Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 42/100
D−
Median home value$463,500
Riverside $536,300
Median rent$1,854/mo
Riverside $1,846/mo
Cost-burdened households46%
Riverside 41%
Big Bear City
San Bernardino County11,431 residentsBear Valley Unified
44
D
Suburbgrade score
38th of 60 Riverside suburbs. Strongest on cost of living, held back by amenities.
44
Riverside median 47
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Big Bear City yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 44 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Big Bear City is like to live in, by category
Bars show Big Bear City against Riverside. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 47/100
D
Within-state proficiency57th pct
Riverside median 36th pct
Student–teacher ratio20.7
Riverside median 22.9
Graduation rate87%
Riverside median 91%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 69/100
B−
Housing cost index85
Riverside 100
Eff. tax rate0.71%
Riverside 0.79%
Local sales tax7.75%
Riverside median 8.75%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 67/100
C+
Mean commute24.9 min
Riverside 33.2 min
Under 30 minutes80%
Riverside 53%
Transit stops / sq mi0.0
Riverside median 1.0 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 12/100
F
Restaurants & cafés0
Riverside median 23 · within 2 miles
Groceries0
Riverside median 3 · within 2 miles
Parks7
Riverside median 19 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 23/100
F
Median household income$71,511
Riverside $89,662
Unemployment9.8%
Riverside 6.8%
Professional occupations40%
Riverside 33%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Big Bear City yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Big Bear City on amenities
Big Bear City's weakest grade is F. Four suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same six inputs.
SuburbAmenitiesOverall
Yucaipa21 mi from Big Bear CityC− 47 D Yucca Valley23 mi from Big Bear CityC− 41 D− Highland23 mi from Big Bear CityD 48 D+ Banning22 mi from Big Bear CityF 34 F Restaurants & cafés: OpenStreetMap Sep 2026 · Groceries: OpenStreetMap Sep 2026
Common questions about living in Big Bear City
Is Big Bear City, CA a good place to live?
Big Bear City scores 44 out of 100, 38th of 60 Riverside suburbs. It is strongest on cost of living and weakest on amenities. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Big Bear City expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B−. The median home is $463,500, 14% below the Riverside median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.71%. $1,854/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Big Bear City?
Schools grade D. The districts serving Big Bear City sit at the 57th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 87% graduation rate and a 20.7 student–teacher ratio. Big Bear City is served by Bear Valley Unified. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Big Bear City?
The mean commute is 24.9 min, with 80% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 19% working from home. Transit density is 0.0 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Big Bear City?
Within two miles there are 0 groceries, 0 restaurants and cafés and 7 parks, which grades F on amenities.
Are the homes in Big Bear City old or new?
The median home in Big Bear City was built in 1978 — older than the Riverside median of 1987. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 94% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.