Choose the school,then the street.
In Texas, your address decides your public school. Here is how ratings and zones work, what each district looks like in 2026, and what families pay for private school and childcare.
Every school has a grade.Every address has a zone.
Texas grades each district and each campus from A to F. You attend the campus your home is zoned to, unless you apply for something else.
- 01Read the campus grade, not just the district’s
TEA grades are based on test results, year-over-year growth and, for high schools, college and career readiness. One district can have both A and F campuses, so look up each school on TXschools.gov.
- 02Find your zoned school by address
Every district has an online school finder. Enter the exact address and write down the elementary, middle and high school.
- 03Expect boundaries to move
Districts redraw zones when schools open or close. Austin ISD closed 10 campuses and changed many boundaries for 2026–27.
- 04Know the transfer rules
Transfers to another campus depend on space and usually have a set window each year. Leander ISD began accepting some out-of-district students for 2026–27 when space allows.
- 05Consider schools of choice
Magnet programs and public charter schools admit by application or lottery, with their own deadlines. A seat is not guaranteed by your address.
Eight districts.Very different maps.
Most Greater Austin families live in one of these districts. The district grade is an average, so the campus counts show the real range.
Campus counts include only campuses that got a letter grade. New schools and alternative programs marked “Not Rated” are left out. Nearby: Hutto ISD C (75), Liberty Hill ISD B (85), Dripping Springs ISD B (89). Student counts are TEA’s 2025–26 figures, rounded.
Sources: Texas Education Agency 2026 A–F ratings (campus file and TXschools.gov district data, released Aug. 14, 2026)
Private school costs.About $14,000 to $45,000.
Austin has independent, faith-based and alternative schools. These are published 2026–27 prices. Most schools offer need-based aid.
New for 2026–27: Texas Education Freedom Accounts pay $10,474 per child toward an approved private school (up to $30,000 for some students with disabilities). Demand was far higher than funding: about 274,000 applications for roughly 100,000 awards, with a lottery for lower tiers. Not every school takes part. Griffin, for example, is not participating in 2026–27.
Sources: each school’s published 2026–27 tuition page; Texas Comptroller, Texas Education Freedom Accounts (2026)
Infant care costs the most.Plan months ahead.
Childcare in Travis County costs more than in the suburbs around it. Infant rooms are the hardest to get into.
Median full-day rate is $55 a day. The top quarter of centers charge about $1,350 a month or more. Toddlers run about $1,135.
Median infant rate in the surrounding counties is $45.60 a day. Rates were surveyed in 2024, so ask each center for current prices.
The state’s quality rating for childcare, at 2, 3 or 4 stars, above basic licensing. Every licensed center’s inspection history is public on the state’s Search Texas Child Care site.
Free pre-K is for 4-year-olds who qualify by income, limited English, military family, foster care, homelessness or certain first-responder families. Austin ISD charges $700 a month for full-day Pre-K4 if you don’t qualify.
Popular centers keep waitlists, especially for infants. Travis County’s subsidized-care waitlist has been in the thousands of children.
Many elementary schools host after-school care run by the YMCA, Boys & Girls Clubs, Extend-A-Care or the district. Spots fill before school starts.
Sources: Texas Workforce Commission, 2024 Texas Child Care Market Rate Survey (monthly = daily rate × about 21.7 weekdays); TWC Texas Rising Star; Texas HHS; TEA; Austin ISD (2026); KUT (2026); Greater Austin YMCA; Round Rock ISD; Leander ISD
Lots to do with kids.Much of it free.
Most weekends are spent outdoors, near water, or at a museum or library. Every part of the metro has good choices.
- Zilker Park — big lawns, playscape and Barton Springs Pool
- Austin Nature & Science Center — free, with the Dino Pit and wildlife exhibits
- Thinkery at Mueller — hands-on children’s museum
- Central Library downtown — a large children’s area and free programs
- Pease Park’s Kingsbury Commons — playscape and splash pad
- Brushy Creek Lake Park — trail, lake and splash pad in Cedar Park
- Old Settlers Park — ball fields and Rock’N River water park in Round Rock
- Kalahari Round Rock — 223,000-square-foot indoor water park
- Dell Diamond — minor-league baseball with Round Rock Express
- San Gabriel Park — river, trails and Blue Hole in Georgetown
- City of Austin splash pads — 10 free splash pads, open May through October
- Neighborhood and HOA pools — common in suburban subdivisions
- Lake Travis parks — swimming and boating west of town
- McKinney Falls State Park — waterfalls and camping in Southeast Austin
- Library summer reading programs — free across the metro
What local parents know.Before you sign.
Melissa Jung, REALTOR®Most school mistakes happen before closing. These tips come from helping families relocate.
Tell us about your kids.We’ll map the schools.
Share grades, school priorities and your commute. We’ll shortlist neighborhoods and check each address with the district before you make an offer.