Cost of Living in Long Beach, CA [2025]

Located just 20 miles south of downtown Los Angeles is Long Beach, the sixth-largest city in California. While it may be a popular shipping port, Long Beach is also a fantastic Southern California city to live in. With a diverse culture, friendly neighbors, and a small-town feel, it can be hard to remember you’re living in a Los Angeles County city when you’re in Long Beach.

Appropriately nicknamed The Beach, Long Beach is a beautiful coastal city with incredible views of the port, harbor, and the Pacific Ocean. But Long Beach has so much more to offer than its spectacular views, including an abundance of indoor and outdoor activities, exciting nightlife, and robust dining and shopping scenes.

No matter why you choose to move to Long Beach, whether it be for the vibrant city life or the swoon-worthy West Coast weather, you’ll want to get a good idea of what your costs will look like. So let’s look at the cost of living in Long Beach to understand better how much you need to live there.

Cost of Living in Long Beach

What Is the Cost of Living in Long Beach?

According to PayScale, the cost of living in Long Beach is 50% higher than the national average, with housing being the most expensive category at 137%.

How Much Is Rent in Long Beach?

The current overall median rent in Long Beach is around $1,765 per month, with one-bedroom rentals costing around $1,577 and two-bedrooms running closer to $1,931.

How Much Are Housing Costs in Long Beach?

The Long Beach housing market has seen steady, significant growth, with median home prices at $785,000. Compared to other major cities across the state, these prices are reasonable, especially when you consider the median price index of Santa Ana is at $719.5k, Pomona is at $620k, and Irvine is now at $1.4 million.

What Salary Do I Need to Live in Long Beach?

You can use the 30% rule for rent to determine your ideal salary in Long Beach. When you follow this rule, you shouldn’t spend more than one-third, or 30%, of your gross income on rent. If you want to rent a one-bedroom apartment in Long Beach with an average rent price of $1,577, you would need to earn at least $64,176 a year before taxes.

However, according to our database, the average L.A. resident spends around $6,950 a month to live in the city, which comes out to $83,400 after taxes. Therefore, most people in the area should expect to earn closer to six figures in order to live comfortably.

Thankfully, the typical annual salaries for common professions in Long Beach are highly competitive. For example, the three highest typical annual salaries belong to Management, Legal, and Computer and Mathematical, respectively.

How Much Is Transportation in Long Beach?

If you drive your own car in Long Beach, tou'll spend about $9,852 for transportation if you're a single adult without children. However, you will pay $16,526 for transportation annually if you are a family of four, including two working adults and two children.

While most people in Los Angeles County have personal vehicles, Long Beach has a reliable public transportation system of its own. Currently, there are two primary options servicing Long Beach.

Los Angeles County’s Metro runs through downtown Long Beach from 7th Street in Downtown Los Angeles. Long Beach’s Long Beach Transit offers public transportation throughout Cal State Long Beach, Alamitos Bay, and Belmont Shore for $1.25 fare each way. In the summer months, residents can take advantage of the Aqualink water taxis serving Alamitos Bay Landing and the Queen Mary.

To get around Long Beach and enjoy the city and state to its fullest, you might want to have a vehicle of your own. You’ll probably want to have a car to get around and see all of the sights if you plan to make the most out of living in Long Beach.

How Much Are Long Beach Food Costs?

Expect to pay at least $4,686 on food per year as a single adult without children, or around $13,802 per year for food if you have a family of two working adults and two children.

Long Beach is a hub for great eating and drinking, offering countless dining options across countless cuisines. Some of the iconic Long Beach dishes you must try include the lamb chops from George’s Greek Cafe, the garlic cheese bread burger from Parkers’ Lighthouse, and the famous brussel sprouts from Bo Beau Kitchen + Rooftop.

Bear in mind that there are costs associated with eating out in Long Beach, and expect to pay around $20 per person for a meal at an inexpensive restaurant.

You can anticipate paying just above national averages for food items from local grocery stores like Stater Bros. Market, Whole Foods Market, or Food 4 Less. For example, one gallon of regular milk costs $4.25 in the grocery store, while the national average is $3.87.

How Much Are Healthcare Costs in Long Beach?

When planning your budget in Long Beach, account for proper medical care. A single adult without children will pay around $2,749 for medical care annually while working adults with two children will pay $8,085.

How Much Are Long Beach Utilities?

Since the winters and summers are relatively mild, you can save a bit on your monthly heating and cooling bills. But overall, Los Angeles County prices are around the same as the national average. LA's basic utilities include electricity, heating, cooling, water, and garbage, running $249.19 for a 915-sq. ft. apartment (compared to the national average of $253.14).

Take advantage of the incredible year-round Southern California weather when moving to Long Beach.

Summers in Long Beach are clear, arid, short, and warm, and August is the hottest month with an average daytime high of 82°F. Winters in Long Beach are partly cloudy, cool, and long. The coldest days of the year fall in December, with an average overnight temperature rarely dropping below 49°F.

Long Beach Fitness and Entertainment

You may still opt for a fitness club membership out of personal preference, even though the weather year-round in Long Beach is pretty pleasant. If you choose this route, keep in mind there will be costs associated with keeping fit throughout the year. The fee for a fitness club membership for one adult is steep in Long Beach, averaging around $34.14 per month.

You should enjoy the beautiful landscape of Southern California’s great outdoors, as weather permits most of the year. Hike some of the city’s most popular trails, including Dominguez Gap Wetlands, Signal Hill Trail, and El Dorado Nature Center.

Long Beach’s other great outdoor activities include strolling along the Long Beach Waterfront, joining the pups at Rosie’s Dog Beach, or taking a dip at Mother’s Beach.

Of course, you can also enjoy the indoors with plenty of entertainment options throughout the city. Some favorite local activities include the Aquarium of the Pacific, the Queen Mary, and the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center. Just be sure you account for these additional expenses in your budget.

Other Expenses to Consider in Long Beach

It comes at a cost to choose to live on the wildly popular west coast region of the U.S. Anyone new to the state should know that California has some of the highest taxes in the country. Both sales and income tax rates are high, but the good news for anyone looking to purchase is that property sales taxes rates are below average.

In Long Beach, the total sales tax is a whopping 10.25%. Beyond that, the state charges a 6.0% sales tax rate, Los Angeles County imposes an additional 2.0% sales tax, and Long Beach City charges an extra 1.0% on top of that in sales taxes.

Consider costs associated with transportation, hotels, storage, and cross-country movers if you’re moving out of state to Long Beach. Pet deposits, security deposits, and application fees are just a few examples of other additional fees that sneak up on you with these types of moves.

Furnishing your home is another cost you shouldn’t overlook during the planning process of your big move to Long Beach. To help you save some money, get some tips for decorating your apartment on a budget.

Job Market in Long Beach

Even though the cost of living is slightly above the national average in Los Angeles County, the good news for anyone looking to call Long Beach home is the strong job market.

More good news for anyone interested in Long Beach is that the median household income average annual salary throughout Los Angeles is above the national average of $71,150, as reported by the U.S. Census Bureau. Unfortunately, you’ll find the unemployment rate in the county falls presently above the national average of 3.6%, currently at 4.5%.

Long Beach is no different from Los Angeles County, notorious for constantly shifting demographics. Because of this, the economy throughout the area can be challenging to narrow down to just a few. You’ll find countless jobs in fashion and design, entertainment, museum, and theater since, above all, Long Beach is known for being a creative economy.

Ready to Move to Long Beach?

If you are interested in moving to Long Beach, a city filled with urban energy and friendly neighbors, then you’ll need to determine which Long Beach neighborhood is best for you and learn how to apartment hunt. Then, register with Apartment List today and start checking out the hundreds of available apartments to rent in Long Beach!

FAQs: Cost of Living in Long Beach

How far is Long Beach from Los Angeles?

Long Beach is 24.0 miles to Los Angeles via I-710 N. Depending on what time of day you leave, it takes about 32 minutes to drive from Los Angeles to Long Beach.

Is Long Beach cheaper than Los Angeles?

With respect to rent, living in Long Beach is cheaper than Los Angeles. A one-bedroom apartment in Long Beach averages $1,577 per month, while in LA, a one-bedroom will cost you closer to $1,885.

What is the population of Long Beach?

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the population of Long Beach was 456,062. The population of the entire state of California is 39,142,991.