Antioch vs Lake Forest
The short version
- Lake Forest is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 2% lower than in the Antioch area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $629,700 in Antioch and $937,000 in Lake Forest.
- Households earn more in Lake Forest ($135,175 vs $97,465 median).
- Lake Forest has the warmer winter: January highs of 68°F vs 56°F.
- Antioch has more scorching days: 64 a year at 90°F or hotter vs 35.
- Antioch is growing faster: +3.2% since 2020 vs +0.5%.
- Commutes are shorter in Lake Forest (26 vs 42 minutes each way).
Side by side
| Antioch, CA | Lake Forest, CA | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 118,958 | 86,333 |
| Growth since 2020 | +3.2% | +0.5% |
| People per square mile | 4,078 | 5,165 |
| Median age | 38.4 | 40.2 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 24% | 51% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $97,465 | $135,175 |
| Median home value | $629,700 | $937,000 |
| Home value to income | 6.5× | 6.9× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $2,278 | $2,672 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 115.6 | 113.6 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 194.7 | 170.4 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $86,700 | $85,200 |
| Homeowners | 64% | 71% |
| Top state income tax | 13.3% | 13.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.03% | 9.03% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 42.0 | 25.5 |
| Work from home | 13% | 24% |
| Take public transit | 5% | 1% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 7.4% | 4.9% |
| Poverty rate | 11.4% | 8.5% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 56° / 40° | 68° / 43° |
| July high / low | 91° / 61° | 85° / 61° |
| Precipitation per year | 13 in | 14 in |
| Snowfall per year | 0 in | 0 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 64 | 35 |
| Nights below freezing | 7 | 2 |
| Comfortable months | 5 | 10 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Very High | Very High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 99.5 | 99.8 |
| Good air days, 2025 | n/a | 11% |
| Home prices, past year | -4.8% | +3.3% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +8.2% | +45.5% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: Antioch: March to May and October to November. Lake Forest: October to July.
Full monthly tables: Antioch weather by month and Lake Forest weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $86,700 in Antioch and $85,200 in Lake Forest. Moving from Antioch to Lake Forest, you would need about $73,700 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Antioch and Lake Forest
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Antioch and Lake Forest.
Which would you pick?
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