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→Minneapolis
Minneapolis is 22 lakes inside city limits, an extensive skyway system that lets you cross downtown in February without a coat, and a music legacy that runs from Prince to The Replacements. Summer is a glorious lake-jumping, ice-cream-licking festival. Winter is sauna-and-skate season, with rinks on every lake and cross-country trails stitched through the city. Walleye is on every menu.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$3,470/mo
$1,679/mo
$1,791/mo less than San Jose (107%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.8M
$398k
$1.4M less than San Jose
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
7.8%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,088/mo
$6,000/mo
Minneapolis has $1,912/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
147 days
136 fewer than San Jose
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
19 days
1 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
84 days
days below 20°F per year
San Jose has 18 more days above 95°F each year than Minneapolis. Minneapolis drops below 20°F on 84 more days per year than San Jose.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
70 / 100
76 / 100
6.0 pts ahead of San Jose
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
29 routes
130 routes
101 more direct routes than San Jose
Metro size
Metro size
1.9M metro
3.7M metro
San Jose has 2.5x fewer events per month than Minneapolis.
the verdict
2
San Jose
categories won
7
Minneapolis
categories won
Minneapolis wins on money and lifestyle. San Jose has the edge on weather.
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