?WhereToHQ

Residential comparison · 13 facts

Burlingame, CA vs San Francisco, CA

Compare the housing, tax, cost, income, safety, school, and climate facts that are available for both places. The table shows the numbers without declaring one city universally better.

A household earning $85,000 in Burlingame needs about $99,500 in San Francisco to keep the same lifestyle.
Coming from San Francisco, $85,000 of lifestyle costs about $70,500 in Burlingame.

A few differences

Burlingame vs San Francisco · facet by facet
FacetBurlingame, CASan Francisco, CA
Median home price$2,000,001$1,300,000
2-bedroom rent$3,342/mo$4,300/mo
Property tax rate0.75%0.75%
State & local income tax2.09%2.09%
Sales tax8.8%8.63%
Cost of living index226178
Groceries index112118
Utilities$245/mo$240/mo
Median household income$174,000$127,000
Unemployment rate5.2%4%
Crime index52/10046/100
School rating5.5/107.0/10
Sunny days / year260 days259 days

Data: Census ACS 2024 · BLS · Tax Foundation 2024 brackets · HUD/Zillow · NOAA 1991–2020 · FEMA NRI · Values are shown as reported; no universal winner is implied.

Full profiles: Burlingame, CA · San Francisco, CA
Questions & answers
Is Burlingame cheaper than San Francisco?
San Francisco has the lower day-to-day cost index (178 vs 226 against a national 100). The other differences are shown facet by facet in the table.
What household income in San Francisco equals $85,000 in Burlingame?
A household earning $85,000 in Burlingame needs about $99,500 in San Francisco to keep the same lifestyle; coming the other way, $85,000 of San Francisco lifestyle costs about $70,500 in Burlingame.