Texas Is Not One Of The Best Places To Raise A Family

Texas has taken another hit in a national quality-of-life ranking, and this time it’s harder to brush off. According to the 2026 Best States to Raise a Family report from WalletHub, the Lone Star State lands at a disappointing #34 overall — a ranking that feels generous, not harsh.

I’d love to argue with the results, but the uncomfortable truth is that the data does most of the talking. While I don’t agree with many of the policies or priorities currently shaping the state, I’ve long believed that Texas ultimately balanced out as a solid place to raise a family. Maybe that belief comes from familiarity, loyalty, or just liking Texas enough to overlook its flaws.

How the Rankings Were Determined

WalletHub didn’t toss darts at a board to get these numbers. The study evaluated states using five major categories, each built from multiple weighted metrics:

• Family Fun

• Health & Safety

• Education & Childcare

• Affordability

• Socio-Economic Factors

To give an idea of how detailed this gets, Health & Safety alone includes factors like pediatricians per capita, water quality, and more than a dozen other indicators. You can debate priorities, but it’s hard to argue the survey isn’t thorough.

The Good News… Sort Of

Here’s where things get strange. Texas ranked #2 in “Family Fun.” Second. In the entire country. That strong showing ended up masking some truly ugly results elsewhere — most notably a dead-last, 50th-place finish in Health & Safety. When one category props up several weak ones, it raises legitimate questions about how livable things really are for families.

And yes, it gets worse before it gets better.

Perspective From the Neighborhood

If Texas residents are looking for a silver lining, it might be this: New Mexico finished 50th overall, taking the bottom spot in the survey. So while Texas may be underperforming, at least it isn’t alone in struggling across the region.

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What This Really Means

Denying results like these doesn’t help — but neither does wallowing in them. Rankings like this should be viewed as either a roadmap for improvement or a wake-up call for families considering whether to put down roots elsewhere. Texas still has strengths, but surveys like this suggest that relying on reputation alone isn’t enough anymore.