San Bernardino vs Tempe
The short version
- Tempe is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 3% lower than in the San Bernardino area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $422,300 in San Bernardino and $455,400 in Tempe.
- Households earn more in Tempe ($79,663 vs $67,415 median).
- Tempe has the warmer winter: January highs of 71°F vs 67°F.
- Tempe has more scorching days: 179 a year at 90°F or hotter vs 104.
- Tempe is growing faster: +3.5% since 2020 vs +0%.
- Commutes are shorter in Tempe (21 vs 30 minutes each way).
Side by side
| San Bernardino, CA | Tempe, AZ | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 222,044 | 190,571 |
| Growth since 2020 | +0% | +3.5% |
| People per square mile | 3,575 | 4,767 |
| Median age | 32.2 | 30.0 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 13% | 50% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $67,415 | $79,663 |
| Median home value | $422,300 | $455,400 |
| Home value to income | 6.3× | 5.7× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,508 | $1,743 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 106.4 | 103.3 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 129.3 | 121.2 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $79,800 | $77,500 |
| Homeowners | 50% | 42% |
| Top state income tax | 13.3% | 2.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.03% | 8.54% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 29.7 | 20.9 |
| Work from home | 6% | 21% |
| Take public transit | 1% | 3% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 6.1% | 5.5% |
| Poverty rate | 18.6% | 15.8% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 67° / 41° | 71° / 39° |
| July high / low | 95° / 63° | 106° / 76° |
| Precipitation per year | 13 in | 9 in |
| Snowfall per year | 0 in | 0 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 104 | 179 |
| Nights below freezing | 3 | 10 |
| Comfortable months | 6 | 2 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Very High | Very High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 99.8 | 99.9 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 7% | 7% |
| Home prices, past year | +0.8% | +0.8% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +35.9% | +35.8% |
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: San Bernardino: February to May and October to November. Tempe: March and November.
Full monthly tables: San Bernardino weather by month and Tempe 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 San Bernardino and $77,500 in Tempe. Moving from San Bernardino to Tempe, you would need about $72,800 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between San Bernardino and Tempe
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from San Bernardino and Tempe.
Which would you pick?
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