01
Mobile
AL · 412k metro
Mobile starts the list strong: 225 pleasant days a year at $1,302 rent. Extreme heat (over 95°F) only shows up about 3 days a year.
225
pleasant days a year
$1,302
median rent / month
3
days a year above 95°F
There are cities with great weather, and there are cities you can actually afford. The overlap is smaller than the postcards suggest. Coastal California and Hawaii dominate sunshine rankings, but the rents shut most people out.
This list is the honest middle: 200 or more pleasant days a year (a tighter bar than "sunny"; we filter out scorching heat and bitter cold too), with median rent under $2,200 a month.
the ranking
- see the full dispatch for Mobile
02
SCPhoto by Drew Perales on Unsplash
Myrtle Beach
SC · 397k metro
Myrtle Beach sits at number two on the same arithmetic: 249 pleasant days, $1,727 median rent. Extreme heat (over 95°F) only shows up about 0 days a year.
see the full dispatch for Myrtle Beach249
pleasant days a year
$1,727
median rent / month
0
days a year above 95°F
03
FLPhoto by Jeffrey Eisen on Pexels
Melbourne
FL · 644k metro
Melbourne clears 254 pleasant days a year, holding rent at $1,895. Extreme heat (over 95°F) only shows up about 0 days a year.
see the full dispatch for Melbourne254
pleasant days a year
$1,895
median rent / month
0
days a year above 95°F
04
New Orleans
LA · 962k metro
New Orleans rounds out the top tier with 235 pleasant days and a $1,612 median rent line. Extreme heat (over 95°F) only shows up about 3 days a year.
see the full dispatch for New Orleans235
pleasant days a year
$1,612
median rent / month
3
days a year above 95°F
05
FLPhoto by Dominik Gryzbon on Pexels
Cape Coral
FL · 835k metro
Cape Coral reads as the sleeper pick: 250 pleasant days, $1,859 rent. Extreme heat (over 95°F) only shows up about 0 days a year.
see the full dispatch for Cape Coral250
pleasant days a year
$1,859
median rent / month
0
days a year above 95°F
06
FLPhoto by Kevin Dunlap on Unsplash
Pensacola
FL · 530k metro
Pensacola keeps showing up on warm-weather lists because the numbers actually land: 226 pleasant days, $1,752 median rent. Extreme heat (over 95°F) only shows up about 6 days a year.
see the full dispatch for Pensacola226
pleasant days a year
$1,752
median rent / month
6
days a year above 95°F
07
FLPhoto by Mick Haupt on Unsplash
Tampa
FL · 3.3M metro
Tampa earns the mid-list spot with 243 pleasant days a year and rent at $1,996. Extreme heat (over 95°F) only shows up about 3 days a year.
see the full dispatch for Tampa243
pleasant days a year
$1,996
median rent / month
3
days a year above 95°F
08
LAPhoto by Gage LaVergne on Pexels
Lafayette
LA · 414k metro
Lafayette pairs 211 pleasant days with a median rent of $1,332. Extreme heat (over 95°F) only shows up about 7 days a year.
see the full dispatch for Lafayette211
pleasant days a year
$1,332
median rent / month
7
days a year above 95°F
09
NCPhoto by Mark Stebnicki on Pexels
Wilmington
NC · 467k metro
Wilmington comes in near the bottom of the list but still clears the bar: 235 pleasant days, $1,675 rent. Extreme heat (over 95°F) only shows up about 1 days a year.
see the full dispatch for Wilmington235
pleasant days a year
$1,675
median rent / month
1
days a year above 95°F
10
FLPhoto by Jeffrey Eisen on Pexels
Sarasota
FL · 262k metro
Sarasota closes the ten: 249 pleasant days, rent at $2,121, Extreme heat (over 95°F) only shows up about 1 days a year. A real "live the year outside" option.
see the full dispatch for Sarasota249
pleasant days a year
$2,121
median rent / month
1
days a year above 95°F
how we ranked
We rank by 50% weather, 40% affordability, and 10% park access. Cities under 200 pleasant days or above $2,200 median rent are excluded.
common questions
- Why not just rank by sunny days?
- Pure sun counts reward Phoenix and Las Vegas, where 130+ days a year top 95°F. Our pleasant-days metric filters those out so the ranking matches how people actually experience the year.
- Is humidity counted?
- Indirectly. We use NASA POWER and ERA5 data with a clearness-index filter that penalizes overcast humid days. A "pleasant day" in Tampa and Tucson both have to clear the same bar.
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