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Robert Lee, Texas

Robert Lee is a small town of about 1,100 people in Coke County, Texas. It's the county seat. Its population has held about steady since 2020. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Austin, is about 196 miles away as the crow flies.

County seat

Population
1,061
up 1.2% since 2020
Household income
$34,172
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, rural Texas
87.8
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
30 miles
San Angelo, TX
To Austin
196 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 12.2% below the U.S. average in the parts of Texas outside metro areas.
  • More house for the moneyThe Census survey didn't reach enough homes in Robert Lee to say.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Robert Lee itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in town1 public school: 1 K-12 and 1 other.
  • A hospital close byShannon Medical Center in San Angelo, about 30 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityAustin is about 196 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Robert Lee meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical household income
$34,172U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
55%U.S.: 65%
Homes built before 1940
0%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
2%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
2%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
87.8U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Texas outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Texas outside metro areas, not Robert Lee alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
1,0612020: 1,048
Median age
45.5 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
31%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
14%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
12%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
4%U.S.: 6%
College students
8%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Finance, insurance and real estate (14%)
Unemployment rate
3%U.S.: 5%
Work from home
6%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
27%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Shannon Medical Center, San Angelo, TX, about 30 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 3 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

1 public school in Robert Lee, run by Robert Lee Isd.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Texas's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
55%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
88%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
30°F
July average high
96°F
Days 90°F or hotter
114 a year
Nights at or below freezing
63 a year
Rain and melted snow
21.4 inches a year
Snow
0 inches a year
Elevation
1,830 feet

Weather station: Robert Lee 4WSW (3 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Shannon Medical Center, San Angelo, Austin.

Coke County is outside any metro area, with fewer than 5,000 people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 8, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.

Read about Robert Lee's history on Wikipedia.

Know Robert Lee?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Bronte, TX981 people, 11 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.