01 · the cities
San Francisco
San Francisco is hills, fog, Mission burritos the size of forearms, and pastel Victorians stacked like dominoes. Karl the Fog has his own Instagram, the cable cars are still mechanically pulled by cables running under the street, and the Pacific shows up at the end of every west-bound avenue. The food is wildly good, the views are theatrical, and yes, you'll get cardio just walking to the corner store.
full dispatch→Lancaster
Lancaster is the heart of Pennsylvania Amish country, with horse-drawn buggies on rural roads and the Central Market (the oldest continuously operating farmers market in the country, since the 1730s). The food scene is sneaky-strong, the surrounding farmland is gorgeous, and the city's downtown has come back nicely. Whoopie pies, shoofly pies, and sticky buns are mandatory.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$3,146/mo
$1,517/mo
$1,629/mo less than San Francisco (107%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.2M
$384k
$855k less than San Francisco
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
3.1%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,412/mo
$6,561/mo
Lancaster has $2,149/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
312 days
158 days
154 fewer than San Francisco
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
0 days
3 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
25 days
days below 20°F per year
Lancaster drops below 20°F on 25 more days per year than San Francisco.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
83 / 100
63 / 100
20.0 pts behind San Francisco
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
111 routes
1 routes
110 fewer direct routes than San Francisco
Metro size
Metro size
4.6M metro
559k metro
San Francisco has 17.2x more events per month than Lancaster.
the verdict
4
San Francisco
categories won
4
Lancaster
categories won
San Francisco wins on weather and lifestyle, Lancaster wins on money. Dead even.
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