7 California cities ranked among the best places to live in US

California may have the sunshine, beaches and a laid-back lifestyle, but its cities didn’t exactly glow at the top of this list.

Seven California cities made U.S. News & World Report’s ranking of the 250 best places to live in the country — though none landed near the upper end.

Dublin took the top spot in the state, ranking No. 119 nationally.

The East Bay city is known for its central location and has been dubbed the “crossroads of the San Francisco Bay Area” because it sits at the major junction of Interstates 580 and 680.

Even so, that central location doesn’t necessarily mean a speedy commute. Residents spend an average of 31.2 minutes getting to work — about nine minutes longer than the national average.

The city’s job market, however, fares better than the country’s average, with unemployment hovering around 3.42%, compared with 4.54% nationwide.

If you want to buy a home in the Golden State’s top-ranked city, though, you’ll have to pay up.

Dublin has a higher cost of living compared with similarly sized cities, and the median home value is $1,283,390 — well above the $359,870 national average.

And renters aren’t exactly getting a bargain, either. The median rent in Dublin is $2,681.

While Dublin generally has a low crime rate compared with state and national averages, the city made headlines this week after a New York Times executive was fatally shot by his elderly in-laws at one of the city’s parks.

The victim, Jonathan McKinsey, was a 40-year-old director of engineering for New York Times Games.

California’s top 20 cities

Cupertino was California’s second-highest entry, earning the No. 140 spot nationwide.

Palo Alto followed at No. 164, while Sunnyvale landed at No. 225, making it the fourth-highest California city in the rankings.

Folsom rounded out the state’s top five at No. 230 overall.

Heading south, Encinitas secured sixth place in California and No. 235 nationwide. San Ramon wasn’t far behind, taking the seventh spot in the state at No. 243 across the country.

The final three cities in California’s top 10 fell outside the national top 250.

Santa Clara landed at No. 265, while Fremont and Redondo Beach took the eighth, ninth and 10th spots among California cities, respectively.

Beyond the top 10, Pleasanton was named the 11th-best place to live in California, followed by Milpitas, Rocklin, Yorba Linda and Mountain View.

Clovis came next at No. 16 in the state, with San Marcos, South San Francisco, Lake Forest and Elk Grove rounding out California’s top 20.

At the very top of U.S. News & World Report’s national ranking was Carmel, Indiana. 

Residents there have an average commute of just 21 minutes and a median household income of $144,615. The city also boasts a lower cost of living compared with similarly sized communities.

Fishers, Indiana, landed at No. 2, while Flower Mound, Texas, claimed the third spot nationwide.

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