2025 Compare Cities Economy:
Lake Forest, CA vs Costa Mesa, CA

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Highlights
- Household income in Costa Mesa, is 18% less than it is in Lake Forest and is 28% above the National Average.
- Lake Forest unemployment rate is 5.6%.
- Costa Mesa unemployment rate is 5.5%.
 Lake Forest, CACosta Mesa, CAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock5.5%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock0.6%1.6%
 Future Job Growth34.8%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes7.8%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock8.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$51,276  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$96,391$69,021
 Family Median Income$137,776  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 Lake Forest, CACosta Mesa, CAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock5.4%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K1.4%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock5.0%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K5.2%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock5.5%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K5.4%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock7.5%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K12.5%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock21.5%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K15.2%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock15.9%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 Lake Forest, CACosta Mesa, CAUnited States
 Management, business, finance25.6%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock6.1%6.5%
 Community, social services1.6%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock1.7%1.2%
 Education, library5.3%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock4.5%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology4.4%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock2.0%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement1.3%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock8.0%5.4%
 Building maintenance2.5%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock3.2%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support20.9%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock0.5%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair4.3%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock7.4%13.1%
Reviews for Lake Forest    16 Reviews

I've lived in Lake Forest for over a decade, before that elsewhere in OC and also up in LA. Lake Forest isn't perfect but it's really improved over the past decade,  More

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As a retired senior who has lived in Lake Forest (formerly El Toro) since 1977 I think LF is a great place if you can afford it. When we moved here in June '77 homes  More

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I’ve lived here for 2 years. Ok, it’s more like a 4 but there are so many idiots downplaying what it’s like here and giving Lake Forest ones and twos. There are a lot of  More

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Reviews for Costa Mesa    8 Reviews

Over 15 years ago

Costa mesa has awesome shopping but is way too crowded and I have had 3 cars stolen in the past 5 years along with countless break-ins and theft. Expensive. Close to  More

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Over 16 years ago

Costa Mesa has a near perfect climate . . . plenty of sun but rarely over 100 degrees (our house doesn't even have AC). Nestled between Newport Beach and Huntington  More

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We have a good amount of low-income, medium-income, and relatively high-income  More

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