What is the cost of living in Bakersfield-Delano?

Bakersfield-Delano has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 100.9, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 90.3, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,483/month.

What is the median salary in Bakersfield-Delano?

The median salary in Bakersfield-Delano is $74,397 annually (mean: $78,035). Top occupations include Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Fast Food and Counter Workers.

How safe is Bakersfield-Delano?

The violent crime rate in the Bakersfield-Delano area is 477 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1986 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Bakersfield-Delano?

The state of CA has 10,006 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 21.5:1. Charter schools make up 12.8% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Bakersfield-Delano?

Infant center-based childcare in the Bakersfield-Delano area averages $17,920 per year. Preschool averages $11,385/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Bakersfield-Delano a good place to relocate?

Bakersfield-Delano has a Life Score of 45.6/100 (D), based on 7 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This is a middle-of-the-pack score, where the composite lands for most US metros; look at individual dimensions to see the real trade-offs.

Where does Bakersfield-Delano sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Bakersfield-Delano ranks #366 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). That ordinal matches the /rankings/livability listing. See /methodology#corpus-placement for the exact sort basis.

Relocation profile · Federal data

Bakersfield-Delano, CA

LiveAbility 30.1/100 places Bakersfield-Delano #366 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

100.9
Cost index (US=100): $1,483
2BR rent / mo: $74,397
Median salary: 30.1
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Bakersfield-Delano ranks #366 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (30.1/100), with its strongest marks in job market and climate.

#366
of 387 US metros · Well below median: 39,431,263
metro-area population: 477
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 10,006
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: air quality (1/100). Weigh every dimension against your own priorities, use the City Finder to re-rank by what matters to you.

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite (BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA inputs), Bakersfield-Delano ranks #366 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 100.9 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,483/mo, median salary $74,397; LiveAbility Score 30.1/100, strongest in job market and climate.

Signature: LiveAbility 30.1/100 places Bakersfield-Delano #366 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 100.9 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,483/mo.

LiveAbility 30.1/100 puts Bakersfield-Delano in the bottom third (#366 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Bakersfield-Delano area is 328,670.

Bakersfield-Delano vs all US metros by LiveAbility Score

Where this metro's LiveAbility Score falls among every scored US metro (composite placement, not a desirability verdict)

30 Top 95% higher than 5% of 387 US metros

Metros banded by LiveAbility Score (0–100)

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainRelocate LiveAbility Score · June 2026

Bakersfield-Delano housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Bakersfield-Delano MSA; housing RPP 90.3 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,483/mo.

Studio

$1,132

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,140

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,483

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,062

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,488

/month

Bakersfield-Delano wages and employment

Bakersfield-Delano posts 328,670 total employment with median salary $74,397 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$74,397

Mean Salary

$78,035

Total Employment

328,670

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse	$34,620
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$34,320
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$39,470
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$46,890
Cashiers	$35,220

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Bakersfield-Delano area from NCES.

Schools

10,006

Enrollment

5,787,663

Student:Teacher

21.5:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Bakersfield-Delano area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$17,920

per year

Toddler (Center)

$12,300

per year

Preschool (Center)

$11,385

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Bakersfield-Delano's composite Life Score is 45.6/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

18/100

Bottom decile

Wages

88/100

Elite

Rent

32/100

Weak

Crime

13/100

Bottom decile

Schools

92/100

Elite

Childcare

9/100

Bottom decile

Environment

74/100

Strong

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Bakersfield-Delano ranks #366 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 30.1/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Job market (88/100)

Job market

88
Climate

60
Housing

32
Cost of living

18
Safety

14
Low hazard

13
Schools

8
Air quality

1

What this shows Bakersfield-Delano's strongest dimensions are job market and climate; its weakest among scored dims is air quality at 1/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Bakersfield-Delano to

Barnstable Town Baton Rouge Battle Creek Bay City Beaumont-Port Arthur Beckley

Metros near Bakersfield-Delano on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Bakersfield-Delano on BEA RPP, LiveAbility, or BLS median salary, a different lens than the size-ranked list.

Similar cost of living (BEA RPP)

Similar LiveAbility score

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Bakersfield-Delano cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Bakersfield-Delano wages and LiveAbility inputs follow BLS OEWS plus the federal sources listed in methodology. This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Scores are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation. How this data is sourced.

Verify with BEA → · Verify with BLS → · Verify with HUD → · Verify with NOAA → · Verify with FEMA → · Verify with Census →

Thinking about Bakersfield-Delano?

Bakersfield-Delano runs a $74,397 median salary at a 100.9 cost index, ranking #366 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Bakersfield-Delano's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Bakersfield-Delano head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Bakersfield-Delano
Abilene is the closest related metro in this corpus -- see how it stacks up. Abilene profile
A cheaper cost index and a higher LiveAbility score don't always point the same direction -- here's how to weigh the trade-off. Cost vs quality guide

Cost, salary and score figures are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation.