?WhereToHQ

Residential comparison · 13 facts

Calexico, CA vs Palm Desert, 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 Calexico needs about $99,000 in Palm Desert to keep the same lifestyle.
Coming from Palm Desert, $85,000 of lifestyle costs about $71,500 in Calexico.

A few differences

Calexico vs Palm Desert · facet by facet
FacetCalexico, CAPalm Desert, CA
Median home price$313,600$542,000
2-bedroom rent$1,084/mo$1,934/mo
Property tax rate0.75%0.75%
State & local income tax2.09%2.09%
Sales tax8.8%8.8%
Cost of living index100125
Groceries index112112
Utilities$245/mo$245/mo
Median household income$49,783$77,513
Unemployment rate5.2%5.2%
Crime index52/10052/100
School rating5.5/105.5/10
Sunny days / year260 days260 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: Calexico, CA · Palm Desert, CA
Questions & answers
Is Calexico cheaper than Palm Desert?
Calexico has the lower day-to-day cost index (100 vs 125 against a national 100). The other differences are shown facet by facet in the table.
What household income in Palm Desert equals $85,000 in Calexico?
A household earning $85,000 in Calexico needs about $99,000 in Palm Desert to keep the same lifestyle; coming the other way, $85,000 of Palm Desert lifestyle costs about $71,500 in Calexico.