San Diego/Compare
Golden Hill vs Pacific Beach
Golden Hill and Pacific Beach are two official community planning areas in San Diego. Golden Hill is the calmer Part I map (68 vs 42). Pacific Beach wins the errand count. Golden Hill has the lower ACS median ($1,980).
Data period. ACS 2024 5-year (2020-2024) · SDPD Oct 2025 – Sep 2026 · OSM Oct 2026. ACS and SDPD retrieved 2026-10-14; OSM retrieved 2026-10-14. Editorial copy last revised Sep 2026.
Scores
Fit axes among official San Diego community planning areas.
| Axis | Golden Hill | Pacific Beach |
|---|---|---|
| Safety | 68 | 42 |
| Schools | 50 | 50 |
| Walk | 3 | 13 |
| Cost fit | 100 | 100 |
| Vibe | 1 | 13 |
| Median rent | $1,980 | $2,427 |
| Median home | $920,336 | $1,372,211 |
| Population | 14,968 | 42,671 |
| Commute to Downtown | 8 min | 24 min |
| Commute to UTC | 28 min | 14 min |
| Commute to Mission Valley | 14 min | 18 min |
Living numbers
Who rents, how old, how much crime, how many shops — beside the scores.
| Fact | Golden Hill | Pacific Beach |
|---|---|---|
| Renters | 74% | 69% |
| Median age | 34.8 | 34.4 |
| Median income | $89K | $130K |
| Part I per 1k | 16.5 | 22.7 |
| Groceries / 800m | 6 | 15 |
| Transit stops / 800m | 25 | 47 |
| Parks / 800m | 5 | 18 |
| 311 last 14 days | — | — |
Rent
Rent since 2014
ACS 5-year median gross rent for San Diego city. Up 70% since 2014. Golden H. is 14% below the 2024 city median. Pac. Beach is 5% above the 2024 city median.
Overlapping 5-year ACS windows (B25064), not asking rent. Census does not publish a rent series for each official neighborhood, so the line is the city place. Dashed marks are each area’s ACS 2024 median.
Which to pick
The same numbers as the table, in sentences. Nobody wins the city.
Pick Golden Hill if the quieter map matters more than the scene and the rent gap is the point. Safety is 68 vs 42. ACS median rent is $1,980 vs $2,427. 8 vs 24 minutes to Downtown. Read both pages before you decide.
Pick Pacific Beach if you want the cafes and the night and you want the errands on foot. Vibe is 13 vs 1. Walk is 13 vs 3. Read both pages before you decide.
Golden Hill
South Park is a search inside Greater Golden Hill, not its own polygon. Rent is $1,980. Violent Part I is 2.7 per 1,000, one of the calmer central reads. The park is the lawn. The houses are the rest.
$1,980 median rent · safety 68 · walk 3
Pacific Beach
Garnet Avenue is the search. The official plan is Pacific Beach. Rent is $2,427 and the home median is $1,372,211. Violent Part I is 4.5 per 1,000. Property is 18.2. Garnet is the night. The bay side of the same plan is quieter.
$2,427 median rent · safety 42 · walk 13
Common questions
Same pair, said in questions. The numbers are in the tables.
Which is cheaper, Golden Hill or Pacific Beach?
Golden Hill is the lower ACS median: $1,980 vs $2,427. About 74% rent in Golden Hill vs 69% in Pacific Beach. Survey medians, not a listing you can message tonight.
Is Golden Hill more walkable than Pacific Beach?
Pacific Beach wins the errand count (walk 3 vs 13). Groceries inside 800 meters: 6 vs 15. Not a Walk Score license.
Which is safer on this map, Golden Hill or Pacific Beach?
Golden Hill is the calmer Part I read (68 vs 42). Combined rate 16.5 vs 22.7 per 1,000. Visitors count in those numbers.
Which scores higher for families, Golden Hill or Pacific Beach?
Golden Hill leads the school axis (50 vs 50). Nearby rating is thin vs thin. Median age 34.8 vs 34.4. Pacific Beach has more of the night. Neither number is a school assignment.
Which has the shorter commute to Downtown?
8 minutes from Golden Hill to Downtown, 24 from Pacific Beach. Golden Hill is the shorter weekday. Not this hour's traffic.
If you drop both
Closest official community planning area that is not Golden Hill or Pacific Beach: Uptown. Hillcrest, Mission Hills, and Bankers Hill are searches inside one plan. The official name is Uptown. Hillcrest is the night; the west side is houses. Median age is 42.2 and the home median is $1,135,056. Violent Part I is 5.7 per 1,000. Property is 19.9.
Scores are relative among official San Diego community planning areas with the same editorial weights. Read the method.