USLivingCost Salaries · Rent · Cost of Living

San Diego, CA vs. San Francisco, CA

Median rent is $2,223 a month in San Diego, CA and $2,419 in San Francisco, CA. Household income is $104,321 against $141,446. Both cities are read from the same ACS 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates and the same BEA Regional Price Parities 2023, so the two columns below are directly comparable.

$
Same standard of living
A salary of $100,000 in San Diego, CA buys what $106,040 buys in San Francisco, CA
+$6,040 more to keep the same standard of living
Median gross rent Monthly
$2,223 $2,419 +8.8%
Median household income Annual
$104,321 $141,446 +35.6%
Median home value Owner-occupied
$848,500 $1,380,500 +62.7%
Rent as share of income Annual rent ÷ income
25.6% 20.5% -5.1 pp
Price level U.S. average = 100
111.5 118.2 +6.0%
Salary needed for median rent Keeps rent at 30% of gross
$88,900 $96,800 +8.9%
Rent median income carries at 30% Affordable rent
$2,608 $3,536 +35.6%
Population City proper
1,385,061 836,321 -39.6%
Equivalent salary For $100,000 in San Diego
$100,000 $106,040 +6.0%

A green or red badge means the second city is higher or lower, not better or worse: a lower rent is good for a tenant, a lower household income is not. For the price level and
the share of income the raw values are shown, because a percentage difference between two
percentages is easy to misread.

What the gap means

Lower rent
$2,223
San Diego, CA · 8.8% below San Francisco, CA
Higher household income
$141,446
San Francisco, CA · 35.6% above San Diego, CA
Same standard of living
$106,040
$100,000 in San Diego, CA needs $106,040 in San Francisco, CA
Price level gap
6.7 points
111.5 in CA against 118.2 in CA
Rent burden gap
5.0 points
San Diego, CA versus San Francisco, CA, share of income taken by rent
Highest buying power
89.7%
San Diego, CA · share of the national average income that a dollar there buys

Occupation wages in both metros

May 2025 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Metropolitan areas may differ from city boundaries.

Occupation San Diego, CA median San Francisco, CA median vs.
Fast Food and Counter Workers $42,190 $43,870 +4.0%
Software Developers $163,270 $186,640 +14.3%
Retail Salespersons $37,810 $43,850 +16.0%
Registered Nurses $139,520 $186,610 +33.8%
General and Operations Managers $119,600 $149,990 +25.4%
Waiters and Waitresses $35,850 $38,860 +8.4%
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners $38,450 $44,180 +14.9%
Accountants and Auditors $96,340 $110,730 +14.9%

Metropolitan areas and cover every industry together, so the two columns may describe wider areas than the city limits used for rent and income.

More comparisons with San Diego, CA

More comparisons with San Francisco, CA

Open this pair in the interactive tool · All comparisons

Definitions used on this page

Salary needed for the median rent
Twelve months of median gross rent divided by 0.30: the income that keeps the median rent at 30% of gross pay.
Price level
BEA regional price parity for the metro area where one is published, otherwise for the state. The national average is 100.
Same standard of living
A salary in San Diego, CA converted into San Francisco, CA at the ratio of the two price levels. It adjusts for prices only, not for taxes or for what either city offers.
Buying power
One hundred divided by the price level: what a dollar buys locally relative to the national average.

Sources

Margins of error are published for every Census figure. Read the methodology before reading a small gap between two cities as a real difference.

Full detail for each city: San Diego, CA · San Francisco, CA