Kent, WA vs Merced, 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.

Kent

62.5

#1850 nationally

Merced

64.3

#1702 nationally

Kent leads in crime level (13.4 vs 21.5). Kent leads in median household income ($86,966 vs $59,233). Merced leads in average commute (27 min vs 30.5 min).

Metric-by-Metric Breakdown

Metric	Kent, WA	Merced, CA
WhereAtHome Score	62.5 (#1850)	64.3 (#1702)
Population	133,378	93,692
Typical Home Value (ZHVI)	$647,138	$397,570
Median Household Income	$86,966	$59,233
Average Commute	30.5 min	27 min
Walk Score	40	42
Crime Level	13.4	21.5
School Rating	N/A	N/A
Cost of Living Index	134	121
Political lean County 2024 presidential margin — context only, not scored	D+51.7	R+4.4