43fit
Bouldin Creek
$2K median rent
West of South Congress: cottages, food trailers, and the SoCo strip on the doorstep.
NightlifeWalk 28Safety 21
Austin/Zilker
46fit
Zilker
Official planning area: Zilker
Data vintage. ACS 2024 5-year · APD Sep 2025 – Aug 2026 · OSM Aug 2026 · updated Sep 2026
Park first, houses second. Barton Springs and the trail set the pace; prices follow the shade.
zilker parkbarton springs
Best in Austin for familiesWalkable AustinUnder $2,500 rent
Why this score
Safety
74
22 violent · 364 property · 35.4 per 1k (Sep 2025 – Aug 2026)+24 vs city set
Schools
93
Rating 8.6 / 10 nearby+39 vs city set
Walk
9
OSM: 4 groceries · 11 cafes · 24 transit · 5 parks-9 vs city set
Cost
100
$2,175 ACS median vs your rent budget+3 vs city set
Vibe
15
OSM: 11 cafes · 56 restaurants · 15 bars · 5 parks+1 vs city set
Commute to work
From Zilker, a typical weekday is 17 min to Downtown, 22 min to UT campus, 35 min to The Domain. Not live traffic.
Downtown is the fastest of these three job centers from here.
Downtown
17 min
Rainey, Sixth, Capitol · -3 min vs the city-set median · fastest of these three
UT campus
22 min
Forty Acres · +2 min vs the city-set median
The Domain
35 min
North Burnet tech · +9 min vs the city-set median
Minutes are baked from neighborhood geography to three job centers — not Google, not this hour’s traffic.
Cost of living
ACS median gross rent is $2,175 across all occupied rental units — studios through large apartments mixed together, not a live 1-bed or 2-bed quote.
That is 20% of median household income — under the 30% HUD cost-burden line. A household at this area’s median income ($132K) could “afford” about $3,312 a month at 30% of gross pay.
64% of households rent. Median home value is $1,006,854.
ACS median rent
$2,175
30% income budget
$3,312
Rent / income
20%
Median home
$1,006,854
Rent since 2014
ACS 5-year median gross rent for Austin city. Up 71% since 2014. Zilker is 26% above the 2024 city median.
Overlapping 5-year ACS windows (B25064), not asking rent. Census does not publish a rent series for each official neighborhood, so the line is the city place. The dashed mark is this area’s ACS 2024 median.
HUD treats 30% of gross household income as the cost-burden line. We do not split ACS median rent into 1-bed vs 2-bed — that table is all occupied rental units. Method.
Within a walk
Inside the official planning area or within 800 meters of its centroid, OpenStreetMap maps 4 groceries, 11 cafes, 5 parks, and 24 transit stops.
A grocery run on foot is possible; some trips will still need a ride. Parks are close — 5 mapped parks in that radius. Transit is dense (24 stops or stations).
11 cafes and 56 restaurants make this one of the busier food pockets in the Austin set.
Counts from OpenStreetMap, 800 m. Not a Walk Score license. Groceries here beat 8 of 19 other areas in this city set.
Population
10,882
Median age
34.4
Median income
$132K
Renters
64%
Bachelor+
81%
Violent / 1k
2.0
Property / 1k
33.4
ACS 2024 5-year (2020-2024) · 3 census tracts · APD Sep 2025 – Aug 2026 · OSM 2026-08-31
WaterfrontFamily streets
Crime is APD Part I reports per 1,000 ACS residents — not a judgment of who lives here. Home and rent figures are ACS medians, not live MLS. Read the method.
On the ground
What it is like to live here, beyond the scores.
Zilker is the park, then the houses that can see it. Barton Springs, the Lady Bird Lake trail, and ACL Fest set the calendar. Zillow groups Barton Hills with the same outdoor gravity; the difference is that Zilker itself is closer to South Lamar and the trailheads, so the housing is tighter and the prices follow the shade.
You will hear festival weekends and see trail parking overflow. On ordinary Tuesdays it is dogs, strollers, and people in still-wet swimsuits walking home. Car ownership is optional if your life is the trail and the south-central grid; it is required if you work north of the river. This is Austin’s outdoor default, not its quiet one.
Compiled from Zillow neighborhood guides, 5280 Magazine, Chicago and San Francisco resident guides, Mpls With Love, Eastside LA reporting, and local coverage, 2025–2026. Editorial — not part of the fit score.
Common questions
Answers from the same ACS, crime, and OSM figures on this page.
Is Zilker safe?
On this map Zilker is safer than most Austin Neighborhood Planning Areas in the set (safety 74 vs city 50). APD logged 2.0 violent and 33.4 property incidents per 1,000 ACS residents — 35.4 combined. Rates mix residents and visitors. They are not a judgment of who lives here.
What is rent in Zilker?
ACS median rent is $2,175. Median home value is $1,006,854. About 64% of households rent. These are survey medians, not this week's listings.
Is Zilker walkable?
Walk scores 9 here vs 18 for the Austin set — you will likely drive or ride for daily errands. OpenStreetMap counts within 800 meters: 4 groceries, 11 cafes, 24 transit stops, 5 parks.
Is Zilker good for families?
The scores lean family-friendly relative to this city set. Nearby school rating is 8.6 / 10. Median age is 34.4.
How long is the commute from Zilker?
Typical weekday minutes to Downtown: 17. Not live traffic. Open the neighborhood page for the other job centers in Austin.
How many people live in Zilker?
About 10,882 residents, median income $132K, 81% with a bachelor's or higher. ACS 2024 5-year (2020-2024) · APD Sep 2025 – Aug 2026 · OSM.
What neighborhoods are next to Zilker?
Closest on this map: South Lamar, Bouldin Creek, Barton Hills. Compare Zilker vs South Lamar if you are deciding between two official planning areas.
Next door
Adjacent on the planning area map, ranked with your weights.
Zilker vs South LamarZilker vs Bouldin CreekZilker vs Barton Hills
42fit
Barton Hills
$2K median rent
Hills west of Zilker. Quiet streets, trail access, and a car for most errands.
WaterfrontFamily streetsWalk 5Safety 63
37fit
South River City
$2K median rent
Travis Heights oaks on the east side of Congress. Porches, hills, and a walk to the lake.
WaterfrontFamily streetsWalk 9Safety 32
35fit
South Lamar
$2K median rent
The corridor south of the river: retail, apartments, and a faster pulse than Barton Hills.
Walk 11Safety 42
34fit
Old West Austin
$3K median rent
Clarksville cottages west of downtown. Close to the lake trail, quieter than Rainey, priced like it.
WaterfrontFamily streetsWalk 0Safety 53