San Diego, California Cost Of Living

F

49%

Overall NAT. AVG.

10%

Goods & Services NAT. AVG.

130%

Housing NAT. AVG.

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2023; this is the most current data available.

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	San Diego	California	National
Cost of living	149	141	100
Goods & Services	110	111	100
Groceries	112	116	100
Health care	104	111	100
Housing	230	196	100
Transportation	132	129	100
Utilities	113	129	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in San Diego is 6% higher than the California average
The cost of living in San Diego is 49% higher than the national average
San Diego housing is 130% higher than the national average
California general sales tax is 42% higher than the national average
California state income tax is 56% lower than the national average

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$113,929	$9,494	$2,658	$3,418
Renters	$63,390	$5,283	$1,479	$1,902

The percent of monthly income spent on housing can be a good indicator of the affordability of housing in San Diego, CA, as well as the overall cost of living. As a general rule of thumb, the debt-to-income ratio (DTI) for homeowners or renters should be not more than 28 percent of gross income to be spent on housing related costs and not more than 36 percent of income on all expenses, including debts. The median income for San Diego homeowners, is $113,929. This would allow for a maximum of $2,658 per month to be spent on housing costs. For renters, the median monthly income is $63,390 which would result in a maximum of $1,479 to be spent on rental costs.

California Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
California	7.25%	10.5%

California Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
California	1%	12.3%

Goods & Services

Item	San Diego	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$27.67	$22.08	25.3%
Beauty Salon	$66.33	$42.88	54.7%
Toothpaste	$3.24	$2.57	26.2%
Shampoo	$1.29	$1.15	12.1%
Movie	$16.08	$11.51	39.8%
Bowling	$24.11	$16.62	45.1%

Groceries

Item	San Diego	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.38	$4.98	8.1%
Fried Chicken	$1.85	$1.58	16.6%
Milk	$2.70	$2.42	11.7%
Potatoes	$3.27	$3.54	7.4%
Pizza	$12.49	$11.49	8.7%
Beer	$10.07	$10.04	0.3%

Health Care

Item	San Diego	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$126.18	$117.76	7.2%
Doctor	$116.25	$125.34	7.3%
Dentist	$118.33	$107.52	10.1%
Ibuprofen	$12.09	$10.26	17.9%
Lipitor	$492.75	$459.24	7.3%

Housing

Item	San Diego	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$629,500.00	$184,700.00	240.8%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$3,920.87	$1,697.41	131.0%
Apartment Rent	$1,770.00	$949.00	86.5%

Transportation

Item	San Diego	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$5.50	$3.85	43.1%
Tire Balancing	$62.60	$57.01	9.8%

Utilities

Item	San Diego	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$220.21	$177.27	24.2%
Phone	$183.96	$189.62	3.0%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Spring Valley CDP (Lake County), CA	1,154	105	4.8%
Bostonia, CA	17,532	122	22.1%
National City, CA	61,342	125	25.4%
La Presa, CA	37,410	127	27.4%
Winter Gardens, CA	22,785	129	29.3%
San Diego, CA	1,414,545	149	48.5%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Calgary, AB	1,371,990	n/a
Dallas, TX	1,338,846	98	2.0%
San Antonio, TX	1,529,133	90	10.1%
Philadelphia, PA	1,581,531	100	0.0%
Phoenix, AZ	1,658,422	97	3.2%
San Diego, CA	1,414,545	149	48.5%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2023; this is the most current data available.