San Diego/Compare
Linda Vista vs Mission Valley
Linda Vista and Mission Valley are two official community planning areas in San Diego. Linda Vista is the calmer Part I map (21 vs 5). Mission Valley wins the errand count. Linda Vista has the lower ACS median ($2,267).
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 | Linda Vista | Mission Valley |
|---|---|---|
| Safety | 21 | 5 |
| Schools | 50 | 50 |
| Walk | 13 | 34 |
| Cost fit | 100 | 88 |
| Vibe | 7 | 24 |
| Median rent | $2,267 | $2,831 |
| Median home | $717,082 | $631,490 |
| Population | 35,468 | 24,121 |
| Commute to Downtown | 16 min | 14 min |
| Commute to UTC | 16 min | 16 min |
| Commute to Mission Valley | 10 min | 6 min |
Living numbers
Who rents, how old, how much crime, how many shops — beside the scores.
| Fact | Linda Vista | Mission Valley |
|---|---|---|
| Renters | 57% | 72% |
| Median age | 34.6 | 33.8 |
| Median income | $87K | $98K |
| Part I per 1k | 30.2 | 88.0 |
| Groceries / 800m | 9 | 8 |
| Transit stops / 800m | 80 | 177 |
| Parks / 800m | 40 | 121 |
| 311 last 14 days | — | — |
Rent
Rent since 2014
ACS 5-year median gross rent for San Diego city. Up 70% since 2014. Linda V. is 2% below the 2024 city median. Msn Valley is 22% 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 Linda Vista if the rent gap is the point and the quieter map matters more than the scene. ACS median rent is $2,267 vs $2,831. Safety is 21 vs 5. Read both pages before you decide.
Pick Mission Valley if you want the errands on foot and you want the cafes and the night. Walk is 34 vs 13. Vibe is 24 vs 7. Read both pages before you decide.
Linda Vista
USD is a search on the west side of this plan. The official name is Linda Vista. Home median is $717,082. Property Part I is 25.7 per 1,000, high for a plan that is mostly houses — the commercial edge is inside the same line. Violent is 4.5.
$2,267 median rent · safety 21 · walk 13
Mission Valley
Fashion Valley and the stadium are searches inside Mission Valley. Rent is $2,831 and the home median is $631,490 — more condo than house. Property Part I is 77.0 per 1,000, second only to the beach spit, because the malls and the hotels are in the count. Violent is 11.0. Not a score for every new building.
$2,831 median rent · safety 5 · walk 34
Common questions
Same pair, said in questions. The numbers are in the tables.
Which is cheaper, Linda Vista or Mission Valley?
Linda Vista is the lower ACS median: $2,267 vs $2,831. About 57% rent in Linda Vista vs 72% in Mission Valley. Survey medians, not a listing you can message tonight.
Is Linda Vista more walkable than Mission Valley?
Mission Valley wins the errand count (walk 13 vs 34). Groceries inside 800 meters: 9 vs 8. Not a Walk Score license.
Which is safer on this map, Linda Vista or Mission Valley?
Linda Vista is the calmer Part I read (21 vs 5). Combined rate 30.2 vs 88.0 per 1,000. Visitors count in those numbers.
Which scores higher for families, Linda Vista or Mission Valley?
Linda Vista leads the school axis (50 vs 50). Nearby rating is thin vs thin. Median age 34.6 vs 33.8. Neither number is a school assignment.
Which has the shorter commute to Downtown?
16 minutes from Linda Vista to Downtown, 14 from Mission Valley. Mission Valley is the shorter weekday. Not this hour's traffic.
If you drop both
Closest official community planning area that is not Linda Vista or Mission Valley: 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.