Where Americans want to live: San Diego ranks fourth
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Illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios
A lot of people say they want to live in San Diego.
Why it matters: The results of a new survey underscore that Americans still view San Diego as one of the most desirable cities — a driving force behind the "sunshine tax" we pay to live here.
Driving the news: San Diego trailed only New York, Los Angeles and Miami as the city where people most want to live, according to the 2025 America's Best Cities report by Resonance, a marketing firm for cities.
- As part of that report, Resonance worked with Ipsos to ask about 2,000 respondents nationwide to name the top three U.S. towns or cities they'd most like to live in someday.
Yes, but: The survey also asked respondents where they saw the best opportunities, and on that front San Diego fared far worse.
- San Diego finished 17th among cities where people think there are solid job opportunities, trailing cities like Los Angeles, Austin, Seattle, San Francisco, Denver and Phoenix.
What they're saying: "Southern California's urban ideal still promises 263 days of sunshine but, in 2025, San Diego's lure is increasingly economic," the report concludes.
- It cited the region's dynamic biotech sector — including downtown's struggling IQHQ project — and this year's expected $15.3 billion in tourism spending as regional strengths.
- The airport's Terminal 1 redevelopment, a new commercial-shipping border crossing, and the Seaport Village reinvention all got callouts as major infrastructure investments.
Between the lines: The survey results reflect public perception, which doesn't always align with behavior.
- Last year, 23,934 more people moved away from San Diego to other parts of the country than moved to the city.
- But international migration increased San Diego's population by 24,226 over the same period, which along with births outpacing deaths led to a 0.4% population increase.
The bottom line: More than half of San Diego residents are considering moving away, with housing affordability and the cost of living cited as the most common factors, according to a 2023 survey by the University of San Diego's Nonprofit Institute.