2025 Compare Cities Economy:
Boulder, CO vs Merced, CA

Change Cities
Highlights
- Household income in Merced, is 30% less than it is in Boulder and is 32% below the National Average.
- Boulder unemployment rate is 5.1%.
- Merced unemployment rate is 9.3%.
 Boulder, COMerced, CAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock9.3%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock2.5%1.6%
 Future Job Growth44.4%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes8.8%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock8.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$52,057  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$52,305$69,021
 Family Median Income$134,583  Unlock$85,028
 space
 Est. Households By Income
 Boulder, COMerced, CAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock14.3%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K3.7%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock10.4%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K5.6%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock8.8%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K5.8%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock10.6%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K9.5%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock13.4%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K9.6%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock4.5%9.5%
 space1
 Population By Occupation
 Boulder, COMerced, CAUnited States
 Management, business, finance18.6%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock2.9%6.5%
 Community, social services1.5%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock0.5%1.2%
 Education, library10.1%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock1.4%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology4.7%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock5.3%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement1.3%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock6.2%5.4%
 Building maintenance1.1%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock3.7%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support17.5%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock8.1%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair2.1%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock15.8%13.1%
Reviews for Boulder    55 Reviews

Outside of the university, Boulder had a very distinctive "wealthy hippy" feel. A lot of alternative medicine and a matching ethos. This is changing some among my  More

   |    Reply

We moved here from Texas about 4 years ago and love it here! The amazing sense of community and high regard for the environment are two of the main reasons we love  More

   |    Reply

Over 5 years ago

Most people do much worse than Boulder. I'm the most critical person I've ever met who is never happy or satisfied -- so that's a pretty huge compliment.   More

   |    Reply

Start Your Review of Boulder

Reviews for Merced    44 Reviews

Merced is totally slept on - you want a little bit of everything CA has to offer, at a fraction of the price of other CA cities? Merced is the place to go. The town  More

   |    Reply

Over 5 years ago

Good place to live. More affordable than most of california. The city is growing and there is alot of business and growth here. Moved from the Bay area years ago and  More

   |    Reply

Great place to live. Lots of progress and changes coming to the city. Great place to raise a family. UC Merced is expanding and businesses are investing. Downtown is  More

   |    Reply

Start Your Review of Merced


Premium Subscription
Includes Cost of Living compares for child care, utilities, transportation, health, taxes, housing for home owners vs renters, weather, insurance premiums and so much more.


The premier source for comprehensive city data for over 30 years.

© Best Places. All rights reserved.