Best Places to Live in California

California is a large Pacific Coast state located in the western United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, Mexico to the south, and stretches over 840 miles along much of America's Pacific coastline. California's population just surpassed 40 million people and it is home to famous cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego. The iconic redwood forests near Santa Cruz attracts millions of visitors each year while Yosemite National Park boasts incredible scenery including Half Dome mountain peak that stands at 8800 feet tall. From tech giants like Apple in Silicon Valley to Hollywood studios like Universal Studios — California offers a wide range of career opportunities too.

State: California
County: Los Angeles, San Diego, 58 total
Metro Area: Los_Angeles-Long_Beach-Anaheim, San_Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, 34 total
City: Los Angeles, San Diego, 1578 total

Zip Codes: 90011, 90650, 91331, 90201, 92335, 90250, 91342, 90805, 90280, 90044, 1786 total
Cost of Living: 49.9% higher

California, Wa Housing Market

Least Expensive Homes	Homes Over 2,000 Sq. Ft.
Most Expensive Homes	Homes less than 10 yrs old
All Single Family Homes

Highlights

ECONOMY

The unemployment rate in California is 8.2% (U.S. avg. is 6.0%). Recent job growth is Positive. California jobs have increased by 1.3%. More Economy

COST OF LIVING

Compared to the rest of the country, California's cost of living is 49.9% higher than the U.S. average. More Cost of Living or Compare California's Cost of Living

WEATHER & CLIMATE

May, October and June are the most pleasant months in the state of California, while January and December are the least comfortable months. Today's Weather | Climate Averages

VOTING

In the last Presidential election, California remained overwhelmingly Democratic, 63.4% to 34.3%. More Voting Stats

POPULATION

California's population is 39,455,353 people. Since 2020, it has had a population growth of 6.4%. Learn More...

TRANSPORTATION

Average Commute time is 28.8 minutes. The National Average is 26.4 minutes. Learn More...

REAL ESTATE

The median home cost in California is $733,500. Home appreciation the last 10 years has been 2.2%.

SCHOOLS

California public schools spend $11,183 per student. The average school expenditure in the U.S. is $12,383. There are about 25 students per teacher in California. More Education

Best Places to Live in California Rankings

See Places Rated and Ranked Click Here

Housing Market in California

It's a good time to buy in California. Home Appreciation is up 2.2% in the last 12 months.
The median home price in California is $733,500.

Schools: See Local Schools

See Homes

View More Data >

Reviews for California 285 Reviews

? - 7/28/2022
California is a great state. What stopped me from giving it 5 stars is the crime, homelessness, high cost of living, traffic, drought, and wildfires. Still a pretty good... Read More

?? | Los Angeles, CA | Reply | No Replies

Start Your Review of California

Best place on earth. - 6/28/2021
Born and raised here - been all around the country and world but California is unrivaled for beauty , diversity, food, landscapes, vibrant industries and agriculture and... Read More

John | Los Angeles, CA | Reply | No Replies

Don’t Come Here Ever - 5/16/2021
The extreme criminality of people here are smugly dismissive, unempathetic, rude, the cost of living is outright usury and the police and court system do absolutely... Read More

Vasudha | Redwood City, CA | Reply | 1 Reply

View More Data >

COMPARE COST OF LIVING

Compare California to any other place in the USA.

MAPS OF CALIFORNIA

ZIP CODES IN CALIFORNIA

90011, 90650, 91331, 90201, 92335, 90250, 91342, 90805, 90280, 90044, 1786 total

PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP

Members receive 10 FREE city profile downloads a month, unlimited access to our detailed cost of living calculator and analysis, downloadable reports, and more.

Try Now

United States / California