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Lafayette, LA vs San Diego, CA

Moving from Lafayette to San Diego? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($202,312 → $946,365 median home) and taxes.

Lafayette vs San Diego at a glance

Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.

Lafayette, LA San Diego, CA Cost-of-living index Lafayette, LA — Cost-of-living index: 88 88 San Diego, CA — Cost-of-living index: 111 111 Median home price Lafayette, LA — Median home price: $202k $202k San Diego, CA — Median home price: $946k $946k Price per sqft Lafayette, LA — Price per sqft: $101 $101 San Diego, CA — Price per sqft: $631 $631 Median rent Lafayette, LA — Median rent: $1,371 $1,371 San Diego, CA — Median rent: $2,951 $2,951 Combined sales tax Lafayette, LA — Combined sales tax: 9.6% 9.6% San Diego, CA — Combined sales tax: 8.8% 8.8% Property tax rate Lafayette, LA — Property tax rate: 0.49% 0.49% San Diego, CA — Property tax rate: 0.72% 0.72% Violent crime /100k Lafayette, LA — Violent crime /100k: 630 630 San Diego, CA — Violent crime /100k: 500 500 Electricity ¢/kWh Lafayette, LA — Electricity ¢/kWh: 14.4 14.4 San Diego, CA — Electricity ¢/kWh: 35.3 35.3 Avg commute (min) Lafayette, LA — Avg commute (min): 26 26 San Diego, CA — Avg commute (min): 26 26 Avg summer high °F Lafayette, LA — Avg summer high °F: 92° 92° San Diego, CA — Avg summer high °F: 84° 84° Avg winter low °F Lafayette, LA — Avg winter low °F: 43° 43° San Diego, CA — Avg winter low °F: 45° 45°

To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Lafayette, LA, you'd need about $126,485 in San Diego, CA (+$26,485).

Livability — Lafayette, LA: 72 · San Diego, CA: 44 (0–100).

What your home budget buys

A $500,000 home budget gets you about 4,941 sqft in Lafayette vs 793 sqft in San Diego ($101 vs $631 per sqft).

Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)

CategoryLafayette, LASan Diego, CADifference
Housing $16,452 $35,412 +$18,960
Groceries $4,650 $5,112 +$462
Transportation $4,475 $5,125 +$650
Utilities $1,560 $3,804 +$2,244
Insurance $3,500 $1,500 −$2,000
Taxes $8,509 $21,601 +$13,092
Total $39,146 $72,554 +$33,408

Side by side

MetricLafayette, LASan Diego, CA
Cost-of-living index87.6110.7
Unemployment rate5.97%6.34%
Population growth (5-yr)-1.6%0.2%
Air quality (median AQI)5171
Big Mac price (est.)$4.98$6.30
Median home price$202,312$946,365
Home price ÷ income3.5×9.8×
1-yr home appreciation2.1%-1.1%
Price per square foot$101$631
Median rent$1,371$2,951
Total tax burden (% income)9.1%13.5%
Combined sales tax9.56%8.82%
Capital gains tax4.25%13.30%
Property tax rate0.49%0.72%
Healthcare (annual)$6,600$7,200
Childcare (annual, infant)$8,000$19,000
Vehicle property tax0.10%0.65%
Avg commute (min)2626
Home insurance / yr$3,500$1,500
Auto insurance / yr$2,900$2,400
Flood insurance / yr$1,000$750
Earthquake insurance / yr$100$950
Electricity ¢/kWh14.435.3
Gas $/gal2.954.85
Violent crime /100k630500
Avg summer high °F9284
Avg winter low °F4345
Permit difficulty (1–5)25

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