Riverside, CA vs Bakersfield, CA
Moving from Riverside to Bakersfield? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($585,378 → $364,264 median home) and taxes.
Riverside vs Bakersfield at a glance
Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.
To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Riverside, CA, you'd need about $95,387 in Bakersfield, CA (−$4,613).
Livability — Riverside, CA: 48 · Bakersfield, CA: 56 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,281 sqft in Riverside vs 2,059 sqft in Bakersfield ($390 vs $243 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Riverside, CA | Bakersfield, CA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $30,228 | $21,456 | −$8,772 |
| Groceries | $5,098 | $5,247 | +$149 |
| Transportation | $5,125 | $5,125 | +$0 |
| Utilities | $3,804 | $3,804 | +$0 |
| Insurance | $1,500 | $1,500 | +$0 |
| Taxes | $19,978 | $19,099 | −$879 |
| Total | $65,733 | $56,231 | −$9,502 |
Side by side
| Metric | Riverside, CA | Bakersfield, CA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 107.3 | 102.4 |
| Unemployment rate | 6.95% | 8.39% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.0% | 3.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 97 | 72 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.11 | $5.83 |
| Median home price | $585,378 | $364,264 |
| Home price ÷ income | 7.2× | 5.7× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.8% | -0.4% |
| Price per square foot | $390 | $243 |
| Median rent | $2,519 | $1,788 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 13.5% | 13.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.82% | 8.82% |
| Capital gains tax | 13.30% | 13.30% |
| Property tax rate | 0.79% | 0.96% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,200 | $7,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $19,000 | $19,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.65% | 0.65% |
| Avg commute (min) | 33 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,500 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,400 | $2,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $750 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $950 | $950 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 35.3 | 35.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 4.85 | 4.85 |
| Violent crime /100k | 500 | 500 |
| Avg summer high °F | 84 | 84 |
| Avg winter low °F | 45 | 45 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 5 | 5 |