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→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→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$2,890/mo
$2,995/mo
$105/mo more than San Diego (4%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.0M
$923k
$88k less than San Diego
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
9.3%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,668/mo
$4,563/mo
San Diego has $105/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
342 days
10 more than San Diego
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
0 days
0 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
0 days
days below 20°F per year
Oxnard edges ahead on pleasant days, but both cities have comparable comfort overall.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
75 / 100
74 / 100
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
55 routes
0 routes
55 fewer direct routes than San Diego
Metro size
Metro size
3.3M metro
830k metro
San Diego has 7.3x more events per month than Oxnard.
the verdict
3
San Diego
categories won
2
Oxnard
categories won
San Diego wins on money and lifestyle. Oxnard 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