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→Myrtle Beach
Myrtle Beach is the Grand Strand's anchor, with 60 miles of beach, more than 80 mini golf courses (it might be the mini golf capital of America), and a boardwalk packed with arcades and pancake houses. Calabash-style fried seafood is a thing. It's a family beach town, full stop, with affordable oceanfront and easy access to Charleston a few hours south.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$3,470/mo
$1,727/mo
$1,743/mo less than San Jose (101%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.8M
$361k
$1.4M less than San Jose
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
6.5%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,088/mo
$6,065/mo
Myrtle Beach has $1,977/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
249 days
34 fewer than San Jose
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
19 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 Jose has 19 more days above 95°F each year than Myrtle Beach.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
70 / 100
58 / 100
12.0 pts behind San Jose
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
29 routes
23 routes
6 fewer direct routes than San Jose
Metro size
Metro size
1.9M metro
397k metro
San Jose has 2.7x more events per month than Myrtle Beach.
the verdict
3
San Jose
categories won
5
Myrtle Beach
categories won
Myrtle Beach wins on money. San Jose has the edge on lifestyle.
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