AreaProfile

San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA

Metro Area Profile

3,288,774 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metropolitan area.

49
Area Score
Bottom 4% of 99 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
OpportunityTop 45% of 99 published metros60
Growth85th of 99 published metros27
Housing affordability98th of 99 published metros44
ClimateTop 6% of 99 published metros84
Physical resilience97th of 99 published metros8
Access88th of 99 published metros70
Economic stabilityTop 27% of 99 published metros85
The quick read

Residential permitting has slowed: 10,425 units authorized over the past twelve months, 19% below the prior year.

Housing costs more relative to local incomes than in most published city profiles, with rent taking 25% of median household income.

Physical-risk exposure is above the national median, driven mainly by inland flooding, wildfire and earthquake.

At a glance

Population
3,288,774
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$106,268
Top 2% nationally
Density
781/sq mi
4210.5 sq mi of land
Median age
37.3
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA
Nearest major airport
TRM
55 mi · Jacqueline Cochran Rgnl
Median home value
$854,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.4% is lower than 42% of the 99 measured US metros.

Employment fell 1.1% over the past year, to 1,567,556 employed residents.

43% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 94% of measured US metros.

Household income is higher than at least 98% of measured US metros.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$949$106,268Top 2%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$362$51,976Top 5%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate10.3%Bottom 19%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute27.5 minTop 20%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher43.2%Top 6%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment1,567,556Top 18%June 2026
Employment change (3 years)-0.1%Bottom 41%June 2026
Employment change (year over year)-1.1%Bottom 37%June 2026
Labor force1,640,465Top 18%June 2026
Labor force participation66.2%Top 14%2024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$79,060Top 8%2025 OEWS
Median annual wage$58,690Top 13%2025 OEWS
Metro employment1,538,060Top 17%2025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)-0.3%Bottom 31%June 2026
Unemployment rate4.4%Top 42%June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032026/012026/067.23.0
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.4% in June 2026.
Largest occupations — San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Home Health and Personal Care Aides57,080$35,300
Fast Food and Counter Workers42,550$42,190
Retail Salespersons34,390$37,810
Cashiers30,420$37,020
Registered Nurses28,680$139,520
Office Clerks, General28,470$49,920

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $2,246 takes 25% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 8.0 times median household income here, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.

Rent as a share of income
25.4%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
8.0×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$2,246
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$854,700
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income8.04Top 1%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate54.6%Bottom 3%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±5161,250,641Top 2%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$11$2,246Top 1%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$3,996$854,700Top 1%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income25.4%Top 3%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate6.3%Bottom 11%2024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →
Development Momentum
27/ 100
Ranks 85 of 99 published city profiles
Permitting is broadly steady, measured from 2024 to 2025.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has been broadly flat since 2020, at 3,298,799 in 2024.

At 3.2 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
10K
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
3.2
Bottom 35% nationally
Year over year
−19%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
56.7%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
202020212022202320243301k3274k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population.

Weather & climate

8 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 89°F and January a low of 37°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 14.6 inches.

20°40°60°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station RAMONA AP, 8.1 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND3.7"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation14.6"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low37°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high89°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months81991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing24°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.

Physical risk

8 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, wildfire and earthquake.

WildfireHigh
Inland floodingModerate
EarthquakeHigh
Heat waveModerate
AvalancheModerate

Low or minimal exposure: landslide, lightning, hail, coastal flooding, tornado, drought, tsunami, strong wind, winter weather, volcanic activity, hurricane, cold wave.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Taxes

AreaProfile does not yet publish tax comparisons. No tax dataset has met the source admission test for coverage, methodology transparency and update cadence, and the product rule is to omit a dimension rather than estimate it. The Area Score is calculated without a tax component and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Nothing on AreaProfile is individualized tax advice.

Access

5 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 55 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Jacqueline Cochran RgnlTRM55 mi8,500 ft
Palm Springs IntlPSP58 mi10,000 ft
San Bernardino IntlSBD79 mi10,000 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)

Profile recalculated August 29, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology or browse every source.