2025 Compare Cities Economy:
Reston, VA vs Merced, CA

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Highlights
- Household income in Merced, is 59% less than it is in Reston and is 32% below the National Average.
- Reston unemployment rate is 4.6%.
- Merced unemployment rate is 9.3%.
 Reston, VAMerced, CAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock9.3%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock2.5%1.6%
 Future Job Growth36.7%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes6.0%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock8.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$69,942  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$52,305$69,021
 Family Median Income$149,795  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 Reston, VAMerced, CAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock14.3%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K1.4%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock10.4%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K4.2%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock8.8%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K3.8%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock10.6%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K11.2%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock13.4%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K15.8%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock4.5%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 Reston, VAMerced, CAUnited States
 Management, business, finance29.8%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock2.9%6.5%
 Community, social services1.1%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock0.5%1.2%
 Education, library7.7%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock1.4%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology3.3%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock5.3%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement1.5%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock6.2%5.4%
 Building maintenance2.4%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock3.7%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support16.4%  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 Reston    21 Reviews

Over 3 years ago

I have lived in Reston for three years and it is absolute paradise. The fact that it was a planned city from decades ago is still apparent to this day. With plenty of  More

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Over 10 years ago

Summers are hot and  More

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There is a vast network of bike and walking trails thoughout the city and neighborhoods. 40% of the city is slated to remain green so there are many trees, parks and  More

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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

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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

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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

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