Comparing Texas and Florida 

I wonder if the older population in Florida skews some of the income and GNP. It would be interesting to see the age distribution of the two states

The Florida Economy is not as diverse as Texas. There is no manufacturing base in Florida, so there is a lack of good paying blue color jobs. Also, because Florida relies on tourism, there are a lot more people employed in low-paying services jobs. Also, a lot of retirees come here and aren't working which tends to skew Florida's economy. I live in Florida and see it every day. You are either the one of five with a good paying job or the four of five with a low paying job. I do think the geography is a factor. There really is no good soil for agriculture. If there were to be a manufacturing base it would need to be along the I-10 corridor in particular close to I-75 and I-95. That would basically be Jacksonville and Lake City. In the end, I think it is really hard to compare the two states. Texas is just so big and much more diverse.

Very good Kyle! I'm a native of Florida but retired to the mountains of New Hampshire. I guess one can take only so much heat & humidity and high cost of living. I love to ski, hike & kayak and Florida is simply too hot & crowded to enjoy that. My children all moved to Texas because of economic opportunity and lower cost of living. It has turned out to be a good decision for them.

If I had to choose between the two, I’d choose Texas. As much as I dislike the cold and snow in Pennsylvania, I’d rather have that instead of air feeling like boiling hot soup in the summer, and hurricanes!

Florida’s biggest industry after tourism is medical care for all the retirees. In my town the biggest ~10 private employers are hospitals or assisted living facilities. The premiums and SS withholding money was paid in when the retirees were working in other states, but the benefits are spent in FL, unlike most places where the money is raised and spent in the same general location.

I think one thing was possibly missed, and that is the reason for each state's population growth. It also has a lot to do with how much each state contributes to the economy of the country as a whole. Texas has largely grown due to various industries, so a lot of working-aged individuals have headed there for work. Florida has grown because the aging population has grown so much. The Baby Boom generation is the biggest generation to get old so far. Jerry Seinfeld said it best, "My parents didn't want to move to Florida, but they turned 60 and it's the law..."

Very good analysis Kyle. One can't deny the facts. Texas is vastly more diverse and makes a much, much greater contribution to our country than Florida. I grew up in Houston and currently live in southwest Florida. I love Florida and wouldn't leave it to return to Texas. But I can tell you that Florida isn't for everybody. It's very different living here, especially in the southern part of the state.

One thing that was not mentioned was the financial sectors. It has been some time since I studied this, but I remember that Dallas was the financial hub for most of the surrounding states in the region, Oklahoma and so on, while Houston was the financial center for most of Mexico, thus two very influential hubs. Miami, however, was the financial hub for all of Latin America other than Mexico, and also the Caribbean, I think. Of course, that's also rooted more-or-less in geography.

Just keep making videos dude. They are appreciated.

I moved from the Bay Area in California to the Florida Panhandle, and my cost of living stayed the same, but my income went down in FL 20% doing the same job for the same company.

That last point was hilarious, Kyle! Other commenters also brought up something not mentioned in the video: Florida's huge elder/retiree population.

Love this channel! Thank you Kyle

This is a great video, thanks Kyle!

Excellent video! That really clears it up.

This is the first of your videos that I have seen. Awesome!

I really like your analysis of geography, it's very well done. Geography does play an important part in the states' similarities and differences, advantages and disadvantages. However, I wouldn't so quickly discount the role of policy making here. We just need to be willing to look at the nuances, something that people online seem to be allergic to.

Pretty accurate breakdown but the underlying question is how is Florida's economy going to support our massive population numbers?

Your video is more on-line with my geography degree than I've seen before. Thank You Sir. 🌎🌞

Great video!

Really hope to see the return of State profiles soon!

Floridian here, watched til the end. Go ahead and dunk on us, it's kind of a fun running gag for your channel at this point, haha. See ya in the wintertime 🤙

Great video. Are you planning on a Nebraska vs. Wisconsin video? Kind of a March madness rematch from a few years ago?

Sorry to nitpick, but NASA is headquartered in DC. Johnson Space Center ("Houston") is flight control for crewed missions. There are ~18 NASA centers (like Johnson) that are spread around the country.

One overlooked aspect of Florida is that it's also very important to international commerce. Several Latin American companies have US offices in Florida, to take advantage of a large bilingual population. So no, it's not just tourism and orange juice.

Love that Waylon LP Kyle

I live in Florida and have lived in other states. I agree with your overall assessment. That being said, if Florida disappeared, the depression rate in the US/Canada may be measurably higher. Not only do many people, who can afford to, spend winter here but so many people work towards and dream about the day that can move to or vacation in Florida. It truly helps a lot of people cope. Take that away and depression could set in. Hope is a powerful thing.

great stuff! :-)

Do this video comparing New York & California please

Really cool video. How about doing more states

I had the same thought as a prior comment: Florida’s GDP is probably skewed by the percentage of retirees. Also, I think Texas gets a lot of tax dollars from oil and gas production which, like tourists and those affiliated taxes, is spread out to all consumers whether they live in Texas or elsewhere.

Geography king, was wondering if you could do a video on the 'Swap Meets' of California and surrounding states. Thanks, big fan 😇👍

I love your videos, I'll be 21 soon, and I've lived in Florida's small towns my whole life. I do worry my memory's will someday be under the ocean. I don't know how people live anywhere near the coast in Florida, I like to be a few dozen miles from the beach. The hurricane winds really give a beating to the houses during landfall.

Very interesting, thank you.

i like both states

I'm 27 and was born in Southeast Florida and have lived here my whole life and I don't think I'll be moving anytime soon. I think it's pretty nice living here except for the hot muggy summers and the winters here are pretty much perfect weather. Also the low taxes for residents is pretty nice.

I'm from Florida but I'll still give you a thumbs 👍🏼 up Love your videos Keep up the good work Kyle

Love your vids man. Geography/cartography lover here. Native Texan in DFW. 110 here and only 85 in Miami. Sounds good but nah Texas>Florida. Just waiting on October to get here.

You need to add Florida's greatest cultural contribution: FLORIDA MAN! Written as a long term resident of Florida. Dave Berry & Carl Hiaasen would be proud.

As a native Texan who just happens to be in Florida right now visiting friends and family, I approve of this video. Florida is nice to visit but there’s no place like Texas!

Come to Greenville SC. Lots to see and do and great places for the Geo Trivia vids- Liberty Bridge, Unity Park, etc.

Having grown up in the Ft. Lauderdale metro, I’ve always wondered what industries exist such that the COL is so high. Not everyone can own a landscaping business, so what do people do that causes housing prices to be astronomical?

Florida's importance is its uniqueness(interpret as you will). I do live here but only for the last couple years. Im a nature guy, so Florida is quite significant in that regard.

As a FL resident - I agree with your assessment. I'd be curious to see a comparison of the # of retirees between FL and TX . I would expect that FL income is lower due to a larger number of retirees.

Thumbs up from a native Floridian

Kyle, well done, small correction - Time 8:05, NASA Headquarters is in DC (like nearly all federal programs like NASA). NASA in Florida - Kennedy Space Center - mainly assembles spacecraft and launches rockets. NASA in Texas - Johnson Space Center - houses Mission Control and trains astronauts, along with lots of research, design, and analysis supporting human life-support systems. JSC is comparatively a lot smaller and closer to a major city (Houston) than KSC. Both have good visitor centers but KSC's is much, much larger with more exhibits and artifacts. It must be said though that JSC's visitor center has more mockups that you can actually go inside (so it feels like you are actually in a spacecraft! - can't sit in a flown artifact!).

Which states/cities in the US are the best to live in when you factor in jobs, healthcare availibility/costs, house costs, state taxes, sales tax, real estate taxes, other taxes, real estate insurance, auto insurance, food/basic living costs, etc? It would be great to see how it changes between different groups of people. I guess mostly working and retired?

I agree with you. I moved to Texas from Florida, although I like both states for different reasons. My family's roots go way back in Florida but there's tons more opportunity for the cost of living in Texas, at least in my experience

Florida also gives us "Florida Man" memes. :)

Kyle, I studied methods and statistics in college. Median income is the better measure. The mean is skewed by a few very wealthy. Thank you for the video keep up the good work!

I agree that politics is not the only factor that shapes a state.

It’s hard to compare I think. Florida is definitely becoming more important to the US today. Compared to Florida though, Texas has tons of natural resources, is more centrally located, has 8 million more people, is 4.8 times larger in size, and has way more diverse climates & biomes. You have to understand too…Florida (besides like St. Augustine) was basically just swamps and mosquitoes until the 1920s. In the 1920s, Florida finally surpassed a population of 1 million. Texas around the same time had like 4 million people, and TX reached 1 million people back in the 1870s. So Texas had way more time to establish itself as a major state. The only other state comparable to FL really is New York, but that’s different because of NYC and it being like one of the financial, cultural, and political centers of the world. Plus, NYC has been the country’s largest city for most of its history now. Also, I must say…I love Texas. But Florida hands down has the better beaches and theme parks. Give FL time…it will catch up.

Your analysis is great to hear and I enjoy statistics. One crucial factor altering the economy is age of the residents. Florida has one of the highest median ages in the US, at 42.7. Texas has the second lowest, at 35.2. A large percentage of Floridians are retired, skewing median income lower. Many have substantial assets but little reported income. I expect percentages of people in the workforce vary greatly. Also, Florida has far more snowbirds than any state, people who live there part time during the winter. They are not counted in the Florida census and they do not vote there. Yet they are in Florida during winter months spending money. Florida is very heavy in tourism and those jobs generally have lower than average pay. However, Miami is attracting substantial banking and financial assets as companies relocate from New York to Florida.

I live in Florida and agree with you. Florida is largely a place where people spend money, not create it. It is also overweighted with retirees who are not contributing to the GDP.

oh where's your Sierra Nevada map gone ?

They both became states in 1845?

And orange industry been dying my whole life. Another cost of living difference to account for is insurance, with Florida having one of the highest costs of home and car insurance in the US; it'd be interesting to know these comparisons if you do another video. NY and Cali next, to follow a somewhat similar structure??

Lol...Kyle ur really funny with ur geography....I'm learning n laughing at the same time.

I’m from San Antonio, also known as the largest city in the Texas hill country. It’s filled with tourists especially near the Alamo building.

Theres a lot of retired people in Florida who have a very low income, so that likely skews that metric. That might change a bit as recently more people are working age. Miami also is getting more finance jobs as people move from NYC, overall yeah Texas is way more diversified

Nasa HQ is actually in DC! The Houston NASA is just one of the larger nasa centers and focuses especially on Human spaceflight (as opposed to interplanetary science, earth science, building the rockets themselves, etc)

It's either Miami metro area or Miami-Ft. Laud-West Palm Beach metro. Miami is the southern end and West Palm is the northern end of the metro area. Calling it just Mia-Ft.L is misleading because it leaves out the entire northern 3rd of the metro area. Besides, Lauderdale is pretty nondescript and not really known for anything.

I lived in Vero Beach Fl. Our condo was directly on the ocean. The homes on the barrier island and those directly on the inter coastal river were about half of the tax base. But less than 6% of the housing units in the county. Proper comparisons would be a 3 bedroom 2 bath 1800 sf house in urban, suburbs and rural areas in both states. What percentage of homeowner have paid off their home. I bet the retired population of FL. changes the equation .

Love it keep it up man

I feel like the desirability for a place to be where someone retires doesn’t get mentioned a lot when discussing the pros and cons of a state’s financial prospects. If wealthy retired people want to move to one state more than another, that’s going to be a big boost to the economy of the more desirable state. And that can counter the other state offering more better paid jobs. Vacations homes also are a factor which work similarly but don’t require the buyer to even be retired yet. I don’t particularly want to live in either Florida or Texas, but I recognize that Florida is probably more desirable per capita for retired people than Texas. And feel like that should be weighted a bit in this comparison.

What about service industries? I suspect that there are quite a few service industries in Florida that do very well-perhaps as well or better than Texas. Advertising/marketing, tourism (Florida is also the #1 cruise destination in the world), scammer call-centers, Texas & Florida both have ridiculous numbers of insurance companies, real estate companies are every other door in buildings in Florida. Economies aren't just manufacturing and agriculture. I am not saying I know, but I would like to see that added to the analysis.

Lot aof good points int jis bideo always, but i rhink your thinking of the categories of "politics" and "geography" in fairly rigid and simplistic terms that leave little nuance. For example, Florida undeniably has incredible beaches and amazing weather, but the origin of the panhandle, with some of the best besches in the nation and a sizeable toueist economy, is undeniably political. It is part of the state due to a mix of colonization and treaties which created the mordern day borders of the state. If Tallahassee hadnt been the state capitol or france and spain hadnt colonized the state, maybe the northern would be part of Alabama or Georgia. Furthermore, Florida is not the only state with hreat gulf coast beaches, Alabama, Mississippi, and Texas all have great beaches, why do they not have the tourist economy of Florida? Why are Galveston and Corpus Christi not meccas of tourism? The answer is both geographiccal (hurricanes and population density) but also political (local ideology/attitude as well as investments/insentives). Furthermore, the existance of Disneyland in Florida is not entirely geographical. Disneyland exists in large part because of the great Florida weather and cheap land, but its not the only state or place with those characteristics. Plenty of the south and sunbelt, including Texas, jave those characteristics. Im not an expert on the founding of Disneyland but im sure state incentives played a role, as well as the narrative that Walt Disney had of his company, the various regions of the US, and the narrative he presented to the public. Finally, Floridas future is determined both by geographical and political characteristics. Florida is an incredibly flat low lying state, surrounded by water and constantly threatened by hurricanes, natural geographical features of the state. These features undeniably put Florida at a high risk when it comes to climate change. Yet political factors undeniably play a role in how severe climate change will be in Florida, how well prepared the state is for it, and how residents will respond to it. When we look at such broad at deeply ruted influences like georgaphy and politics on such simplistic terms, we miss a large part of the picture and, to be honest, we find much more simplistic results and narratives.

Two states I would probably never choose to live in but a ton of people disagree with me. Maybe these states should start investing more heavily in public transit!

To really compare their population vs economy, you must compare the number of tax returns filed. Many retirees aren't required to file returns. Is Florida important? Yes! They house a tremendous amount to retirees...people who worked their entire lives building up this nation, and now prefer to live in a more moderate climate. The fact that Florida provides such a geographic area, is very important, to my way of thinking.

The majority of my life has been in either FL or TX, and I have to say that your analysis seems right on target…except for one thing-politics. Until very recently-does 2000 bring anything to mind?-FL has been a swing state. TX has been a one-party state for almost all of my 57 years. It switched from DEM to GOP with slight variations between Dolph Briscoe and W with no competitive races on either end. FL is a completely different story in both gubernatorial and senatorial elections. The divide between rural and urban in TX far exceeds that in FL.

Texas, like Florida, also taxes the residents of other states instead of its own residents’ income. Texas generates literally billions of dollars in natural gas and oil extraction taxes every year. That energy is shipped to basically every US state, meaning that the cost of Texas’ energy production tax is baked into the price of oil in those states. Thanks, everyone else!

Florida is home to the restaurant chain! We provide the nation with mediocre restaurants strip malls everywhere!

The main reason for such a large difference in income number is the much higher number of retirees in FLa. Many who have large assets but low income.

Florida has business personal property tax and a corporate income tax.

i love these vids . anyone else find him really attractive

You missed Florida’s biggest resource, we have the most springs per capita at least in the US, and we are the sport fishing capitol of at least the US last time I checked. If you love wildlife there is nowhere in the US better than FL to live.

Climate change will play the biggest factor in economic differences during the coming decades since Florida's population centers, at their lower elevations, will succumb to massive floods, for more days than not each year, once the sea levels rise more. Texas, while most likely desertifying, will still be able to house major population centers away from its, too, flooding coastlines.

With older people that move to Florida you don’t have the tax burden of education for their kids and they don’t drive as much. They still contribute with sales and property taxes.

You didn't mention the medical centers and investigation that are relevant in TX economy. Also, Houston's port is among the largest of the US

I live in Orlando and tourism is a smaller part of the local economy than you think (about 17%). I have a neighbor who works for a company that services roller coasters. Other than that I don't know anyone who works in anything tourist related. In Tampa and Jax it's even smaller as a percentage of those economies. I'm convinced that tourism has really just remade the local economy in its own image and if it slowly went away other industries would fill the void. Anyway, I think the geography and how late the state was settled sre key. A 24 hour drive from Dallas gets you to 90% of the US and Mexican population. Like 450 million people. 24 hours from Orlando gets you about half that. There's not good farming here and citrus is dead because of the citrus greening/blight. The future here is fintech and defense.

Thanks Kyle for making this video. People say if California and Texas make a baby, you'd get Florida

Great video. Why is CA such a big tax state, then, if they have so much tourism? Does CA have structural disadvantages like lack of water or lots of agriculture that require tons of tax support?

Texas is the gateway to trade with Mexico and is a natural site for mfg that relates to Mexican trade.

How long will either of these states be inhabitable in the summer? We’re gonna find out sooner than later I think.

I think both states have pros and cons. Texas probably has a bigger tech center, but Florida is more tourist and entertainment themed. Both are nice states.

Florida has humidity everywhere and Texas does have quite a bit of lower humidity areas

Just because some state doesn't rank high on a list doesn't mean as much as people think it does. When you say there's no manufacturing in Florida, it's a generalization. Of course there's plenty of manufacturing going on in Florida. Aspects of a state can be localized to certain areas within that state. Jacksonville and Tampa have a lot more manufacturing than Orlando and south Florida. Similarly there's plenty of tourism going on in Texas in certain areas. Just not as widespread as in Florida.

FL is Death's waiting room.

Every state has their job. Florida's job is to be there for us when we need to thaw out. Be our bit of paradise. I lived in Ft. Walton Beach, FL and Austin, TX while in the military.

4:45 shoutout to Hollywood FL

Besides, Texas takes up half of the Midwest and South. U would expect an area that size to lead in most categories.

I believe Thomas Sowell would be pleased with your presentation controlling for politics and emphasizing the importance of geography. I have a question regarding the GDP chart showing TX having a higher total GDP than NY. How can NY, with a greater population then have a higher GDP per capita? What am I missing? Gracias for the video.

I live in Florida(not from here) there’s nothing here, like 70% of the state is empty, Florida has some of the largest areas of forested land still remaining. Everglades, and the Ocala National forest

Both are nice, but Chillingbourne is obviously better!! 🧡🧡🧡

Florida has the space center and now the Blue Origin rocket factory. That has to count for something.

Sure, TX has a larger, more diverse economy with higher paying jobs. But it is a cultural desert (yes, Austin is overrated). Florida is not exactly the cultural capitol of the world either, but Miami is indisputably an international hub for art, media, design and architecture. It is also the only truly tropical climate zone in the continental US, which means it is, by far, the best place to spend the winter. I spend my winters/springs at the beach in South Florida; it is like heaven on earth and all of the naysayers are just haters who are jealous. (mic drop)

I'm from Florida and I give a thumbs up. I like Florida a lot, but honesty is what it is. Lots of northern money comes down here and also Miami is the gateway to Latin America. And yea fvck these toll roads

Florida elderly population in a way hurts other states to some degree. I know 12 retired teachers/professors from New Jersey, drawing a New Jersey state pension and not spend a dime or paying any taxes in New Jersey.

Orange juice, Disneyland, and alligators

Insurance, insurance, insurance. Florida is an insurance death trap. My family is selling our home of 30+ years because they can't afford the property insurance. Car insurance is also extremely high in Florida. Live by the water? Flood insurance. Florida is a haven for the wealthy now and it's really unfortunate.

Florida is rapidly growing in importance, especially in the healthcare and biotechnology industries.