion Management, June 2006
CNN.Money.com, "Austin ranks 2nd among the Top 10 Best Big Cities in the Country" - 2006
Austin ranks as the 3rd Smartest City in the country by Bizjournals.com, June 2006
Austin ranks in the Top 5 “Smart Places to Live” by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance and the Austin Business Journal, June 2006
Austin ranked 28th in Best Places for Business and Careers by Forbes, May 2006
Austin ranks 2nd in the 50 Best Places to Live by Men's Journal, March 2006
Austin ranks 6th in the Top 10 Cities for Walking by Prevention magazine, August 2006
Austin ranks as the Best Place to Live in America for Hispanics by Hispanic magazine for the second year in a row, August 2005
Austin ranks as the 2nd Best Place to Live for Movie makers by Moviemaker Magazine, December 2005
Austin ranks 3rd Best Wireless Place to Live in America by Livescience.com, June 2005
Austin ranks 2nd among the 10 Best Places to Live, judging on financial, educational and quality of life criteria by Money magazine, July 2006
Austin was included in the 8 Cheapest Places You'd Want to Live survey by Sperling's BestPlaces.com and msn.com, July 2006
Austin ranks 2nd among the 50 Best Places to Live comparing the combinations of adventure, attractiveness, and affordability by Men’s Journal, April 2006
Austin was voted the Best Place to Live for Future Business Locations by Expansion Magazine, August 2006
Austin ranks 9th in the Top 10 Hot Cities for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneur.com, September 2005
According to DogFancy Austin is one of the Top 10 Cities to Be a Dog, November 2005
Austin ranks 8th of America's Cleanest Cities by Reader's Digest, July 2005
Austin ranks 10th in the Top 10 Healthiest Cities in America by Sperling's, July 2006
Austin ranks 11th in the 25 Best Running Cities in America poll by Runners World, July 2005
Austin makes the cut as one of 50 Fabulous Gay-Friendly Places to Live by Gregory A. Kompes, December 2005
Austin ranks 2nd on Vegetarian Times' Ten Greenest Cities list, July/August 2005
Pollstar names Austin City Limits Music Festival the 'Festival of the Year' during it's annual Concert Industry Awards, February 2006
American Way magazine features 'The Top 10 Lists of Great American Music' and Austin appears on three of the lists including 'great music towns,' 'great bigger-is-better music festivals' for the Austin City Limits Music Festival and 'sacred ground' for Threadgill's restaurant, June 2005
Austin ranks 6th in a study by Silicon Valley naming the nation's Top Tech Hubs. The study compared business and quality-of-life issues, claiming Austin has affordable housing, electricity, and state taxes, September 2005
Austin is among the Coolest Cities for Young Professionals according to Kiplinger.com, September 2005
Austin ranks 1st among U.S. cities in the fourth annual Mayors Challenge rankings of the Best Cities for Future Business Locations by Management magazine
Each year, Intel ranks the Top 100 U.S. Cities and Regions with the Greatest Number of Commercial and Public Wireless Internet Access Points and Austin ranks third, October 2006
Austin ranks 3rd in a list of America's Most Innovative Cities by the Wall Street Journal