Living in Bakersfield, CA

It's elevated — there's no way to sugarcoat a violent crime index of 131 when the national average sits at 100. Property crime is at 145. That said, city-wide averages hide a lot of variation. There are safe, quiet neighborhoods in Bakersfield where people raise families without much worry. The key is doing granular research: talk to residents, check precinct-level data, and visit at different times of day before signing a lease. FBI UCR numbers.

By most measures, yes. The median rent of $1,371/month against a median household income of $77,397/year works out to a 21.3% rent-to-income ratio. Financial planners generally want that number under 30%, so Bakersfield clears the bar with room to spare. You'll have breathing space for savings, car payments, and the occasional splurge. Numbers from Census ACS 2023.

Worth considering, yes. At 22 minutes average, the commute in Bakersfield isn't brutal but it's not trivial either. 80.4% drive alone, 0.5% ride transit, and 7.1% work remotely. Where you live relative to your office will make a bigger difference than the city-wide average suggests.

Not particularly. The climate risk score is 35/100, which puts Bakersfield in the low-risk tier. Heat Wave, Drought, and Earthquake are the most relevant hazards, but none of them are frequent concerns. Standard insurance should have you covered. It's one less thing to worry about if you're comparing this city to higher-risk metros along the coast or in tornado alley. Data from FEMA disaster declarations and NOAA.

Mixed. The city-wide graduation rate is 78.0% and classrooms average 24 students per teacher. Some schools here are legitimately excellent — strong test scores, engaged communities, good resources. Others struggle. The gap between the best and worst is wider than you might expect. Do your homework on individual schools rather than relying on the city-wide number.

About what you'd expect anywhere. The average monthly utility bill in Bakersfield runs around $227 for electricity, gas, water, and sewer combined. The national average is $230, so you're right in line. Your actual bill depends on home size, insulation quality, and how much you run the AC or heater — but no surprises here.

It depends on your health. The median AQI of 78 means Bakersfield spends a fair amount of time in the "Moderate" zone, with 95 genuinely clean-air days per year. PM2.5 drives most of the pollution. Healthy adults won't notice most days, but if you have asthma, exercise heavily outdoors, or have young children, you'll want to track daily readings on AirNow.gov and plan around bad-air days.

Probably a good idea. Bakersfield's water system scores 58/100 — not terrible, but not great either. There are 1 health-based violation on record, and lead risk is rated "low." The water is technically within EPA limits, but a quality filter adds a layer of protection, especially in older housing. Look up your specific utility on EWG's Tap Water Database for contaminant details.

Everything on this page is built from public government sources: rent and income figures from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS 5-Year Estimates, 2023); commute and transportation data from Census ACS tables B08303 and B08006; crime rates from the FBI Uniform Crime Report; climate risk assessments using FEMA disaster declarations and NOAA storm records; air quality measurements from the EPA's Air Quality System database; water quality compliance data from EPA records and the EWG Tap Water Database; school data from the National Center for Education Statistics; utility cost estimates from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. We refresh each dataset monthly through an automated pipeline and cross-check for anomalies. No surveys, no user-submitted guesses — just official federal data presented in a way that's actually useful for people researching a move.