While big cities like Escondido offer culture, cuisine, and charisma, they also deliver terrible traffic, towering expenses, and a taxing quality of life.
With that in mind, we wanted to uncover the best suburbs around Escondido. These burbs have all of the benefits of being near Escondido without actually having to be in the city.
Of course, not all suburbs of Escondido are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones. Using Saturday Night Science, we delve into the factors that matter most, from commutes and housing costs to community vibes, to help you uncover the perfect suburban spots in the Greater Escondido area.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 best suburbs to live around Escondido for 2025:
What’s the best suburb of Escondido? Del Mar ranks as the best suburb of Escondido for 2025 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Del Mar, you’re probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 Escondido ‘burbs better than the rest–but first, a bit about our methodology.
Feel free to check out some more reading about California:
The 10 Best Escondido Suburbs To Live For 2025
/10
Population: 3,921
Median Income: $192,845
Unemployment Rate: 2.5%
Poverty Rate: 2.5%
More on Del Mar: Data
Del Mar is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Escondido area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome Del Mar.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $192,845 a year, which is the highest in the Escondido region. And only 2.5% are out of work. Homes average more than $2,000,001 each.
/10
Population: 12,841
Median Income: $150,820
Unemployment Rate: 3.3%
Poverty Rate: 5.5%
More on Solana Beach: Data
Solana Beach is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Escondido for 2025.
It ranks 2nd for incomes in the area and only 2.91% of residents lack insurance, good for 2nd best.
/10
Population: 61,585
Median Income: $150,471
Unemployment Rate: 4.7%
Poverty Rate: 7.3%
More on Encinitas: Data
Here in Encinitas, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Escondido metro area.
The bad side? Schools are more crowded, and the cost of living puts a large part of the city out of reach for most families.
But price is based on demand and a lot of people want to live in Encinitas.
/10
Population: 48,515
Median Income: $143,825
Unemployment Rate: 5.3%
Poverty Rate: 5.2%
More on Poway: Data
Poway ranks as the 4th best suburb of Escondido for 2025.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Poway and the schools are some of the best around.
/10
Population: 114,500
Median Income: $139,326
Unemployment Rate: 6.3%
Poverty Rate: 6.9%
More on Carlsbad: Data
Coming in as the fifth best is Carlsbad.
Carlsbad gets kudos for having the 4th most expensive homes in the Escondido area, where houses sell for an average of $1,156,900. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
/10
Population: 59,485
Median Income: $105,613
Unemployment Rate: 5.1%
Poverty Rate: 8.5%
More on Santee: Data
Santee is proud of its 6th place finish on this list. And here’s why.
Most residents have great jobs and the unemployment rate sits at 5.05%.
According to online reports, Santee is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Escondido area, meaning you need to get in soon.
/10
Population: 110,404
Median Income: $117,840
Unemployment Rate: 5.7%
Poverty Rate: 7.4%
More on Temecula: Data
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Temecula.
Temecula schools are some of the best in the region, and crime is really low. The cost of living makes it a lot more desirable for many families, especially first-time home buyers.
And, it’s only 25.1 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
/10
Population: 94,078
Median Income: $105,286
Unemployment Rate: 4.5%
Poverty Rate: 10.2%
More on San Marcos: Data
San Marcos is growing quickly, and for a good reason. Crime is far below average, and most residents are gainfully employed. Even the cost of living is reasonable.
A solid 7.1% of people lack insurance, good for 13th in the area.
/10
Population: 60,835
Median Income: $84,337
Unemployment Rate: 6.3%
Poverty Rate: 11.7%
More on La Mesa: Data
Is ‘Everything Better In La Mesa?’
Almost.
It placed 9th on our list thanks to the fact that it’s really expensive to live here, but the schools are great, so you get what you pay for in that regard.
The crime is relatively low for the region. It is a safe and quiet community.
La Mesa Performing Arts Academy is an excellent school, and has received numerous awards from the state of California. Their music program is excellent.
Helix Charter High School is a college preparatory school, and is the alma mater of football greats Alex Smith and Reggie Bush. Classes are on a block schedule, and students have the ability to cross-enroll at local colleges for graduation credits.
Brew Coffee Spot is a great place to get a cup of coffee. Centifonti’s restaurant has a variety of menu items, including draft beer, sweets, and gelato. These items are made fresh daily.
Housing costs are high, but La Mesa is minutes from the ocean.
/10
Population: 1,385,061
Median Income: $104,321
Unemployment Rate: 5.9%
Poverty Rate: 11.1%
More on San Diego: Data
And rounding out the top ten for 2025 is San Diego.
This city is far above average in every category, and the best part? It’s far more affordable than the other cities listed above. So, you get a big bang for your buck here.
Overall San Diego is a great place to life with fun activities, great food and weather. Unfortunately, the cost of living is skyrocketing which is making it cost prohibitive. The homeless population and general population growth is a huge negative and traffic is resembling LA.
The San Diego Zoo, beaches, and dining experiences are amazing. Traffic, crime, and homeless population is growing which are the biggest negatives.
Methodology: How We Determined The Best Suburbs Around Escondido for 2025
Figuring out the best suburbs around Escondido was simple. We used Saturday Night Science to find things people like about living in the suburbs and then locate the suburbs with those things.
We analyzed the newest American Community Survey data for 2019-2023 to research each suburb. We decided upon the following criteria:
- Low unemployment rate
- High median household incomes
- Population density (lots of things to do)
- High home values
- A lot of college-educated people
- Low poverty
- High rate of insured families
We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Escondido.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 3,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 15 suburbs to evaluate around Escondido.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 15 in each category, where 1 was the “best.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality-of-life index.
Finally, we crowned the city with the best quality of life index, the “Best Suburb near Escondido.” We’re lookin’ at you, Del Mar.
This result may differ from our state-wide data as we did not include commute times and crime for this analysis to allow for a more extensive selection of suburbs.
We updated the data for 2025. This report is our tenth time ranking the best Escondido suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best Escondido ‘Burbs of 2025
We said it once, and we’ll say it again–life in the big city isn’t for everyone. At least not all the time.
The best suburbs of Escondido are .
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Escondido but don’t want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might be for you.
For more California reading, check out:
Table: Best Escondido Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Del Mar, CA | 3,921 | $192,845 | $2,000,001 |
| 2 | Solana Beach, CA | 12,841 | $150,820 | $1,934,700 |
| 3 | Encinitas, CA | 61,585 | $150,471 | $1,466,000 |
| 4 | Poway, CA | 48,515 | $143,825 | $971,500 |
| 5 | Carlsbad, CA | 114,500 | $139,326 | $1,156,900 |
| 6 | Santee, CA | 59,485 | $105,613 | $653,400 |
| 7 | Temecula, CA | 110,404 | $117,840 | $640,400 |
| 8 | San Marcos, CA | 94,078 | $105,286 | $792,400 |
| 9 | La Mesa, CA | 60,835 | $84,337 | $738,800 |
| 10 | San Diego, CA | 1,385,061 | $104,321 | $848,500 |
| 11 | Oceanside, CA | 172,542 | $93,724 | $702,000 |
| 12 | Lemon Grove, CA | 27,489 | $79,278 | $640,600 |
| 13 | Vista, CA | 98,646 | $91,854 | $674,400 |
| 14 | Spring Valley, CA | 5,508 | $63,964 | $125,000 |
| 15 | El Cajon, CA | 104,909 | $66,478 | $632,800 |