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These are the ‘best’ places to live in California, study says. See where L.A. ranks

An undated photo of the Los Angeles Skyline. (John Hayes/Associated Press)

Multiple California cities and neighborhoods were ranked among the “best” places to live in the nation, according to the latest ranking from U.S. News and World Report.

A total of 150 cities were evaluated in the study. San Jose was the highest-ranked California city on the list, being placed at the 13th position.


Closer to home, Los Angeles ranked 139th, a drop from its previous position of 128th in 2022.

Here is where California cities ranked on the list:

13th:  San Jose

45th: San Francisco

93rd: San Diego

124th: Santa Barbara

125th: Santa Rosa

127th: Sacramento

139th: Los Angeles

142nd: Vallejo/Fairfield

143rd: Salinas

145th: Modesto

146th: Fresno

147th: Visalia

148th: Stockton

149th: Bakersfield

Some California cities like San Diego and Santa Barbara improved their ranking from the 2022 report, while others like Sacramento and Bakersfield dropped.

To determine the “best” places to live, researchers evaluated data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the FBI, the U.S. Department of Labor and the publication’s internal data, along with survey data to determine the ranking.

The data was measured across about 15 metrics compiled into four categories: quality of life index, value, desirability and job market.

These are the top 10 “best” cities to live in, according to the report:

  1. Green Bay, Wisconsin  
  2. Huntsville, Alabama
  3. Raleigh & Durham, North Carolina
  4. Boulder, Colorado
  5. Sarasota, Florida
  6. Naples, Florida
  7. Portland, Maine
  8. Charlotte, North Carolina
  9. Colorado Springs, Colorado
  10.  Fayetteville, Arkansas

The complete study can be viewed here.