park news

Houston lands top-10 rank for best Texas park system in 2026

Houston's national rank is a little lower than last year, but it's still among the top 10 in Texas.

Photo by Lance Childers/Houston First Corporation

Houston's stellar parks have been ranked the 10th best park system in Texas, according to the newly released ParkScore Index.

Every year, the Trust for Public Land, a land conservation nonprofit, rates the park systems in the 100 largest American cities based on their accessibility, equity, acreage, investment, and amenities.

The best park systems in the country are located in Washington, D.C. (No. 1); Irvine, California (No. 2); Minneapolis (No. 3) and St. Paul (No. 4), Minnesota; and Cincinnati, Ohio (No. 5).

Houston's No. 69 ParkScore ranking in 2026 is slightly lower than its No. 66 ranking last year, but the Trust for Public Land says that's because of "upward moves from other cities," rather than negative changes to the local park system.

The organization praised Houston's commitment to reserving land for parks. About 12.2 percent of land within the city limits its dedicated to parks, well above the 9.3 percent national average.

However, many Houstonians lack adequate access to a park, which is a crucial factor in the report's methodology. Currently, 65 percent of all Houston residents live within a 10-minute walk of a park, compared to the national average of 76 percent. The city also invests less money to maintain its park system — about $137 per resident — than the national average of $154 per resident.

Elsewhere in Texas, Plano and Frisco in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex boast the best park systems in the state.

Molly Morgan, the Texas State Director and Associate Vice President of Trust for Public Land, said in the release that Texas' high-scoring performance in the annual index has proved that it is making park accessibility a statewide priority.

"Cities across the Lone Star State are making serious investments, opening new parks, partnering with school districts, and closing gaps that have existed for decades," Morgan said. "They’re showing what’s possible when Texas gets serious about parks."

Morgan added that there's still more work to be done to increase park accessibility to the 9 million Texans who don't have a park within a 10-minute walk of their homes.

Here's how the rest of Texas stacks up in the national ranking:

No. 13 – Plano
No. 30 – Frisco
No. 38 – Dallas
No. 45 – Arlington
No. 47 – Austin
No. 58 – Fort Worth
No. 61 – El Paso and San Antonio (tied)
No. 64 – Garland
No. 71 – Irving
No. 72 – Corpus Christi
No. 77 – Laredo
No. 96 – Lubbock

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best places to live

7 Houston neighbors make U.S. News list of best places to live in 2026

The City of Sugar Land, Texas – City Government/Facebook

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Several Houston suburbs have been crowned the best places to live in the U.S. for 2026, according to U.S. News & World Report. Sugar Land was the highest-ranked city in the Houston metro, and ranked as the 10th best place to live in the country.

The annual list of Best Places to Live in the U.S. is designed to help readers make the most informed decisions when choosing where to settle down, using data from sources such as the U.S. Census Bureau, Department of Commerce, the Federal Reserve and the Bureau for Economic Analysis, as well as state and local sources.

For the 2026-2027 rankings, U.S. News featured 250 U.S. cities and ranked them across four livability indexes — quality of life, value, desirability, and job market — weighted by importance based on survey results of approximately 500 Americans. The rankings were also broken down state-by-state, as well as the best big, medium, and small cities overall.

Sugar Land is the No. 4 best places to live in Texas, and it soared into the No. 10 spot overall in the nation after ranking 16th last year. Sugar Land also ranked as the fourth-best mid-sized city to live in America for 2026-2027.

According to U.S. News, Sugar Land's median household income is far higher than the national average. Residents make $140,511 per year, while the average American household income is only $83,181.

Additionally, the $431,815 median home value in Sugar Land is also far greater than the $359,870 national average.

After ranking in the top 10 in the 2025 report, League City and Pearland now both rank outside the national top 10 for 2026. League City slipped from No. 6 to No. 13 this year, while Pearland sank from No. 3 nationwide to No. 16.

These three Houston suburbs also boast highly desirable job markets for potential newcomers or current residents that want to start or change their career.

Houston proper, however, remains outside of the top 250 and is the 327th best place to live in the U.S., and it's the 60th best place to live in Texas.

Other cities in the greater Houston area that ranked among the top 100 include:

No. 28 – The Woodlands
No. 38 – Katy
No. 61 – Missouri City
No. 82 – Spring

The Lone Star State had a "strong showing" in the overall top 10 thanks to its "high affordability scores," a release said. Besides Sugar Land, three more popular Texas suburbs made the cut: Leander (No. 8) outside Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth suburbs Flower Mound (No. 3) and Frisco (No. 9).

"As prices of everyday goods continue to rise, consumers are considering affordability as a top priority when choosing a place to live," said U.S. News consumer lending analyst Erika Giovanetti. "While U.S. News’ consumer survey indicated that quality of life and affordability were close in importance, cost-of-living concerns resulted in many Americans putting what they can afford above their aspirations."

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