Bang for Buck
Here's how big of an apartment $1,500 gets in San Antonio
$1,500 gets San Antonio renters a lot of square footage.
Budget-conscious renters searching for the roomiest apartments in the region should look no further than the Alamo City. According to a new study, San Antonio has the 9th biggest apartments on a budget in Texas.
In 2026, San Antonians can rent a 1,023-square-foot apartment for $1,500 per month, which the report says is enough space for a two- or three-bedroom unit. That's 10 square feet bigger than what they could get with the same budget last year.
RentCafe's annual report analyzes the places where renters can find the largest apartment sizes across 200 of the most populous U.S. cities for a monthly budget of $1,500. The price per square foot was calculated using the average apartment rent and size per city based on "multifamily properties" containing 50 or more units.
McAllen leads the nation with the biggest apartment size – at 1,378 square feet – which is large enough for a three- or four-bedroom unit.
"With rents averaging just $993 and the typical apartment measuring 912 square feet, McAllen renters get a lot more space for their money than most Americans do within that monthly budget," the report said. "Still, that figure is down slightly from last year’s 1,393 square feet — a sign that even the most affordable markets are starting to tighten."
Brownsville, another city on the border located an hour east of McAllen, ranks fourth statewide with apartments spanning 1,213 square feet for the same budget.
These are the top 10 Texas cities that offer the biggest apartments for $1,500 in 2026:
- No. 1 – McAllen (1,378 square feet)
- No. 2 – Amarillo (1,237 square feet)
- No. 3 – Lubbock (1,217 square feet)
- No. 4 – Brownsville (1,213 square feet)
- No. 5 – El Paso (1,128 square feet)
- No. 6 – Pasadena (1,125 square feet)
- No. 7 – Corpus Christi (1,115 square feet)
- No. 8 – Killeen (1,058 square feet)
- No. 9 – San Antonio (1,023 square feet)
- No. 10 – Mesquite (988 square feet)
