Imperial Beach, CA vs South El Monte, CA

Side-by-side comparison of housing, income, commute, safety, and quality of life.

Score Snapshot

No universal winner

Scores summarize the published model. Use the objective metric differences below and your own priorities to choose.

Imperial Beach

62.9

#1815 nationally

South El Monte

62.5

#1853 nationally

South El Monte leads in crime level (12.8 vs 14.8). Imperial Beach leads in walk score (69 vs 61). South El Monte leads in cost of living index (148 vs 167).

Metric-by-Metric Breakdown

Metric	Imperial Beach, CA	South El Monte, CA
WhereAtHome Score	62.9 (#1815)	62.5 (#1853)
Population	25,458	19,032
Typical Home Value (ZHVI)	$844,131	$759,990
Median Household Income	$75,731	$67,724
Average Commute	27.2 min	27.7 min
Walk Score	69	61
Crime Level	14.8	12.8
School Rating	N/A	N/A
Cost of Living Index	167	148
Political lean County 2024 presidential margin — context only, not scored	D+16.8	D+32.9