Hays, Texas
Hays is a small city in Hays County, in the Hill Country on the southern side of the Austin metropolitan area about 13 miles from central Austin. It lies in rolling, oak-dotted terrain along the Interstate 35 corridor between Austin and San Marcos, in a fast-growing stretch of Central Texas.
Place essentials
Official Census snapshot- Census place type
- City
- July 2025 population
- 271
- Change from 2020 base
- +18.9%
- Land area
- 0.2 sq. mi.
- County footprint
- Hays County
Place type, county footprint, and land area use the Census Bureau's January 1, 2025 geography. Population uses Vintage 2025 estimates through July 1, 2025; change compares that estimate with the April 1, 2020 estimates base. Geography file | Population file
Property here runs through the appraisal district and tax office for Hays County. The homestead exemption, appraisal cap, protests, and any MUD, PID, or special districts all sit at the parcel level.
Official routes
Use the office for the parcel address; a mailing city is not always the governing city.
County context
What to know around Hays
County lines carry much of the property, land, water, and outdoors context around Hays.
County Founding
Hays County began with a borrowed courtroom
The new county took John Coffee Hays's name in 1848, then held court in a log church-schoolhouse while San Marcos took shape.
Property Tax Basics
The appraisal district and tax office do different jobs
Hays CAD handles values, exemptions, and protests; the county tax office sends bills and takes payments.
Homestead Exemption
File a Hays County homestead exemption with Hays CAD
A qualifying principal residence may receive homestead exemptions, but the application goes to Hays CAD rather than the county tax office.
Nearby
Places near Hays
Nearby counties
Local notes for nearby counties
Next steps for Hays
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