01 · the cities
San Diego
San Diego is the city most Californians secretly wish they lived in: 70°F, sunny, and a beach for every mood. Fish tacos are religion, Balboa Park is bigger than Central Park and packed with museums, and the craft beer scene is one of the best in the country. The zoo is world-famous and the burritos are aggressively underrated. Even the freeways feel relaxed here.
full dispatch→Lakeland
Lakeland has the largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture in the world, on the Florida Southern College campus (designed in the 1940s, all skylights and copper). The city sits between Tampa and Orlando, with actual swans patrolling its namesake downtown lake (the city even has a swan management program). Publix is headquartered here, which Floridians treat as a point of pride.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$2,890/mo
$1,834/mo
$1,056/mo less than San Diego (58%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.0M
$301k
$709k less than San Diego
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
0%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,668/mo
$6,499/mo
Lakeland has $1,831/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
332 days
206 days
126 fewer than San Diego
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
0 days
13 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
0 days
days below 20°F per year
Lakeland has 13 more days above 95°F each year than San Diego.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
75 / 100
48 / 100
27.0 pts behind San Diego
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
55 routes
68 routes
13 more direct routes than San Diego
Metro size
Metro size
3.3M metro
818k metro
San Diego has 14.5x more events per month than Lakeland.
the verdict
3
San Diego
categories won
5
Lakeland
categories won
Lakeland wins on money. San Diego has the edge on weather.
run your numbers
How far does your San Diego 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