U.S. News & World Report’s list of the Most Expensive Places to Live in the U.S. in 2023–2024 ranked San Diego as the most costly city in the nation, taking into account factors such as housing affordability, desirability, and quality of life.
According to U.S. News, cities notorious for their exorbitant real estate prices, such as San Francisco (ranked sixth) and New York City (ranked eleventh), were significantly ranked lower.
Twelve of the twenty-five locations on the list, including three of the top five, were located in California. Santa Barbara and Los Angeles placed fifth and second, respectively.
The indices utilized in the Best Places to Live survey by U.S. News considered variables such as average temperature, crime rate, quality of education, unemployment rate, and median annual household income.
According to the real estate website Zillow, the mean value of a property in San Diego is $961,629, which is significantly higher than the national average of $288,539 per home. At $1.3 million, the average property value in San Francisco is greater than that of San Diego. San Francisco occupies the highest position on the list.
The median monthly rent in San Diego, according to Zillow, is $3,200, which is less than the median rents in San Francisco and New York, both of which are nearly $3,500. These locations are perceived to have a lower cost.