Some of you might be asking yourself, at this very moment: is California a good place?
The answer is unequivocally yes… if you know where to locate the best places to live in California.
Lucky for you, we’re here to help you identify the best counties to live in the Golden State based on the most recently available data from the Census. And this isn’t our first rodeo — we’ve been helping people find the best places to live in America for years.
So, the question becomes, if you wanted to relocate to the best part of California, where would you go? To answer that we looked at crime, cost of living, and demographic data for all 58 counties in the state.
After the analytic dust settled, we identified the 10 best counties to live in Golden State for 2021.
The 10 Best Counties To Live In California For 2021
Marin County is the county to be when it comes to living the good life in California. And you might want to avoid Kern County if you can — at least according to the data.
So if you’re thinking of making the move California, we’ve got you covered. Keep on reading for a detailed methodology.
Or, check out the best places to live in California and the cheapest places to live in California.
The Best Counties To Live In California For 2021
1. Marin County
Biggest Place: San Rafael
Population: 259,943
Median Income: $115,246 (3rd best)
Median Home Price: $995,800.0 (3rd best)
Unemployment Rate: 3.7% (2nd best)
More on Marin County: Photos | Data
2. Placer County
Biggest Place: Roseville
Population: 385,512
Median Income: $89,691 (8th best)
Median Home Price: $471,500.0 (18th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.2% (7th best)
More on Placer County: Photos | Data
3. Sonoma County
Biggest Place: Santa Rosa
Population: 499,772
Median Income: $81,018 (15th best)
Median Home Price: $609,600.0 (10th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.4% (10th best)
More on Sonoma County: Photos | Data
4. Napa County
Biggest Place: Napa
Population: 139,623
Median Income: $88,596 (9th best)
Median Home Price: $635,900.0 (8th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.5% (11th best)
More on Napa County: Photos | Data
5. El Dorado County
Biggest Place: El Dorado Hills
Population: 188,563
Median Income: $83,377 (12th best)
Median Home Price: $460,900.0 (19th best)
Unemployment Rate: 5.5% (23rd best)
More on El Dorado County: Photos | Data
6. San Mateo County
Biggest Place: Daly City
Population: 767,423
Median Income: $122,641 (2nd best)
Median Home Price: $1,089,400.0 (2nd best)
Unemployment Rate: 3.7% (3rd best)
More on San Mateo County: Photos | Data
7. San Luis Obispo County
Biggest Place: San Luis Obispo
Population: 282,165
Median Income: $73,518 (18th best)
Median Home Price: $574,000.0 (14th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.0% (4th best)
More on San Luis Obispo County: Photos | Data
8. San Francisco County
Biggest Place: San Francisco
Population: 874,961
Median Income: $112,449 (4th best)
Median Home Price: $1,097,800.0 (best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.2% (6th best)
More on San Francisco County: Photos | Data
9. Santa Clara County
Biggest Place: San Jose
Population: 1,927,470
Median Income: $124,055 (best)
Median Home Price: $984,000.0 (4th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.3% (8th best)
More on Santa Clara County: Photos | Data
10. Orange County
Biggest Place: Anaheim
Population: 3,168,044
Median Income: $90,234 (7th best)
Median Home Price: $679,300.0 (7th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.6% (14th best)
More on Orange County: Photos | Data
How do you determine which California county is the best?
To give you the best county in California, we have to look at a handful of metrics that signal the quality of a place. To do that, we need to make some assumptions about what’s a “best county” and what isn’t. And, for reference, we are trying to make the kind of argument you’d make at a bar using facts, don’t take this analysis to court.
With that in mind, we went to two of the best sources of data on the internet; the American Community Survey data and FBI Crime data for the most recent time period.
We paid particular attention to:
- Violent Crime Rates
- Property Crime Rates
- Median Home Values
- Median Income
- Unemployment Rates
- Adult Education Levels
- Health Insurance Coverage
- Poverty Rates
We then ranked each county in California across each of the criteria from one to 58, with one being the best.
Taking the average rank across all criteria, we created a quality of life score with the county posting the lowest overall score being the “Best County To Live In California”.
The result is some of the safest, quiet, and best counties to raise a family in the Golden State.
Read on to see why Marin County is the best county, while Kern County is probably in contention for being the worst county in California.
There You Have It – The Best Counties In California To Call Home For 2018
It turns out living in California can vary from one part of the state to the next — who woulda thought?
But now you the know the really good parts and the parts to avoid and that’s why you came here to learn at the end of the day. And for that, you are welcome.
Here’s a look at the worst counties in California according to the data:
- Kern County
- Merced County
- Tehama County
For more California reading, check out:
- Safest Places In California
- Best Places To Buy A House In California
- Cheapest Places To Live In California
- Best Places To Raise A Family In California
