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San Antonio is the second most affordable U.S. city for a night out, study finds

The overall cost for that late-night buzz in San Antonio adds up to $134.56, making it the 2nd most affordable U.S. city for a night out and the most affordable in Texas.

Photo by John Arano on Unsplash

Inflation isn’t the only thing bringing down the vibes (and the balance) of your bank account. However, San Antonio is a far cry from the most expensive city in the country if you want to have a few drinks on a night out.

In fact, San Antonio is the No. 2 most affordable U.S. city for a night out and the most affordable in Texas. That’s according to a new study by price-monitoring website PriceListo.

The study looked at cost-of-living data from U.S. cities with populations over 500,000 to discover the average prices of a cocktail, cab fare, bottle of wine, and a pint of beer. They also collaborated with hotel deal-finders Vio to determine the median price for a single-night stay in the city.

Here's how the Alamo City stacks up: The median single-night price for a hotel stay in the city will set you back $94.71, while the cost of a three-mile cab fare is $7.58. One cocktail at a downtown club costs an average of $8, while a bottle of good-quality red wine for the table is $12. If you cap off the night at a pub, a pint of beer is just $3.27. And if you need to eat some food to offset the impending hangover, a McDonald’s combo meal costs $9. All of that adds up to the second most affordable night out in the United States. But don't forget to close out your tabs.

One U.S. city was slightly more affordable than San Antonio: Las Vegas. A night out in Sin City costs $120.76. Fort Worth was the only other Texas city to appear in the top 10 most affordable nights out, ranking No. 9 with their price for a night out at $172.14.

The top 10 cities that are the most affordable for a night out include:

No. 1: Las Vegas, Nevada – $120.76
No. 2: San Antonio, Texas – $134.56
No. 3: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – $136.98
No. 4: San Francisco, California – $142.94
No. 5: Fresno, California – $145.55
No. 6: Albuquerque, New Mexico – $157.47
No. 7: Jacksonville, Florida – $162.42
No. 8: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – $168.74
No. 9: Fort Worth, Texas – $172.14
No. 10: Chicago, Illinois – $173.81

Other Texas cities fared worse than San Antonio. In a comparison of the most expensive U.S. cities for a night out, Austin ranked as the third most expensive, with the overall cost adding up to $221.23. San Diego (No. 1) and Charlotte, North Carolina (No. 2) had slightly higher costs for their single-night outings, at $225.27 and $224.75, respectively.

Houston is home to the No. 9 most expensive city for a night out with their overall cost adding up to $209.54. Dallas, on the other hand, ranked No. 24 with the most expensive price for a cocktail ($25) but the cheapest three-mile cab fare at $5.41.

The top 10 most expensive cities for a night out are:

No. 1: San Diego, California – $225.27
No. 2: Charlotte, North Carolina – $224.75
No. 3: Austin, Texas – $221.23
No. 4: Memphis, Tennessee – $216.25
No. 5: Columbus, Ohio – $212.47
No. 6: Boston, Massachusetts – $211.16
No. 7: Seattle, Washington – $210.61
No. 8: Washington, D.C. – $210.39
No. 9: Houston, Texas – $209.54
No. 10: Tucson, Arizona – $203.39

nightclub cocktails neighborhood hang hotels reports nightlife san antonio nightlife

Vehicle News

What to know about new car inspection requirements in San Antonio

Texas Department of Motor Vehicles

Texas is changing requirements for vehicle registration.

Beginning January 1, 2025, Texas vehicle owners will no longer need to obtain a safety inspection prior to vehicle registration. House Bill 3297, passed during the 88th Legislature in 2023, eliminates the safety inspection program for non-commercial vehicles.

We'll all be free, free, free of the oppression of the safety inspection process. However …

Under the new law, the $7.50 fee that drivers had to pay as a safety inspection fee has not gone away. It now appears on your registration notice under a new name: "Inspection Program Replacement Fee."

This name change comes courtesy of the legislature, who want to keep collecting this fee because the funds go to state programs such as construction and expansion of state highways — funds they previously collected from the Safety Inspection Fee.

And while the safety inspection is gone, state law will still require that drivers in 17 counties must pass an "emission inspection" on vehicles that are 2 to 24 years old, in order to get your vehicle registered. In Bexar County, the new requirement will go into effect in 2026.

But what does an "emissions inspection" mean?

The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) details the following changes:

Safety inspection out, emissions testing in
Until December 31, 2024, safety inspections are required for vehicle registration in all 254 counties. Beginning January 1, 2025, noncommercial vehicles in Texas will no longer be required to have an annual safety inspection. Instead, vehicles will have to get an emissions inspection on gasoline-powered vehicles that are 2 to 24 years old.

What is no longer going to be "inspected"?
Texas Transportation Code §548.051 specifies the list of old-school inspection items which will no longer be checked. Moving forward, they will no longer be checking: tires, wheel assembly, safety guards, safety flaps, brakes, steering, lighting, horns, mirrors, windshield wipers, sunscreening devices, and front seat belts in vehicles on which seat belt anchorages were part of the manufacturer's original equipment.

What will still be inspected are listed as "Items 12–15": exhaust system, exhaust emissions system, fuel tank cap, and emissions control equipment. These will be part of the emissions inspection process in 17 counties.

Those 17 counties where this is relevant include:

Austin: Travis and Williamson
DFW: Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, and Tarrant
Houston: Brazoria, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, and Montgomery
El Paso County

In Bexar County, emissions inspections will be required beginning on November 1, 2026.

Where will emissions inspections be obtained?
Emissions inspections can be obtained at DPS-certified vehicle inspection stations in the 17 emissions counties. These will be the exact same inspection locations we've been going to all along, when it was called a safety inspection. Emissions inspections are not available in the other 237 Texas counties.

DPS offers an inspection station locator online.

What is the estimated cost of an emissions inspection?
Vehicle owners will pay an emissions inspection fee of $2.50 annually to the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV) at the time of registration. The actual fee you'll pay at the inspection station (as listed on TCEQ’s website) will be $25.50. Just like the former "safety inspection" fee.

In short: There is little that's changing about the entire inspection process, except they won't bother making you honk your horn.

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