Merced, CA vs Santa Rosa, CA

Side-by-side comparison of housing, income, commute, safety, and quality of life.

Score Snapshot

No universal winner

Scores summarize the published model. Use the objective metric differences below and your own priorities to choose.

Merced

64.3

#1702 nationally

Santa Rosa

66.2

#1577 nationally

Santa Rosa leads in crime level (9.4 vs 21.5). Santa Rosa leads in median household income ($92,604 vs $59,233). Merced leads in cost of living index (121 vs 163).

Metric-by-Metric Breakdown

Metric	Merced, CA	Santa Rosa, CA
WhereAtHome Score	64.3 (#1702)	66.2 (#1577)
Population	93,692	175,845
Typical Home Value (ZHVI)	$397,570	$715,976
Median Household Income	$59,233	$92,604
Average Commute	27 min	22.7 min
Walk Score	42	47
Crime Level	21.5	9.4
School Rating	N/A	N/A
Cost of Living Index	121	163
Political lean County 2024 presidential margin — context only, not scored	R+4.4	D+46.2