Welcome to the land of the 1%. Where you’ll find lawyers, and doctors, and business executives. And while they aren’t made of ticky-tacky, they are definitely made of money.
These are the wealthiest neighborhoods that San Diego has to offer — where houses go for well over the national median and household incomes follow suit.
But where exactly in San Diego do the richest of the rich people live? That would be North City, where the median income is a cool $181,904.
$181,904 median income
$172,093 median income
$166,796 median income
$146,555 median income
$145,915 median income
$141,794 median income
$136,541 median income
$134,883 median income
$131,900 median income
$129,605 median income
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is California’s statewide median.
California statewide median: $99,122
California statewide median: $774,582
Saturday Night Science
How we determined the wealthiest neighborhoods in San Diego for 2026
Every city has its best neighborhoods — where everyone wants to live — and the worst neighborhoods — where no one wants to live. And then you have the wealthiest neighborhoods, where no one can afford to live.
And by no one, we mean you because there’s always someone richer than you.
How do you quantify richer than you? We looked at one simple criterion:
- Highest median household income
Using Saturday Night Science, we researched income data from the Census and BLS for every neighborhood in San Diego.
We ranked every neighborhood in San Diego by median income from highest to lowest. The neighborhood with the highest median income, North City, was named the wealthiest neighborhood in San Diego.
We updated this article for 2026. This is our eleventh time ranking the most affluent neighborhoods to live in San Diego.
The full plate
Richest neighborhoods in San Diego for 2026 by median income
Click any column to sort. Search by neighborhood name.
| Rank | Neighborhood | Median Household Income |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | North City | $181,904 |
| 2 | Carmel Valley | $172,093 |
| 3 | Del Mar Heights | $166,796 |
| 4 | Wooded Area | $146,555 |
| 5 | Del Cerro | $145,915 |
| 6 | Rancho Penasquitos | $141,794 |
| 7 | Gaslamp Quarter | $136,541 |
| 8 | Scripps Ranch | $134,883 |
| 9 | Sorrento Valley | $131,900 |
| 10 | Sabre Springs | $129,605 |
| 11 | La Jolla | $128,665 |
| 12 | San Carlos | $117,481 |
| 13 | Kensington | $115,804 |
| 14 | Carmel Mountain | $115,289 |
| 15 | Bay Ho | $108,600 |
| 16 | Tierrasanta | $108,245 |
| 17 | Mira Mesa | $107,972 |
| 18 | Torrey Pines | $106,868 |
| 19 | Pacific Beach | $105,991 |
| 20 | Kearny Mesa | $103,189 |
| 21 | Loma Portal | $102,321 |
| 22 | Marina | $101,719 |
| 23 | Lake Murray | $100,688 |
| 24 | South Park | $100,660 |
| 25 | University City | $100,582 |
| 26 | Old Town | $99,922 |
| 27 | Allied Gardens | $98,904 |
| 28 | North Clairemont | $98,740 |
| 29 | Roseville | $97,826 |
| 30 | Bay Park | $97,131 |
| 31 | Rancho Bernadino | $95,093 |
| 32 | Little Italy | $90,835 |
| 33 | Alta Vista | $88,864 |
| 34 | Ocean Beach | $88,712 |
| 35 | Balboa Park | $86,502 |
| 36 | Miramar | $86,192 |
| 37 | Serra Mesa | $84,829 |
| 38 | Park West | $83,911 |
| 39 | Columbia | $82,797 |
| 40 | Paradise Hills | $82,009 |
| 41 | Midtown | $78,819 |
| 42 | Talmadge | $78,229 |
| 43 | Bird Land | $77,436 |
| 44 | Encanto | $76,754 |
| 45 | Jomacha-Lomita | $75,645 |
| 46 | Grantville | $75,187 |
| 47 | Mission Valley | $74,473 |
| 48 | Bay Terrace | $73,018 |
| 49 | Cortez Hill | $71,568 |
| 50 | Tijuana River Valley | $71,500 |
| 51 | Clairemont Mesa | $70,301 |
| 52 | Normal Heights | $69,726 |
| 53 | Palm City | $69,026 |
| 54 | Linda Vista | $68,425 |
| 55 | La Jolla Village | $68,178 |
| 56 | West University Heights | $66,574 |
| 57 | Gateway | $66,000 |
| 58 | San Ysidro | $65,404 |
| 59 | Mission Bay | $65,071 |
| 60 | Oak Park | $64,099 |
| 61 | North Hills | $63,468 |
| 62 | East Village | $62,824 |
| 63 | Egger Highlands | $62,691 |
| 64 | Darnall | $61,064 |
| 65 | Emerald Hills | $59,826 |
| 66 | College Area | $58,577 |
| 67 | Sky Line | $58,462 |
| 68 | Moreno Mission | $58,425 |
| 69 | Valencia Park | $57,624 |
| 70 | Webster | $57,071 |
| 71 | Nestor | $56,666 |
| 72 | El Cerritos | $54,388 |
| 73 | Midtown District | $53,556 |
| 74 | Southcrest | $48,597 |
| 75 | Chollas View | $48,414 |
| 76 | Grant Hill | $47,064 |
| 77 | Rolando | $46,339 |
| 78 | Horton Plaza | $45,142 |
| 79 | Mountain View | $43,571 |
| 80 | Lincoln Park | $39,992 |
| 81 | Mount Hope | $37,060 |
| 82 | City Heights West | $36,560 |
| 83 | Core | $33,240 |
| 84 | City Heights East | $32,300 |
| 85 | Bario Logan | $30,625 |
| 86 | Memorial | $30,176 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. All 86 San Diego neighborhoods.
Summary
Summary: The wealthiest pockets of San Diego
What’s the richest neighborhood to live in San Diego for 2026? According to the most recent census data, North City looks to be the richest San Diego neighborhood to live in.
The richest neighborhoods in San Diego are North City, Carmel Valley, Del Mar Heights, Wooded Area, Del Cerro, Rancho Penasquitos, Gaslamp Quarter, Scripps Ranch, Sorrento Valley, and Sabre Springs.
The poorest neighborhood? That would be Memorial.
We ranked the neighborhoods from richest to poorest in the chart below. Not sold on California? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Richest Neighborhoods In San Diego FAQs
What is the richest neighborhood in San Diego?
North City is the richest neighborhood in San Diego for 2026, with a median household income of $181,904. Carmel Valley and Del Mar Heights are next.
What are the richest neighborhoods in San Diego?
The richest neighborhoods in San Diego are North City, Carmel Valley, Del Mar Heights, Wooded Area, Del Cerro, Rancho Penasquitos, Gaslamp Quarter, Scripps Ranch, Sorrento Valley, and Sabre Springs. We ranked all 86 neighborhoods by median household income, highest to lowest.
How much do people make in North City?
The median household in North City earns $181,904 a year, and the median home there is worth $1,190,529. Those two numbers travel together in most cities, and San Diego is no exception.
How do you rank the richest neighborhoods?
One measure: median household income from Census tract data, ranked highest to lowest. No composite score, no adjustments — just where the money lives.
What is the poorest neighborhood in San Diego?
Memorial posts the lowest median household income of the 86 San Diego neighborhoods we ranked. It anchors the bottom of the income table above.
