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→Provo
Provo is BYU and the Mormon culture's center of gravity, with a downtown that's quieter than most college towns (no Saturday football beer crowds here). The Wasatch Mountains rise right behind it, with Sundance ski resort 30 minutes up the canyon. Provo Canyon and Bridal Veil Falls are summer go-tos. The tech scene (Qualtrics, Domo) has reshaped the local economy. Beautiful in a calm, ordered way.
full dispatch→02 · the money
Median rent
Median rent
$3,470/mo
$1,743/mo
$1,727/mo less than San Jose (99%)
Median home price
Median home price
$1.8M
$559k
$1.2M less than San Jose
State income tax
State income tax
9.3%
4.7%
Gross left after rent
Gross left after rent
$4,088/mo
$6,203/mo
Provo has $2,115/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
171 days
112 fewer than San Jose
Extreme heat days
Extreme heat days
19 days
12 days
days above 95°F per year
Extreme cold days
Extreme cold days
0 days
44 days
days below 20°F per year
San Jose has 7 more days above 95°F each year than Provo. Provo drops below 20°F on 44 more days per year than San Jose.
04 · the life
OutdoorScore
OutdoorScore
70 / 100
81 / 100
11.0 pts ahead of San Jose
Nonstop flights
Nonstop flights
29 routes
91 routes
62 more direct routes than San Jose
Metro size
Metro size
1.9M metro
733k metro
San Jose has 62.0x more events per month than Provo.
the verdict
2
San Jose
categories won
7
Provo
categories won
Provo wins on money and lifestyle. San Jose has the edge on weather.
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