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: 210 or more pleasant days a year (a tighter bar than "sunny"; we filter out scorching heat and bitter cold too), with median rent under $1,900 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
New Orleans
LA · 962k metro
New Orleans clears 235 pleasant days a year, holding rent at $1,612. 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
04
FLPhoto by Jeffrey Eisen on Pexels
Melbourne
FL · 644k metro
Melbourne rounds out the top tier with 254 pleasant days and a $1,895 median rent line. 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
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
LAPhoto by Gage LaVergne on Pexels
Lafayette
LA · 414k metro
Lafayette keeps showing up on warm-weather lists because the numbers actually land: 211 pleasant days, $1,332 median rent. 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
07
FLPhoto by Kevin Dunlap on Unsplash
Pensacola
FL · 530k metro
Pensacola earns the mid-list spot with 226 pleasant days a year and rent at $1,752. 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
08
NCPhoto by Mark Stebnicki on Pexels
Wilmington
NC · 467k metro
Wilmington pairs 235 pleasant days with a median rent of $1,675. 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
09
TXPhoto by Greg Bulla on Unsplash
El Paso
TX · 872k metro
El Paso comes in near the bottom of the list but still clears the bar: 222 pleasant days, $1,473 rent. Summers are the trade: 60 days above 95°F. Worth knowing.
see the full dispatch for El Paso222
pleasant days a year
$1,473
median rent / month
60
days a year above 95°F
10
FLPhoto by Darrell Cassell on Unsplash
Daytona Beach
FL · 722k metro
Daytona Beach closes the ten: 212 pleasant days, rent at $1,784, Summers run hot, with around 11 days above 95°F, but spring and fall stretch long. A real "live the year outside" option.
see the full dispatch for Daytona Beach212
pleasant days a year
$1,784
median rent / month
11
days a year above 95°F
how we ranked
We rank by 45% weather, 45% affordability, and 10% park access. Cities under 210 pleasant days or above $1,900 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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