Washington, DC vs San Diego, CA
Moving from Washington to San Diego? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($583,013 → $946,365 median home) and taxes.
Washington vs San Diego 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 Washington, DC, you'd need about $101,094 in San Diego, CA (+$1,094).
Livability — Washington, DC: 39 · San Diego, CA: 44 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,286 sqft in Washington vs 793 sqft in San Diego ($389 vs $631 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Washington, DC | San Diego, CA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $28,992 | $35,412 | +$6,420 |
| Groceries | $5,318 | $5,112 | −$205 |
| Transportation | $3,855 | $5,125 | +$1,270 |
| Utilities | $2,748 | $3,804 | +$1,056 |
| Insurance | $1,400 | $1,500 | +$100 |
| Taxes | $17,710 | $21,601 | +$3,891 |
| Total | $60,023 | $72,554 | +$12,532 |
Side by side
| Metric | Washington, DC | San Diego, CA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 109.5 | 110.7 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.87% | 6.34% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 4.2% | 0.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 49 | 71 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.23 | $6.30 |
| Median home price | $583,013 | $946,365 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.9× | 9.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -0.5% | -1.1% |
| Price per square foot | $389 | $631 |
| Median rent | $2,416 | $2,951 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 12.0% | 13.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 6.00% | 8.82% |
| Capital gains tax | 10.75% | 13.30% |
| Property tax rate | 0.95% | 0.72% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,800 | $7,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $26,000 | $19,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 0.65% |
| Avg commute (min) | 34 | 26 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,400 | $1,500 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,000 | $2,400 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $750 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $950 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 25.4 | 35.3 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.40 | 4.85 |
| Violent crime /100k | 1,000 | 500 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 84 |
| Avg winter low °F | 29 | 45 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 5 |