Hays County, Texas Map

Reading the Hays County map

The outline on this map is Hays County's legal boundary as published in the U.S. Census Bureau's TIGER/Line files. At 678 square miles, the county is roughly the size of a square 26 miles on each side — small enough to cross in a short drive. Where the border is a ruler-straight line, it was set by survey; where it wiggles, it usually follows a river, creek or old land grant.

The red marker shows San Marcos, the county seat, and the highlighted shapes in the schematic view are the bordering counties. Use the layer switcher to change between street, satellite and terrain backgrounds: satellite is best for seeing farmland and development patterns, while terrain shows hills, valleys and river corridors.

What surrounds Hays County

Moving around the compass, Hays County borders Travis to the northeast; Caldwell to the southeast; Comal to the southwest; Blanco to the northwest; Guadalupe to the south.

For travel planning, the nearest large cities are Austin (~23 mi), San Antonio (~52 mi), Victoria (~107 mi). Distances are straight-line from the county's center; driving distances are usually 15–30% longer depending on the road network.

Landscape of the Central Texas

Central Texas stretches across the Hill Country, the Blackland Prairie and the Cross Timbers. It includes some of the fastest-growing suburbs in the nation along the I-35 corridor, alongside quiet ranching counties with limestone creeks and live-oak savanna.

How to use or print this map

To keep a copy, use the Download PDF button below the map: it saves a letter-size PDF of Hays County built from U.S. Census Bureau 2023 boundary files, showing neighboring counties and incorporated places. The Official TxDOT road map button downloads the Texas Department of Transportation county road mapbook. The Print map button opens a print-ready layout for paper printing. For a statewide view showing all 254 counties with their seats, use our free Texas map with counties and cities PDF.

Teachers often pair this map with the county's neighbors to practice cardinal directions, while genealogists use it to identify which neighboring courthouses may hold older records — many Texas counties were carved out of larger ones, and Hays County itself was formed from Travis County.