Scope of the diocese
The diocese extends across 25 counties. 24 counties are entirely inside the diocese and part of a 25th. There are 123 parishes and missions and 6 university Catholic centers.
How the Diocese of Austin compares with other dioceses across the country
The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University reports number for the 195 dioceses in the US Council of Catholic Bishops. http://cara.georgetown.edu/frequently-requested-church-statistics/
| Average | Austin | |
| Number of parishes | 89 | 123 |
| Number of priests | 192 | 226 |
| Diocesan Priests | 133 | 141 |
| Religious Order Priests | 60 | 54 |
| Other priests | 31 | |
| Ordinations to priesthood last year | 2.6 | 6 |
| Permanent deacons | 93 | 213 |
| Sisters | 249 | 86 |
| Brothers | 22 | 43 |
| Priests per parish (includes retired priests) | 2.16 | 1.84 |
What is the largest parish?
St. Williams in Round Rock is by far the largest parish in terms of number of registered families.
St Catherine of Sienna in Austin and St Elizabeth in Pflugerville are the next largest parishes each with about three-quarters as many people as St. Williams. The largest parishes in the diocese tend to be in Waco and the Austin metropolitan area. Some of the churches in rural areas are quite small by comparison.
What is the richest parish?
Incomes of parishes vary greatly. This is due to variation in size (donor base) and per capita income of the region the parish is in. Large parishes tend to have more money than small parishes, all other things being equal Without access to the statements for each parish, we guess that the richest parishes are the large ones on the west side of Austin: St John Neumann, St Theresa, St Thomas Moore, St Catherine of Sienna, and St William.
How much money a parish has is mostly a function of how many people attend that parish, isn’t it?
No, not at all. Income inequality is substantial and certain geographic areas have wealthier people (and hence parishioners) than others. If you take incomes reported by three parishes and number of families in those parishes as reported by the diocese website, you find variation
| Parish | Annual Revenue | Number of families* | Revenue per family |
| St Theresa | $2.98 million | 2331 | $1278 |
| St Williams | $3.53 million | 6032 | $584 |
| St Alberts | $1.19 million** | 2040 | $583 |
**Not counting capital campaign
It is likely that revenue per family at parishes in lower income areas is considerably less.
But it’s all the same organization, and it all evens out in the long run, right?
No, the point of this website is that it’s not all the same organization. And while the diocese essentially imposes an income tax (or revenue tax actually, called the Cathedraticum assessment) this is a flat tax, not a progressive one. Church charitable activities are likely to be more focused on lower income areas but there’s no doubt the financial resources of parishes vary widely.
How do parishes compare with other small businesses?
The average McDonald’s restaurant in the United States has annual revenues of $2.5 million. The larger parishes are on the same order of magnitude.