Admit it - you expected this figure to be higher. It would seem that despite the well-known saying, not everything is bigger in Texas. The cost of living certainly isn't. With all of its oil riches, we tend to associate this state with oil barons and the kind of millionaires who made up much of the cast of 'Dallas,' but none of that changes the fact that it's in the south, and so it's cheap!
Housing and food are actually higher than the national average, coming in north of $17,000, but the generally lower cost of other essentials on top of that helps to balance things out a little. The Lone Star State is primarily known for two things - barbecues, and live music! Texas is loud, proud, large, and baking hot. It isn't, however, full of deserts. Despite people constantly making that connection, only 10% of the land in the state can be classed as such.