Most affordable counties in California
We ranked 16 California counties that have at least 20 occupations published on this site. The ranking measures how many of those occupations pay enough, at the local median wage, to cover a one-bedroom rental, food, home energy and gasoline after federal, Social Security, Medicare and state taxes. Yolo County, CA leads: 96% of its 26 occupations clear that bar, with a HUD one-bedroom Fair Market Rent of $1,670 a month.
Ties are broken by the lower one-bedroom rent, then by population. Where the Census Bureau publishes it, the table also shows median household income (American Community Survey 2020-2024) and what a year of one-bedroom rent equals as a share of it. Open a county to see every occupation and its take-home pay.