Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 32/100
F
Median home value$700,600
Los Angeles $871,300
Median rent$1,809/mo
Los Angeles $2,063/mo
Cost-burdened households44%
Los Angeles 46%
Gardena
Los Angeles County59,422 residentsLos Angeles Unified
53
C−
Suburbgrade score
38th of 60 Los Angeles suburbs. Strong on amenities and cost of living, held back by housing & affordability.
53
Los Angeles median 55
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Gardena yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 53 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 Gardena is like to live in, by category
Bars show Gardena against Los Angeles. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 47/100
D
Within-state proficiency52nd pct
Los Angeles median 63rd pct
Student–teacher ratio18.7
Los Angeles median 22.9
Graduation rate78%
Los Angeles median 92%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 80/100
B+
Housing cost index86
Los Angeles 100
Eff. tax rate0.71%
Los Angeles 0.66%
Local sales tax10.50%
Los Angeles median 10.00%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 46/100
D
Mean commute29.3 min
Los Angeles 29.5 min
Under 30 minutes56%
Los Angeles 54%
Transit stops / sq mi5.3
Los Angeles median 11 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 82/100
B+
Restaurants & cafés142
Los Angeles median 92 · within 2 miles
Groceries17
Los Angeles median 9 · within 2 miles
Parks34
Los Angeles median 47 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 44/100
D
Median household income$84,803
Los Angeles $95,958
Unemployment6.1%
Los Angeles 6.8%
Professional occupations35%
Los Angeles 43%
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 Gardena 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 Gardena on housing & affordability
Gardena's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbHousingOverall
Redondo Beach6 mi from GardenaC 69 B− Fountain Valley24 mi from GardenaC− 64 C+ Santa Monica14 mi from GardenaC− 71 B− Arcadia23 mi from GardenaC− 64 C+ Huntington Beach22 mi from GardenaD+ 62 C Hacienda Heights20 mi from GardenaD+ 52 D+ Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Ownership rate: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Gardena
Is Gardena, CA a good place to live?
Gardena scores 53 out of 100, 38th of 60 Los Angeles suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on housing & affordability. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Gardena expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B+. The median home is $700,600, 20% below the Los Angeles median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.71%. $1,809/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Gardena?
Schools grade D. The districts serving Gardena sit at the 52nd pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 78% graduation rate and a 18.7 student–teacher ratio. Gardena is served by Los Angeles Unified. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Gardena?
The mean commute is 29.3 min, with 56% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 9.7% working from home. Transit density is 5.3 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Gardena?
Within two miles there are 17 groceries, 142 restaurants and cafés and 34 parks, which grades B+ on amenities.
Are the homes in Gardena old or new?
The median home in Gardena was built in 1964 — older than the Los Angeles median of 1969. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 53% 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.
Six Los Angeles lists
Best Los Angeles suburbs for familiesMost affordable Los Angeles suburbsBest Los Angeles suburbs for schoolsShortest commutes to Downtown Los AngelesMost walkable Los Angeles suburbsBest Los Angeles suburbs for young professionalsCompare Gardena
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