Cost of Living in California

California has 304 cities with cost-of-living data on CompareLiving, drawn from US Census, BEA, HUD, and EPA sources. Prices range from Oxnard (cost index 87.3) to Berkeley (118.0), with a statewide average around 106.4 versus the US baseline of 100. Median rent is lowest in Brawley at $954/mo and highest in Saratoga at $3,501/mo.

CA304 cities

California at a Glance

Cities Tracked

304

with census data

Avg Cost Index

106.4

US avg = 100

Avg Median Rent

$2,084

per month

Avg Household Income

$106,268

annual median

Most & Least Affordable Cities

Most Affordable

City	Cost Index	Median Rent
Oxnard	87.3	$1,962
Thousand Oaks	87.3	$2,580
Fresno	91.9	$1,324
Temple City	92.0	$2,034
Pittsburg	93.7	$2,201

Most Expensive

City	Cost Index	Median Rent
San Francisco	118.0	$2,419
Oakland	118.0	$1,917
Berkeley	118.0	$2,127
San Diego	114.6	$2,223
Chula Vista	114.6	$2,122

Cost Index = BEA Regional Price Parity (US avg = 100)

Taxes in California

State Income Tax

13.30%

Top marginal rate · Tax Foundation 2024

State Sales Tax

7.25%

Statewide base rate · local add-ons may apply

Popular Cities in California

Los Angeles San Diego San Jose San Francisco Fresno Sacramento Long Beach Oakland Bakersfield Anaheim

California Cities — Full Table

Click columns to sort


Los Angeles	3,857,897	113.3	$1,879	$879,500	$80,366
San Diego	1,385,061	114.6	$2,223	$848,500	$104,321
San Jose	990,054	—	$2,617	$1,187,800	$141,565
San Francisco	836,321	118.0	$2,419	$1,380,500	$141,446
Fresno	543,615	91.9	$1,324	$348,500	$66,804
Sacramento	524,802	109.9	$1,694	$484,600	$83,753
Long Beach	458,491	113.3	$1,803	$762,200	$83,969
Oakland	438,072	118.0	$1,917	$924,700	$97,369
Bakersfield	408,366	—	$1,371	$347,300	$77,397
Anaheim	344,553	113.3	$2,082	$771,700	$90,583
Stockton	320,470	98.9	$1,495	$412,900	$76,851
Riverside	316,241	106.7	$1,812	$542,100	$88,575
Santa Ana	311,639	—	$1,975	$657,800	$88,354
Irvine	308,160	—	$2,893	$1,115,400	$129,647
Chula Vista	275,030	114.6	$2,122	$697,400	$105,173
Santa Clarita	229,021	—	$2,486	$721,000	$119,926
Fremont	228,518	—	$2,905	$1,289,400	$176,350
San Bernardino	221,774	106.7	$1,433	$384,900	$63,988
Modesto	218,614	—	$1,609	$415,600	$77,899
Fontana	211,921	—	$1,733	$558,500	$98,187
Moreno Valley	210,378	—	$2,036	$461,400	$87,477
Oxnard	201,014	87.3	$1,962	$617,800	$93,372
Huntington Beach	196,010	—	$2,424	$1,047,300	$119,885
Glendale	192,270	—	$2,095	$1,043,900	$84,262
Ontario	178,347	106.7	$1,916	$568,000	$82,806
Elk Grove	177,221	—	$2,180	$603,400	$122,229
Santa Rosa	177,216	—	$2,084	$685,000	$97,410
Rancho Cucamonga	174,693	—	$2,286	$694,400	$109,511
Oceanside	172,542	—	$2,207	$702,000	$93,724
Garden Grove	170,603	—	$1,971	$765,500	$90,166
Lancaster	170,013	—	$1,696	$409,100	$76,083
Palmdale	165,487	—	$1,736	$435,300	$81,151
Salinas	161,993	—	$1,923	$610,900	$89,150
Hayward	159,201	—	$2,360	$820,700	$113,775
Corona	158,839	—	$2,136	$656,500	$106,438
Sunnyvale	153,455	—	$3,065	$1,816,600	$181,862
Roseville	152,438	109.9	$2,099	$630,600	$117,354
Escondido	149,913	—	$1,922	$663,500	$84,477
Pomona	148,391	—	$1,738	$569,600	$78,869
Torrance	143,499	—	$2,214	$1,036,600	$113,105
Visalia	142,649	—	$1,397	$340,600	$79,952
Fullerton	141,278	—	$2,124	$859,600	$104,219
Orange	138,723	—	$2,252	$900,700	$116,945
Pasadena	136,462	—	$2,218	$1,045,000	$103,778
Victorville	135,983	—	$1,568	$342,500	$70,663
Santa Clara	129,239	—	$2,985	$1,527,900	$173,670
Simi Valley	125,769	—	$2,513	$753,500	$117,703
Thousand Oaks	125,676	87.3	$2,580	$951,200	$134,367
Vallejo	124,637	—	$2,013	$557,500	$89,496
Concord	124,260	96.8	$2,226	$755,900	$109,195
Clovis	122,719	—	$1,662	$453,300	$100,360
Berkeley	120,223	118.0	$2,127	$1,351,100	$108,558
Fairfield	119,985	—	$2,191	$592,500	$102,321
Antioch	115,759	—	$2,241	$607,400	$94,256
Richmond	115,396	97.6	$1,895	$650,100	$90,038
East Los Angeles	114,617	—	$1,431	$613,600	$68,378
Carlsbad	114,500	114.6	$2,678	$1,156,900	$139,326
Downey	111,793	—	$1,892	$728,500	$87,400
Murrieta	111,621	—	$2,330	$606,900	$109,780
Costa Mesa	110,538	—	$2,395	$1,054,700	$110,073
Temecula	110,404	—	$2,297	$640,400	$117,840
San Buenaventura (Ventura)	109,900	—	$2,101	$778,700	$100,407
Santa Maria	109,880	—	$1,842	$478,200	$84,617
West Covina	107,436	—	$2,153	$712,300	$98,570
El Monte	107,066	—	$1,677	$626,000	$64,484
Menifee	107,020	—	$2,052	$487,200	$89,183
Jurupa Valley	106,244	—	$1,690	$538,700	$96,190
Inglewood	105,575	—	$1,725	$744,300	$71,029
Burbank	105,165	—	$2,089	$1,041,100	$95,816
El Cajon	104,909	—	$1,790	$632,800	$66,478
Rialto	103,866	—	$1,641	$454,400	$85,521
San Mateo	103,555	—	$3,079	$1,563,200	$152,669
Daly City	102,560	—	$2,523	$1,092,700	$119,570
Vacaville	102,085	—	$2,227	$596,700	$108,580
Chico	102,032	—	$1,442	$455,300	$67,929
Norwalk	100,713	—	$2,014	$616,600	$98,709
Hesperia	100,141	—	$1,566	$366,800	$68,971
Vista	98,646	—	$2,148	$674,400	$91,854
Arden-Arcade	96,319	—	$1,476	$504,400	$71,767
Tracy	95,358	—	$2,325	$653,900	$118,253
San Marcos	94,078	—	$2,191	$792,400	$105,286
Compton	93,525	—	$1,601	$546,700	$74,270
Carson	93,523	—	$1,914	$645,600	$107,391
Redding	93,268	—	$1,323	$363,800	$69,443
Mission Viejo	92,415	—	$2,713	$946,300	$136,071
South Gate	91,836	—	$1,471	$608,500	$71,315
Chino	91,775	—	$2,208	$641,500	$103,845
Santa Monica	91,535	—	$2,338	$1,810,200	$109,739
Indio	90,669	—	$1,392	$424,700	$78,709
Hemet	90,646	—	$1,432	$314,200	$53,623
Westminster	90,147	—	$2,100	$820,000	$82,686
Merced	89,766	—	$1,293	$347,700	$59,938
San Leandro	88,531	—	$2,115	$813,600	$98,063
Santa Barbara	88,024	—	$2,302	$1,466,400	$101,672
Citrus Heights	87,036	—	$1,764	$432,100	$77,167
Manteca	86,521	—	$1,934	$561,200	$94,718
Hawthorne	85,933	—	$1,723	$813,700	$72,719
Whittier	85,925	—	$1,829	$751,700	$92,374
Livermore	85,870	—	$2,640	$1,038,600	$153,602
Lake Forest	85,846	—	$2,616	$876,300	$131,378
San Ramon	85,734	—	$2,916	$1,359,100	$197,358
Newport Beach	84,304	—	$3,146	$2,000,001	$158,461
Buena Park	83,052	—	$2,112	$771,900	$108,187
Redwood City	82,423	—	$2,959	$1,838,800	$150,840
Mountain View	82,363	—	$2,975	$1,927,400	$179,917
Folsom	82,140	109.9	$2,279	$702,200	$139,263
Alhambra	81,483	—	$1,852	$812,700	$85,189
Rancho Cordova	80,656	—	$1,698	$451,400	$89,120
Lakewood	80,510	—	$2,324	$774,100	$116,794
Perris	79,349	—	$1,791	$431,900	$82,523
Tustin	79,035	—	$2,340	$890,600	$108,435
Upland	78,940	—	$1,976	$688,800	$101,407
Napa	78,816	—	$2,165	$824,500	$102,231
Milpitas	78,216	—	$3,112	$1,180,000	$176,822
Carmichael	78,070	—	$1,595	$541,500	$84,376
Chino Hills	78,024	—	$2,750	$830,000	$122,600
Pleasanton	77,500	—	$3,017	$1,432,300	$186,206
Bellflower	77,396	—	$1,771	$661,100	$77,602
Alameda	76,876	—	$2,394	$1,203,900	$132,015
Pittsburg	75,868	93.7	$2,201	$583,100	$101,099
Apple Valley	75,478	—	$1,373	$377,300	$65,926
Redlands	72,985	—	$1,883	$583,000	$99,158
Turlock	72,400	—	$1,498	$443,900	$79,807
Rocklin	72,340	—	$2,178	$673,300	$120,916
Lake Elsinore	71,516	—	$1,915	$505,700	$96,527
Baldwin Park	70,720	—	$1,817	$588,100	$79,087
Dublin	70,542	—	$3,174	$1,224,100	$205,046
Camarillo	70,244	—	$2,650	$766,100	$109,390
Eastvale	70,179	—	$3,065	$752,000	$161,322
Tulare	69,984	—	$1,354	$301,200	$69,517
Redondo Beach	69,814	—	$2,562	$1,225,400	$144,588
Walnut Creek	69,790	—	$2,613	$1,031,100	$135,665
Yuba City	69,545	—	$1,391	$405,900	$72,322
Union City	68,141	—	$2,713	$1,058,200	$137,194
Yorba Linda	67,407	—	$2,779	$1,091,700	$152,060
Palo Alto	67,231	—	$3,328	$2,000,001	$220,408
Madera	67,133	—	$1,237	$335,900	$63,619
Lodi	67,008	—	$1,565	$468,800	$84,402
Davis	66,801	—	$2,043	$829,000	$87,421
Castro Valley	65,389	—	$2,499	$1,058,200	$138,069
Lynwood	65,291	—	$1,625	$569,400	$70,236
Brentwood	64,609	—	$2,509	$791,600	$139,567
South San Francisco	64,487	—	$2,833	$1,160,100	$135,909
Laguna Niguel	64,023	—	$2,819	$1,123,000	$140,605
San Clemente	63,510	—	$2,398	$1,220,500	$134,735
Porterville	62,765	—	$1,111	$273,600	$59,012
La Habra	62,233	—	$2,039	$716,700	$98,158
Florence-Graham	61,723	—	$1,475	$499,100	$61,216
Encinitas	61,585	—	$2,730	$1,466,000	$150,471
Montebello	61,376	—	$1,771	$660,700	$74,955
Woodland	61,256	—	$1,500	$505,200	$87,880
Santa Cruz	60,953	—	$2,302	$1,180,100	$111,427
La Mesa	60,835	—	$1,958	$738,800	$84,337
Pico Rivera	60,821	—	$1,775	$621,400	$86,956
San Rafael	60,604	—	$2,346	$1,246,200	$109,317
Gardena	59,765	—	$1,761	$667,600	$79,291
Monterey Park	59,639	—	$1,845	$818,300	$77,605
Santee	59,485	—	$2,197	$653,400	$105,613
Hanford	59,389	—	$1,196	$323,600	$73,544
Petaluma	59,321	—	$2,379	$834,900	$109,823
Cupertino	58,886	—	$3,501	$2,000,001	$231,139
Gilroy	58,561	—	$2,270	$975,800	$131,554
Highland	56,690	—	$1,539	$455,200	$77,979
Fountain Valley	56,358	—	$2,507	$1,018,600	$111,797
National City	55,960	—	$1,619	$580,900	$64,248
Arcadia	55,550	—	$2,118	$1,336,500	$116,142
South Whittier	55,201	—	$1,823	$641,700	$98,974
Hacienda Heights	54,956	—	$2,247	$778,700	$106,620
Beaumont	54,817	—	$1,505	$464,000	$105,164
San Jacinto	54,756	—	$1,633	$391,600	$78,281
West Sacramento	54,496	—	$1,568	$497,100	$90,791
Yucaipa	54,348	—	$1,661	$466,000	$92,401
Colton	53,798	—	$1,608	$411,100	$69,581
Diamond Bar	53,750	—	$2,422	$867,000	$106,602
Huntington Park	53,658	—	$1,440	$557,600	$56,952
Novato	52,689	—	$2,422	$1,007,100	$112,193
Paramount	52,546	—	$1,772	$500,400	$70,912
Placentia	52,384	—	$2,267	$871,000	$110,575
Cathedral City	52,047	—	$1,554	$420,700	$67,031
Watsonville	51,968	—	$1,784	$657,700	$74,785
Lincoln	51,629	—	$2,081	$628,500	$108,108
Palm Desert	51,551	—	$1,717	$491,600	$79,508
Glendora	51,350	—	$2,218	$820,800	$111,915
Aliso Viejo	51,320	—	$2,774	$863,800	$137,970
Delano	50,835	—	$1,111	$270,300	$61,817
El Dorado Hills	50,553	—	$2,468	$870,300	$163,544
Rosemead	50,340	—	$1,728	$729,600	$72,248
Covina	50,143	—	$1,839	$666,000	$94,792
Florin	49,536	—	$1,503	$359,500	$66,323
Cypress	49,531	—	$2,454	$870,100	$124,167
Azusa	49,318	—	$1,831	$607,400	$85,727
Antelope	49,080	—	$2,063	$468,200	$95,102
Ceres	48,918	—	$1,584	$397,200	$76,862
Poway	48,515	—	$2,261	$971,500	$143,825
Cerritos	48,340	—	$2,909	$908,600	$133,953
San Luis Obispo	48,039	—	$1,906	$896,500	$66,711
North Highlands	47,900	—	$1,585	$344,900	$65,090
Brea	47,337	—	$2,285	$874,300	$124,837
Rancho Santa Margarita	47,257	—	$2,481	$907,900	$146,827
Newark	47,145	113.0	$2,730	$1,094,200	$164,909
La Mirada	46,945	—	$2,052	$763,200	$110,177
Rowland Heights	46,787	—	$1,929	$812,900	$85,202
Los Banos	46,776	—	$1,515	$419,600	$70,893
Morgan Hill	45,152	—	$2,275	$1,127,600	$159,758
Palm Springs	44,998	—	$1,473	$567,300	$71,979
Rohnert Park	44,461	—	$2,211	$634,900	$96,635
Oakley	44,311	—	$2,031	$632,800	$132,067
El Centro	44,186	—	$992	$291,100	$56,093
Lompoc	43,819	—	$1,516	$433,800	$70,038
Danville	43,426	—	$3,501	$1,583,300	$223,206
Hollister	43,003	—	$1,846	$679,300	$101,979
Campbell	42,848	—	$2,751	$1,550,000	$147,128
Vineyard	42,645	—	$1,984	$552,400	$108,403
San Bruno	42,612	—	$2,696	$1,199,400	$135,976
Coachella	42,594	—	$1,115	$341,300	$67,558
French Valley	42,550	—	$3,016	$637,800	$132,605
Altadena	41,921	—	$2,250	$1,073,500	$129,123
Rancho Palos Verdes	41,259	—	$3,501	$1,541,400	$175,307
Culver City	39,993	—	$2,683	$1,126,900	$122,312
San Gabriel	38,764	—	$1,874	$899,000	$87,592
Bell Gardens	38,661	—	$1,658	$527,900	$55,372
Stanton	38,639	—	$1,905	$541,000	$81,455
Calexico	38,476	—	$1,049	$281,700	$50,021
La Quinta	38,299	—	$1,747	$612,800	$97,628
Adelanto	38,010	—	$1,389	$318,300	$68,419
Montclair	37,809	—	$1,759	$549,600	$76,338
Monrovia	37,553	—	$2,009	$891,700	$97,083
Pacifica	37,527	—	$3,080	$1,211,700	$156,819
La Puente	37,404	—	$1,788	$593,200	$84,811
Foothill Farms	37,332	—	$1,560	$368,500	$68,042
Wildomar	36,953	—	$1,910	$511,900	$95,677
Martinez	36,926	—	$2,265	$824,700	$125,436
La Presa	36,669	—	$1,795	$595,400	$88,479
Claremont	36,553	—	$2,125	$870,800	$122,127
Moorpark	35,957	—	$2,657	$852,800	$149,403
Temple City	35,749	92.0	$2,034	$930,200	$102,449
Orangevale	35,219	—	$1,866	$508,600	$98,158
West Hollywood	35,090	—	$2,103	$969,900	$94,844
San Juan Capistrano	34,998	—	$2,500	$929,700	$127,893
Oildale	34,971	—	$1,220	$225,000	$49,622
Manhattan Beach	34,584	—	$3,492	$2,000,001	$193,904
Pleasant Hill	34,335	—	$2,511	$1,040,600	$144,513
Westmont	34,291	—	$1,413	$617,300	$47,899
San Dimas	34,099	—	$2,232	$756,200	$105,833
Foster City	32,964	—	$3,501	$1,774,500	$193,633
Dana Point	32,883	—	$2,883	$1,200,900	$127,246
Bell	32,830	114.0	$1,538	$561,400	$60,641
Desert Hot Springs	32,786	—	$1,339	$309,300	$50,349
Menlo Park	32,775	—	$3,156	$2,000,001	$206,588
Los Gatos	32,773	—	$2,969	$2,000,001	$207,891
Lathrop	32,696	—	$2,367	$605,000	$118,605
Goleta	32,693	—	$2,385	$1,002,500	$118,039
Fallbrook	32,467	—	$1,675	$713,000	$87,293
Spring Valley CDP (San Diego County)	32,215	—	$2,114	$645,300	$104,808
Fair Oaks	32,030	—	$1,797	$645,600	$111,332
Atwater	32,013	—	$1,219	$340,600	$63,945
Seaside	31,964	—	$2,314	$692,600	$82,303
Beverly Hills	31,955	—	$2,805	$2,000,001	$127,979
San Pablo	31,771	—	$1,890	$516,000	$78,215
El Paso de Robles (Paso Robles)	31,399	—	$1,947	$648,400	$93,098
Orcutt	31,284	—	$2,094	$587,000	$108,682
Santa Paula	31,202	—	$1,698	$559,300	$77,130
Lawndale	31,113	—	$1,847	$726,000	$83,538
Laguna Hills	30,921	—	$2,622	$944,000	$122,778
La Verne	30,804	—	$2,204	$793,900	$104,565
Los Altos	30,736	—	$3,501	$2,000,001	$250,001
Banning	30,680	—	$1,528	$322,900	$57,699
Burlingame	30,526	—	$2,643	$2,000,001	$168,832
Saratoga	30,335	—	$3,501	$2,000,001	$241,348
San Carlos	29,797	—	$2,802	$2,000,001	$233,333
Monterey	29,772	—	$2,288	$1,003,300	$104,110
Atascadero	29,735	—	$1,855	$673,400	$88,830
San Lorenzo	29,453	—	$2,193	$833,800	$110,495
Eastern Goleta Valley	29,411	—	$2,924	$1,192,000	$136,839
Suisun City	29,205	—	$2,151	$551,000	$97,083
East Palo Alto	29,143	—	$2,209	$1,124,000	$104,832
Twentynine Palms	28,738	—	$1,271	$238,400	$56,000
East Niles	28,586	—	$1,219	$228,100	$51,250
Temescal Valley	28,560	—	$2,794	$648,200	$119,647
Ridgecrest	28,138	—	$1,178	$235,800	$88,107
Walnut	27,857	—	$3,120	$972,500	$133,762
Belmont	27,505	—	$2,894	$2,000,001	$207,609
Lemon Grove	27,489	—	$1,769	$640,600	$79,278
Lemoore	27,023	—	$1,394	$319,200	$82,189
Brawley	26,934	—	$954	$270,100	$60,370
Benicia	26,861	—	$2,234	$778,600	$125,040
Sanger	26,515	—	$1,131	$346,000	$74,428
Eureka	26,302	—	$1,157	$375,800	$60,253
South Pasadena	26,297	—	$2,218	$1,545,100	$128,105
Hercules	26,245	—	$3,003	$741,200	$130,583
Wasco	26,222	—	$991	$251,900	$55,521
Windsor	26,179	—	$2,087	$763,200	$129,004
North Tustin	26,038	—	$2,397	$1,212,400	$186,250
Imperial Beach	25,897	—	$1,914	$811,000	$79,071
El Cerrito	25,781	—	$2,444	$1,107,500	$127,475
Galt	25,665	—	$1,413	$465,700	$86,327
West Whittier-Los Nietos	25,459	—	$1,939	$607,100	$101,138
Reedley	25,446	—	$1,198	$311,700	$62,923
Lafayette	25,277	—	$2,855	$2,000,001	$222,393
Norco	25,211	—	$1,893	$731,900	$125,117
Dinuba	25,201	—	$1,146	$267,300	$59,048
Barstow	25,198	—	$1,065	$222,600	$51,811
Mountain House	25,108	—	$3,232	$859,700	$171,675
Loma Linda	25,021	—	$1,759	$557,800	$82,824

Cost Index = BEA Regional Price Parity (US avg = 100) · Income & Rent = US Census ACS

Moving Guides Involving California

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Compare California cities head-to-head

Use our comparison tool to put any two cities side by side. Or explore national rankings to see how California cities stack up across the US. For example, Los Angeles vs San Diego.

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Frequently Asked Questions about Cost of Living in California

What is the cost of living in California?

The average cost of living index across cities in California is approximately 106.4 (US average = 100), which is slightly above the US average. Median gross rent averages around $2,084/month and median household income averages around $106,268/year.

What are the cheapest cities to live in California?

The most affordable cities in California by cost of living index are: 1. Oxnard (index 87.3), 2. Thousand Oaks (index 87.3), 3. Fresno (index 91.9).

What is the median rent in California?

The average median gross rent across cities in California is approximately $2,084/month. Rent varies significantly by city and neighborhood — use the city profiles below for specific figures.

What are the income tax rates in California?

California's top marginal state income tax rate is 13.30%. This is the highest bracket rate; lower-income earners pay less. Source: Tax Foundation (2024).

What is the sales tax in California?

California's statewide sales tax rate is 7.25%. Local city and county rates may add to this. Source: Tax Foundation (2024).

Is it expensive to move to California?

California has a cost of living index of approximately 106.4 and average median rent around $2,084/month. It is somewhat above the US average in cost, so factor that into your relocation budget. Use our moving guides for salary equivalence calculations.

Data last updated: December 1, 2024 · Sources: US Census ACS, BEA RPP, BLS OEWS, HUD FMR, Tax Foundation · Methodology