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→Lafayette
Lafayette is the unofficial capital of Cajun country, with zydeco music spilling out of dance halls, crawfish boils that count as social events, and gumbo so dark and rich it should be served with a nap. Mardi Gras here is huge but more family-friendly than New Orleans. The food (boudin, etouffee, cracklins) is the main reason to be here. Friendly in a way that's hard to fake.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$2,995/mo
$1,332/mo
$1,663/mo less than Oxnard (125%)
Median home price
Median home price
$923k
$200k
$723k less than Oxnard
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
3.0%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,563/mo
$6,751/mo
Lafayette has $2,188/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
211 days
131 fewer than Oxnard
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
0 days
7 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
0 days
days below 20°F per year
Lafayette has 7 more days above 95°F each year than Oxnard.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
74 / 100
43 / 100
31.0 pts behind Oxnard
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
0 routes
3 routes
3 more direct routes than Oxnard
Metro size
Metro size
830k metro
414k metro
Oxnard has 4.8x more events per month than Lafayette.
the verdict
3
Oxnard
categories won
5
Lafayette
categories won
Lafayette wins on money. Oxnard has the edge on weather.
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