countyscore

Cost of Living · California

Most Affordable Counties in California 2026

Ranked by housing affordability including median rent and home values.

Top 10 — Cost of Living in California

Score reflects cost of living only — not overall county quality.

1Modoc County, CA
67
2Trinity County, CA
55.1
3Siskiyou County, CA
35
4Del Norte County, CA
28.9
5Inyo County, CA
24.2
6Lassen County, CA
23.1
7Plumas County, CA
22.4
8Imperial County, CA
22.1
9Tehama County, CA
17.5
10Glenn County, CA
17.4

All California Counties — Cost of Living Rankings

58 counties ranked by cost of living score. Overall Score shown for context.

#CountyCost of Living ScoreOverall Score
1Modoc County, CA
67
49.6
2Trinity County, CA
55.1
48.3
3Siskiyou County, CA
35
37.9
4Del Norte County, CA
28.9
39.9
5Inyo County, CA
24.2
41
6Lassen County, CA
23.1
40.4
7Plumas County, CA
22.4
40.9
8Imperial County, CA
22.1
33.7
9Tehama County, CA
17.5
36.7
10Glenn County, CA
17.4
41.8
11Colusa County, CA
16.7
41.8
12Lake County, CA
15.6
31.6
13Humboldt County, CA
14.1
40
14Sierra County, CA
14.1
52.4
15Tulare County, CA
13.4
35.2
16Mariposa County, CA
13.1
43.9
17Mendocino County, CA
12.6
44.1
18Kern County, CA
12.2
27.8
19Shasta County, CA
12.1
52.3
20Kings County, CA
11.9
38.2
21Merced County, CA
11.9
35.3
22Butte County, CA
10.4
39.3
23Yuba County, CA
10.3
37.7
24Tuolumne County, CA
9.9
41.7
25Fresno County, CA
9.8
33
26Madera County, CA
9.8
35.5
27Sutter County, CA
9.7
35
28Amador County, CA
8.9
41.9
29Stanislaus County, CA
6.3
35.6
30Calaveras County, CA
6
43
31Alpine County, CA
5.2
51.2
32San Joaquin County, CA
4.1
33.1
33San Bernardino County, CA
3.9
33.7
34Sacramento County, CA
3.7
38.3
35Mono County, CA
3.5
38.5
36Nevada County, CA
3.5
45.2
37El Dorado County, CA
3.2
49.8
38Yolo County, CA
3
38
39Riverside County, CA
2.7
37.1
40San Luis Obispo County, CA
2
42.9
41Monterey County, CA
1.8
39
42Santa Barbara County, CA
1.6
43.1
43Los Angeles County, CA
1.4
36.9
44Placer County, CA
1.3
46.5
45Solano County, CA
1.3
36.4
46Sonoma County, CA
1.1
44.8
47Napa County, CA
1
43.7
48San Benito County, CA
0.9
43.3
49San Diego County, CA
0.8
42.3
50Santa Cruz County, CA
0.8
41.6
51Ventura County, CA
0.7
44.3
52Orange County, CA
0.4
44.3
53Contra Costa County, CA
0.3
40.1
54Alameda County, CA
0.2
40.6
55San Francisco County, CA
0.2
43.6
56Marin County, CA
0.1
47.4
57San Mateo County, CA
0.1
47.6
58Santa Clara County, CA
0.1
42.2

Explore More

Best overall counties in CaliforniaFull Cost of Living data on CostByCounty