Enter your tree canopy, hardscape, and which way your yard faces — get a heat-risk score, your canopy gap, and the cooling shade buys you. Free, instant, tuned for San Antonio & the Hill Country.
Under a mature tree canopy, the ground and air run 8 to 12°F cooler than open hardscape in full Hill Country sun. Most lots here sit near 15% canopy — well below the target — so the score tells you how much heat your property is carrying and how far you are from shading it down.
Shade is infrastructure, not decoration. A west wall left in full afternoon sun is the biggest heat load on most homes here — and the canopy that cools the yard takes that load off your AC, too.
§ 1 · How it works
Four inputs, one score.
Step 1
Tree canopy
The share of your property shaded by canopy — Hill Country lots often sit near 15%.
Step 2
Hardscape
House, drive, and patio — paving soaks up sun and radiates heat after dark.
Step 3
Which way it faces
West takes the hardest afternoon sun and scores worst; north is gentlest.
Step 4
Read your score
Heat-risk score, canopy gap, cooling delta, and native shade trees for your conditions.
§ 2 · The Hill Country numbers
Why it runs hot here.
The Hill Country gets hard, direct sun, and limestone and caliche hold the heat. The worst load is west exposure — full afternoon sun driving straight into walls and paving when the air is already at its hottest. The fix is canopy: a live oak is the backbone — dense, evergreen, long-lived — backed by cedar elm, bur oak, and Mexican white oak. Plant for the long game; a tree takes about ten years to throw real shade.
Shade the west and south walls, the AC condenser, and the hardscape, and you cut the heat load your system fights all afternoon. The same canopy that cools the yard lowers the surface temperatures that drive your cooling bill.
How much cooler does shade make a yard in the Hill Country?
A lot. Under a mature canopy, air and surface temperatures run roughly 8 to 12°F cooler than open ground or hardscape in full Hill Country sun. The shade also stops paving and walls from soaking up heat all day and radiating it back after sunset.
What are the best shade trees for the Texas Hill Country?
Texas natives that handle limestone and drought. Live oak is the backbone — dense, evergreen, long-lived. Cedar elm, bur oak, Mexican white oak (Monterrey oak), and Texas red oak round out a canopy. Plant for the long game: a tree takes about ten years to throw real shade.
Why is a west-facing yard so much hotter?
West exposure takes the full afternoon sun — the hottest part of the day, when the air peaks and the low angle drives heat straight into walls, windows, and paving. A west wall with no shade is the single biggest heat load on most Hill Country homes, which is why the score penalizes it hardest.
Can landscaping really lower my AC bill?
Yes. Shading the west and south walls, the AC condenser, and the hardscape around the house cuts the heat load your system fights all afternoon. Trees, vines on a trellis, and shaded paving lower the surface temperatures that drive cooling demand — the same canopy that cools the yard takes load off the unit.
Start here
Run the numbers.
Free, instant, no signup. Then book a Site Read and we'll plan the canopy on your slope.