Queen Creek vs San Diego
The short version
- Queen Creek is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 8% lower than in the San Diego area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $635,400 in Queen Creek and $906,700 in San Diego.
- Households earn more in Queen Creek ($141,978 vs $108,077 median).
- Queen Creek has more scorching days: 168 a year at 90°F or hotter vs 4.
- Queen Creek is growing faster: +51.4% since 2020 vs +1.6%.
- Commutes are shorter in San Diego (24 vs 31 minutes each way).
Side by side
| Queen Creek, AZ | San Diego, CA | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 89,770 | 1,406,106 |
| Growth since 2020 | +51.4% | +1.6% |
| People per square mile | 2,132 | 4,312 |
| Median age | 37.0 | 36.2 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 45% | 51% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $141,978 | $108,077 |
| Median home value | $635,400 | $906,700 |
| Home value to income | 4.5× | 8.4× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $2,210 | $2,313 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 103.3 | 111.9 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 121.2 | 179.3 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $77,500 | $83,900 |
| Homeowners | 90% | 47% |
| Top state income tax | 2.5% | 13.3% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.54% | 9.03% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 31.1 | 23.5 |
| Work from home | 26% | 21% |
| Take public transit | 0% | 3% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 4.3% | 6% |
| Poverty rate | 3.7% | 11% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 67° / 43° | 66° / 49° |
| July high / low | 105° / 77° | 74° / 65° |
| Precipitation per year | 13 in | 9 in |
| Snowfall per year | 0 in | 0 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 168 | 4 |
| Nights below freezing | 8 | 0 |
| Comfortable months | 6 | 12 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Relatively Moderate | Very High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 93.8 | 99.7 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 7% | 18% |
| Home prices, past year | +0.8% | +2.5% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +35.8% | +40.8% |
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: Queen Creek: November to April. San Diego: January to December.
Full monthly tables: Queen Creek weather by month and San Diego weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $77,500 in Queen Creek and $83,900 in San Diego. Moving from Queen Creek to San Diego, you would need about $81,200 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Queen Creek and San Diego
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Queen Creek and San Diego.
Which would you pick?
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