Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 42/100
D−
Median home value$604,000
Riverside $536,300
Median rent$1,562/mo
Riverside $1,846/mo
Cost-burdened households45%
Riverside 41%
Palm Springs
Riverside County45,070 residents2 school districts
54
C−
Suburbgrade score
10th of 60 Riverside suburbs. Strongest on commute & transport, held back by employment & income.
54
Riverside median 47
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Palm Springs yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 54 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 Palm Springs is like to live in, by category
Bars show Palm Springs against Riverside. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 39/100
D−
Within-state proficiency31st pct
Riverside median 36th pct
Student–teacher ratio20.3
Riverside median 22.9
Graduation rate90%
Riverside median 91%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 72/100
B−
Housing cost index99
Riverside 100
Eff. tax rate0.71%
Riverside 0.79%
Local sales tax9.25%
Riverside median 8.75%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 81/100
B+
Mean commute22.2 min
Riverside 33.2 min
Under 30 minutes76%
Riverside 53%
Transit stops / sq mi2.9
Riverside median 1.0 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 67/100
C+
Restaurants & cafés115
Riverside median 23 · within 2 miles
Groceries5
Riverside median 3 · within 2 miles
Parks13
Riverside median 19 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 27/100
F
Median household income$73,119
Riverside $89,662
Unemployment7.7%
Riverside 6.8%
Professional occupations45%
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 Palm Springs 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 Palm Springs on employment & income
Palm Springs's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbEmploymentOverall
Beaumont24 mi from Palm SpringsC− 41 D− Indio18 mi from Palm SpringsD 52 D+ Cathedral City5 mi from Palm SpringsD− 49 D+ La Quinta19 mi from Palm SpringsF 46 D Palm Desert11 mi from Palm SpringsF 52 D+ Rancho Mirage7 mi from Palm SpringsF 50 D+ Median household income: ACS 2020–24 · Unemployment: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Palm Springs
Is Palm Springs, CA a good place to live?
Palm Springs scores 54 out of 100, 10th of 60 Riverside suburbs. It is strongest on commute & transport and weakest on employment & income. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Palm Springs expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B−. The median home is $604,000, 13% above the Riverside median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.71%. $1,562/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Palm Springs?
Schools grade D−. The districts serving Palm Springs sit at the 31st pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 90% graduation rate and a 20.3 student–teacher ratio. Palm Springs is served by Palm Springs Unified and Banning Unified School District. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Palm Springs?
The mean commute is 22.2 min, with 76% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 26% working from home. Transit density is 2.9 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Palm Springs?
Within two miles there are 5 groceries, 115 restaurants and cafés and 13 parks, which grades C+ on amenities.
Are the homes in Palm Springs old or new?
The median home in Palm Springs was built in 1977 — 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. 55% 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.