Apple Valley vs Merced
The short version
- Merced is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 8% lower than in the Apple Valley area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $372,600 in Merced and $407,400 in Apple Valley.
- Households earn more in Apple Valley ($69,882 vs $63,122 median).
- Merced is growing faster: +11% since 2020 vs -0.7%.
- Commutes are shorter in Merced (29 vs 41 minutes each way).
Side by side
| Apple Valley, CA | Merced, CA | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 75,247 | 99,724 |
| Growth since 2020 | -0.7% | +11% |
| People per square mile | 977 | 4,290 |
| Median age | 36.5 | 30.0 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 19% | 20% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $69,882 | $63,122 |
| Median home value | $407,400 | $372,600 |
| Home value to income | 5.8× | 5.9× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,444 | $1,393 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 106.4 | 98.3 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 129.3 | 78.6 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $79,800 | $73,700 |
| Homeowners | 70% | 46% |
| Top state income tax | 13.3% | 13.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.03% | 9.03% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 41.1 | 28.6 |
| Work from home | 10% | 8% |
| Take public transit | 1% | 1% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 7.5% | 11.3% |
| Poverty rate | 16.6% | 23.9% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 58° / 33° | 56° / 37° |
| July high / low | 98° / 64° | 96° / 62° |
| Precipitation per year | 6 in | 12 in |
| Snowfall per year | 0 in | 0 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 119 | 100 |
| Nights below freezing | 54 | 28 |
| Comfortable months | 3 | 4 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Very High | Relatively High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 99.8 | 96.9 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 7% | 51% |
| Home prices, past year | +0.8% | +0% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +35.9% | +26.4% |
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: Apple Valley: April to May and October. Merced: March to May and October.
Full monthly tables: Apple Valley weather by month and Merced weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $79,800 in Apple Valley and $73,700 in Merced. Moving from Apple Valley to Merced, you would need about $69,200 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Apple Valley and Merced
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Apple Valley and Merced.
Which would you pick?
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