Miami vs. San Diego: Where would you live?

[NorthStar80]

Miami because Florida is a much better state than California and I can live the 80's dream.

[Marv95]

To VISIT, Miami and it's not even close. To live, SD. even with CA's neoliberal garbage.

My field is mfg/logistics. As lousy as the job market is in both areas, my paycheck goes further in SD, even with the income tax. People don't understand how much the COL has gone up in South Florida.

Yeah you got Spanish influence in SD, but at least over there I won't feel like I'm forced to speak that language as a black dude in order to work or participate in society.

Miami Beach and the surrounding area has attracted alot of riff raff from up north. While I have a pet peeve with public homelessness, based on research I get the feeling that it's not dominant in SD as it is further north? IDK. There have been tent cities popping up in and around Miami, FTL, etc. too.

Mass transit is about the same. SD's light rail is actually more extensive than I thought.

Weather. While it's drier than I would like, SD is literally cooler year round.

[GeoffD]

I’ll take a house a few blocks off the beach in La Jolla and a slopeside condo at Mammoth, please.

[elchevere]

I’ll raise you by taking a home on Star Island or Tahiti Beach and get to Nassau, Bahamas by boat 4 hours earlier than you’ll reach Mammoth driving… I’ll keep your margarita on ice

Originally Posted by GeoffD

I’ll take a house a few blocks off the beach in La Jolla and a slopeside condo at Mammoth, please.

[BrooklynJo]

Miami. Only because I relate more to it being a New Yorker and being of Haitian decent.

[BrooklynJo]

Originally Posted by Marv95

To VISIT, Miami and it's not even close. To live, SD. even with CA's neoliberal garbage.

My field is mfg/logistics. As lousy as the job market is in both areas, my paycheck goes further in SD, even with the income tax. People don't understand how much the COL has gone up in South Florida.

Yeah you got Spanish influence in SD, but at least over there I won't feel like I'm forced to speak that language as a black dude in order to work or participate in society.

Miami Beach and the surrounding area has attracted alot of riff raff from up north. While I have a pet peeve with public homelessness, based on research I get the feeling that it's not dominant in SD as it is further north? IDK. There have been tent cities popping up in and around Miami, FTL, etc. too.

Mass transit is about the same. SD's light rail is actually more extensive than I thought.

Weather. While it's drier than I would like, SD is literally cooler year round.

As if conservatives don’t have the most garbage states in the USA

[elchevere]

some of the pro SD posters do raise some good points, so let me try addressing which might be the better cities for individuals based on geographical locations and preferences within these metros.....I start by breaking down living in the following 4 general areas:

Urban: Downtown Miami/Brickell > downtown San Diego.
Coastal: Comparable. Coronado + La Jolla + Del Mar + Carlsbad = Miami Beach islands + Bal Harbour + Key Biscayne + the Gables coastal communities (Gables Estates, Cocoplum, etc)—though no coastal SD town has the vibrancy of Miami Beach.
Suburban: Though both would bore me, I give the edge to SD for climatic reasons.
Inland: I also give the edge to SD for climatic reasons.

Bottom line, Miami is just a bigger and more sophisticated city than "laid back / small town flavor" SD. Brickell and South Beach have East Coast influence (as well as Latin/international) and are more urban in nature with more world class amenities outside of something comparable to a Balboa Park. The urban and coastal areas of Miami are also the most expensive areas of the Miami and attract more affluent residents (so the argument that one needs to speak Spanish goes out the window here as most of the residents are also highly educated and multi-lingual, including English speaking). A person from another major city (NYC, SF, LA, etc) could outgrow and/or get bored with SD whereas I have never heard anyone describe Miami as being a boring city.

Suburban and inland is where SD enjoys a big advantage, not only from terrain purposes but also from a comfort reason (much more comfortable inland SD than inland Miami temperature/heat wise) and outside of a few wealthy inland neighborhoods (Parkland, Weston, Davie) you will find more of the predominantly Spanish speaking communities and longer commutes with horrible drivers that many on CD complain about. Like Miami, inland SD also tends to be less expensive (though it, too, has its wealthy enclave exceptions).

I tend to favor urbanity, which is why my responses are biased (with good reason IMHO) in favor of Miami.....cleaner, far less homeless than other major coastal cities—including SD, great amenities, and cooler temperatures from sea breezes due to proximity to the ocean and bay than inland areas but more expensive for these reasons.....some in SD prefer being a little further inland to get slightly warmer, but still comfortable, temperatures as a result of less coastal fog.....so in addition to whether you are more of an outdoors vs. urban person, where you live can determine your level of happiness from my experience having lived in both places.

[nadnerb]

I would live in San Diego.

While SD is a lot more expensive, Miami's COL advantage would be offset by the fact that SD salaries in my field are about 20% higher. Additionally, I prefer California's labor laws to Florida's as California tends to have much stronger worker protections put into place, is not a Right to Work state, etc.

I strongly dislike hot and humid weather, so South Florida would be a nonstarter for me. San Diego's weather would get a bit boring, but in general, the temperatures are pretty much ideal, especially if you are close to the ocean.

Miami has way better nightlife and bustling activity. No argument there.

In terms of exploring and things to do within a few hours, I prefer San Diego. You have the nearby mountains, huge desert parks like Joshua Tree and Anza-Borrego, and beautiful small cities on the Baja California Peninsula. Los Angeles being so close is also a huge bonus.

[Weaubleau]

California has gone insane. Florida and the American South is the only english speaking region in the world where there is some sense of individual freedom, and the people have not gone insane over a slightly worse than normal flu virus.