01 · the cities
San Jose
San Jose is Silicon Valley's anchor city, much bigger than San Francisco by population, and culturally underrated because everyone drives through it on the way somewhere else. The Vietnamese food scene (especially in Little Saigon) is one of the best in the country. The weather is impossibly mild, the Santa Cruz Mountains rise to the west, and the tech money funds a genuinely excellent restaurant scene.
full dispatch→Harrisburg
Harrisburg is the Pennsylvania state capital sitting on the Susquehanna River, with a gorgeous Beaux-Arts capitol building (Theodore Roosevelt called it the handsomest building he ever saw). City Island in the middle of the river is a small park with minor league baseball. Hershey is 15 minutes east (yes, that Hershey). Slower-paced than its metro neighbors.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$3,470/mo
$1,446/mo
$2,024/mo less than San Jose (140%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.8M
$309k
$1.5M less than San Jose
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
3.1%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,088/mo
$6,632/mo
Harrisburg has $2,544/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
283 days
152 days
131 fewer than San Jose
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
19 days
3 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
33 days
days below 20°F per year
San Jose has 16 more days above 95°F each year than Harrisburg. Harrisburg drops below 20°F on 33 more days per year than San Jose.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
70 / 100
69 / 100
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
29 routes
12 routes
17 fewer direct routes than San Jose
Metro size
Metro size
1.9M metro
606k metro
San Jose has 1.9x more events per month than Harrisburg.
the verdict
3
San Jose
categories won
5
Harrisburg
categories won
Harrisburg wins on money. San Jose has the edge on weather and lifestyle.
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