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→Melbourne
Palm Bay is part of the Space Coast, which means you can watch SpaceX and NASA rocket launches from the backyard on a clear day. The Indian River Lagoon is right there for fishing, kayaking, and manatee spotting. It's quieter and more affordable than the bigger Florida metros, with quick access to Cocoa Beach and Kennedy Space Center. Suburban in a Florida way.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$3,146/mo
$1,895/mo
$1,251/mo less than San Francisco (66%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.2M
$351k
$888k less than San Francisco
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
0%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,412/mo
$6,438/mo
Melbourne has $2,026/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
254 days
58 fewer than San Francisco
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
San Francisco edges ahead on pleasant days, but both cities have comparable comfort overall.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
83 / 100
55 / 100
28.0 pts behind San Francisco
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
111 routes
2 routes
109 fewer direct routes than San Francisco
Metro size
Metro size
4.6M metro
644k metro
the verdict
3
San Francisco
categories won
4
Melbourne
categories won
Melbourne wins on money. San Francisco has the edge on weather and lifestyle.
run your numbers
How far does your San Francisco 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