01 · the cities
Oxnard
Oxnard is California's strawberry capital, where the fields literally run up to the beach. Channel Islands Harbor is a quiet alternative to the busier Ventura and Santa Barbara, with great seafood and a chill Mexican food scene. The weather is the perfect 65-and-overcast that locals call 'June gloom' for most of summer. The Channel Islands themselves are a ferry ride away.
full dispatch→Albuquerque
Albuquerque is green chile on everything, the Sandia Mountains turning pink at sunset (the name literally means watermelon), and the Balloon Fiesta in October when 500+ hot air balloons fill the sky. The old town adobes feel like the 1700s, the food fuses Native, Mexican, and Spanish in ways you won't get anywhere else. Breaking Bad fans will recognize half the city, and locals are good-natured about it.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$2,995/mo
$1,489/mo
$1,506/mo less than Oxnard (101%)
Median home price
Median home price
$923k
$351k
$571k less than Oxnard
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
5.9%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,563/mo
$6,353/mo
Albuquerque has $1,790/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
342 days
205 days
137 fewer than Oxnard
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
0 days
34 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
6 days
days below 20°F per year
Albuquerque has 34 more days above 95°F each year than Oxnard. Albuquerque drops below 20°F on 6 more days per year than Oxnard.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
74 / 100
81 / 100
7.0 pts ahead of Oxnard
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
0 routes
23 routes
23 more direct routes than Oxnard
Metro size
Metro size
830k metro
924k metro
Oxnard has 1.8x fewer events per month than Albuquerque.
the verdict
3
Oxnard
categories won
6
Albuquerque
categories won
Albuquerque wins on money and lifestyle. Oxnard has the edge on weather.
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