01 · the cities
Los Angeles
Los Angeles is 88 cities pretending to be one, connected by freeways and a shared love of really good tacos. Every neighborhood is its own scene: surfers in Venice, the Korean grandmas of K-town, mountains rising behind Pasadena, Persian rugs in Westwood. The light at golden hour is so good it makes Instagram filters jealous. Roll the windows down at golden hour, put on a playlist, and let the city stretch out.
full dispatch→St. Louis
St. Louis has the Arch (catenary curve and engineering marvel), Forest Park (bigger than Central Park and home to a free zoo, art museum, and history museum), and toasted ravioli, which was invented here. The Cardinals are a religion, the Hill neighborhood is wall-to-wall Italian red sauce, and Imo's makes pizza with Provel cheese that locals defend furiously. The skyline at sunset is underrated.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$2,899/mo
$1,411/mo
$1,488/mo less than Los Angeles (105%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.0M
$277k
$753k less than Los Angeles
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
4.7%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,659/mo
$6,531/mo
St. Louis has $1,872/mo more gross after rent at $100k
Gross left after rent reflects state income tax but not federal, based on $100k salary. Enter your salary to find your ideal city.
03 · the weather
Pleasant days/yr
Pleasant days/yr
283 days
174 days
109 fewer than Los Angeles
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
19 days
5 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
22 days
days below 20°F per year
Los Angeles has 14 more days above 95°F each year than St. Louis. St. Louis drops below 20°F on 22 more days per year than Los Angeles.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
67 / 100
68 / 100
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
150 routes
60 routes
90 fewer direct routes than Los Angeles
Metro size
Metro size
12.8M metro
2.8M metro
Los Angeles has 4.3x more events per month than St. Louis.
the verdict
3
Los Angeles
categories won
5
St. Louis
categories won
St. Louis wins on money. Los Angeles has the edge on weather and lifestyle.
run your numbers
How far does your Los Angeles salary go?
Enter your salary to see a full ranked list of cities where you would live better.
see your top citiesWe use a proprietary blend of data from the US Census, Zillow, Ticketmaster, and more.
Walk Score® is a trademark of Walk Score, a Redfin company. How Walk Score works