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→Santa Rosa
Santa Rosa is the gateway to Sonoma wine country, less polished than Napa but more lived-in. Charles Schulz lived here and the Snoopy museum is a delight. The Russian River redwoods are 30 minutes west. The city itself has rebuilt impressively after the 2017 fires, with a downtown that mixes wineries, breweries, and farm-to-table restaurants. Cooler than San Francisco in summer.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$2,493/mo
$2,597/mo
$104/mo more than Riverside (4%)
Median home price
Median home price
$595k
$817k
$222k more than Riverside
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
9.3%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$5,065/mo
$4,961/mo
Riverside has $104/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
254 days
5 more than Riverside
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
47 days
28 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 19 more days above 95°F each year than Santa Rosa.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
69 / 100
69 / 100
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
14 routes
4 routes
10 fewer direct routes than Riverside
Metro size
Metro size
4.7M metro
482k metro
Riverside has 6.0x more events per month than Santa Rosa.
the verdict
4
Riverside
categories won
2
Santa Rosa
categories won
Riverside wins on money and lifestyle. Santa Rosa has the edge on weather.
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