What it's like to live in Brawley
Brawley is a small city in California with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, commutes that run shorter than most cities, and a growing population. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Brawley deals with unemployment above the national average, household incomes below the national average, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, and college degree attainment below the national average.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Short commutes
- Growing population
The not so good
- Above-average unemployment
- Below-average household incomes
- Air quality concerns
- Low college degree attainment
- High student-teacher ratio
- High poverty rate
How Brawley compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Brawley
Based on Brawley's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$1,976
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $39,520 a year
- 47% of Brawley renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$58,140
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $29,070
- Homes cost 4.9× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 30% below US
$988/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $988 a month. Factoring in local incomes, the value gets even better. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices are reasonable, with a median around $290,700. Not a steal, but not intimidating either.
Median home value $290,700 · 47% of renters cost-burdened
Job market▲ 272% above US
16.0% unemployment
Unemployment here is 16.0%, well above the national average of 4.3%. Moving with a job already lined up matters more here.
City-level (BLS)
SafetyNear US average
342 violent crimes per 100k
Crime runs about typical for a city this size. Some neighborhoods are safer than others, and one overall rate doesn't tell the whole story, so a neighborhood-level look matters more than the headline stat.
Property crime 940/100k · Brawley Police Department · 2025 data
Getting around▼ 30% below US
18 min average commute
Commutes are reasonable, averaging 18.2 minutes. Nothing heroic, and there's still time left over for a life after work. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 11% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers run seriously hot, with average highs pushing 107°F, and winters are mild, with lows rarely dropping below 42°F. It's a dry climate with limited rainfall.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
1 hospital
There's one Medicare-certified hospital inside city limits, rated 3.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforce▼ 56% below US
16% bachelor's degree or higher
This is a working-class city, and college degree rates reflect that. Trades, manufacturing, and service industries tend to dominate the local economy, which is a strength for some fields and a real constraint for others.
Schools
8 public schools inside the boundary
There are 8 public schools inside the boundary and 2 private schools. The student-to-teacher ratio is 23:1, above the national average of 16:1.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Joshua Tree National Park (67 miles away).
Bottom line
Brawley's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are unemployment above the national average and household incomes below the national average. A year of median rent ($988/mo) equals 20% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget and people who want short commutes. It may be a harder fit for anyone moving without a job lined up, anyone who doesn't drive, and people who struggle with heat.
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