Riverside, CA, known as 'The City of Arts and Innovation,' offers a unique blend of cultural heritage and urban amenities. Located in southern California, Riverside is a large city that serves as a major cultural and economic hub. Major nearby cities like San Bernardino and Corona enhance its status as a central point in the region. Riverside's blend of historic landmarks, cultural festivals, and urban amenities creates a distinctive living experience.
Riverside is home to several iconic landmarks, including the Mission Inn Hotel & Spa, the Riverside Art Museum, and the historic Riverside County Courthouse. The city offers a variety of attractions, from the beautiful Mount Rubidoux Park to the bustling Riverside Plaza, known for its shopping and dining. Riverside's dining scene is diverse, offering everything from farm-to-table cuisine to international dishes.
Annual events such as the Riverside Festival of Lights and the Riverside Tamale Festival highlight the city's vibrant cultural scene and provide unique entertainment opportunities for residents and visitors. These events celebrate Riverside's rich cultural heritage and community spirit. Prestigious institutions like the University of California, Riverside contribute to the city's academic and cultural vibrancy, fostering a thriving intellectual community.
The arts and culture scene in Riverside is dynamic and diverse, with numerous theaters, music venues, and art galleries. The Fox Performing Arts Center and the California Museum of Photography are just a few of the cultural landmarks that showcase the city's commitment to the arts. Living in Riverside provides ample opportunities to engage with art, music, and history, making it an exciting place to call home.
Riverside’s community is welcoming and diverse, creating a friendly environment for newcomers. The city is home to professional sports teams like the Inland Empire 66ers (MiLB), providing plenty of excitement for sports fans. Major industries in Riverside include education, healthcare, and logistics, with significant employers such as Riverside Unified School District and Kaiser Permanente driving economic growth. The city has extensive public transit options, including buses and Metrolink trains, making commuting convenient for residents.
Commute
An elevated score in the commute category points to excellent public transit accessibility and shorter-than-average work commute times in this area.
Employment
Higher than average median household income, income per capita and lower unemployment rates are seen in this area. The result is a high score in the employment category.
Housing
High scores in the housing category are a distinguishing feature of this area, possibly driven by a favorable home affordability ratio, higher home values and appreciation rates.
Ratings
Based on recent surveys and polls, locals gave high marks in the walkability to local amenities, safety, public transit, friendliness of neighbors and overall sense of community in the area.
Cost Of Living
Living in this region comes with a high cost of living, translating to elevated costs for homes, goods and services, groceries, utilities, health care and transportation.
Crime
This area reports elevated crime rates per 100,000 individuals, potentially pointing some areas being unsafe for its residents. Stats are based on both property and violent crimes.
Riverside, California is a highly populated city with a population of 327,569 residents. With a population density of 4,033 people per square mile, Riverside is well above the nation's average density level. More than a quarter of the residents of Riverside identify themselves as Hispanic or Latino, and 37% of the population speak Spanish as their primary or secondary language. If you are a young adult or student, you might be pleased to know that the average age of all Riverside residents is 32. Riverside is very likely to be a great place to live for singles as only 48%, of the population (over fifteen) are classified as married. Long, unnecessary commutes can be both frustrating and inconvenient when heading to work. Nationwide, the average one-way commute time takes 26 minutes, but regrettably, residing in Riverside entails a longer-than-average one-way commute time, averaging 32 minutes.
Living in Riverside can be a great experience for anyone moving to the area. Having said that, in the state of California, there are many incredible places to live, so choose wisely! When searching for a new neighborhood, several factors play a vital role in determining its suitability. Safety should be a top priority, ensuring a secure environment with low crime rates. Proximity to your workplace or school helps minimize commuting time and allows for a better work-life balance. Availability of essential amenities such as parks, coffee shops, restaurants, grocery stores, and healthcare facilities contributes to convenience and well-being. Access to reliable public transportation options facilitates easy commuting and connectivity. Additionally, considering the sense of community and the overall atmosphere that resonates with your lifestyle and preferences fosters a harmonious living experience. To help you find the best places to live in and around Riverside, AreaVibes has created a livability score using key metrics like crime, cost of living, health & safety, employment and more.
Riverside has a livability score of 67/100 and is ranked #325 in California and #9,047 in the USA. For each of the livability categories, we can establish that Riverside ranks very well for employment (B+) and housing (A-). There are some categories that Riverside ranks poorly for, including: crime (D-), cost of living (F) and education (F). It might be worth taking a closer look to figure out why.
A robust real estate market serves as a crucial economic indicator, reflecting the local area's strength, stability and the confidence of its residents. Riverside excels in the housing sector, scoring high marks based on factors such as median home and rental prices, appreciation rates and home affordability. These calculations suggest that the apartment rental and real estate market in the region is exceptionally healthy, highlighting the area's economic vitality and attractiveness to potential homebuyers and renters.
Being close to public transit, grocery stores, parks and other conveniences are all important when weighing your options for a new home in Riverside. Before you determine if any of these amenities are available in the area, you will also want to know if the real estate prices in Riverside are affordable. Median real estate prices in Riverside come in at $389,500, which is 4.8% lower than the California average. The home price to income ratio compares the median home prices to the median household income. In Riverside, the home price to income ratio is 5.4, which is 15.6% lower than the California average.
| Statistic | Riverside | California | National |
| Average one way commute | 32min | 28min | 26min |
| Workers who drive to work | 76.1% | 73.5% | 76.4% |
| Workers who carpool | 12.0% | 10.6% | 9.3% |
| Workers who take public transit | 2.5% | 5.2% | 5.1% |
| Workers who bicycle | 0.6% | 1.1% | 0.6% |
| Workers who walk | 2.5% | 2.7% | 2.8% |
| Working from home | 5.3% | 5.4% | 4.6% |
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