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→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→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$2,890/mo
$2,493/mo
$397/mo less than San Diego (16%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.0M
$595k
$415k 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
$5,065/mo
Riverside has $397/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
249 days
83 fewer than San Diego
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
0 days
47 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 47 more days above 95°F each year than San Diego.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
75 / 100
69 / 100
6.0 pts behind San Diego
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
55 routes
14 routes
41 fewer direct routes than San Diego
Metro size
Metro size
3.3M metro
4.7M metro
San Diego has 29.0x more events per month than Riverside.
the verdict
4
San Diego
categories won
3
Riverside
categories won
San Diego wins on weather and lifestyle. Riverside has the edge on money.
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