01 · the cities
Riverside
Riverside is where the navel orange got its start in America, with the parent tree from 1873 still alive and producing fruit on a downtown corner. The Mission Inn is a wildly ornate Spanish Revival hotel that hosts the country's biggest holiday lights festival. Riverside's downtown is genuinely walkable, with citrus groves still scattered through the foothills. Summers are dry and bright, with the foothills cooling the evenings.
full dispatch→Port St. Lucie
Port St. Lucie is the New York Mets' spring training home, with golf courses, gated communities, and the slow Atlantic Coast pace that retirees love. It's one of the fastest-growing cities in the country in recent years. The Treasure Coast beaches are quieter and prettier than the bigger Florida metros. Suburban, sunny, and easy.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$2,493/mo
$2,331/mo
$162/mo less than Riverside (7%)
Median home price
Median home price
$595k
$397k
$198k less than Riverside
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
0%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$5,065/mo
$6,002/mo
Port St. Lucie has $937/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
249 days
246 days
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
47 days
2 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
0 days
days below 20°F per year
Riverside has 45 more days above 95°F each year than Port St. Lucie.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
69 / 100
50 / 100
19.0 pts behind Riverside
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
14 routes
23 routes
9 more direct routes than Riverside
Metro size
Metro size
4.7M metro
537k metro
the verdict
1
Riverside
categories won
6
Port St. Lucie
categories won
Port St. Lucie wins this comparison, leading on money and weather.
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