Not everyone is cut out for city life. Some people would prefer to live in the cities and towns that surround Pomona.
So the question arises, do the suburbs maintain a semblance of the larger-than-life appeal of their more famous neighbor?
Today, we’ll use science and data to determine which Pomona ‘burbs need a little tender loving care – the sore thumbs of the Pomona area if you will. Realistically, you can’t expect all the suburbs to live up to Pomona proper, although Sierra Madre certainly tries.
Of course, not all suburbs of Pomona are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones. So without further ado…
We examined the 91 biggest suburbs of Pomona to find out the worst places to live. And while you won’t necessarily find them on the worst places to live in California lists, these ten places are a little too far downwind of Pomona in terms of quality of life.
Here are the 10 worst suburbs around Pomona for 2018:
- San Bernardino (Photos)
- Commerce (Photos)
- Cudahy
- Jurupa Valley
- Rialto (Photos)
- Colton (Photos)
- Compton (Photos)
- Huntington Park (Photos)
- Bell Gardens (Photos)
- Bell (Photos)
Read on to see how we determined the places around Pomona that need a pick-me-up. And remember, don’t blame the messenger.
Or, if you’re thinking of moving to elsewhere in California check out the best places in California overall or the worst.
And remember, there are some good places to live around Pomona too.
Editor’s Note: If you see a slight difference between the worst in state rankings and this suburb ranking, it’s because of the methodology. We needed a way to include more places, so we eliminated crime and commute times as criteria for this analysis.
For more California reading, check out:
- 10 Best Places To Live In California
- 10 Cheapest Places To Live In California
- 10 Most Dangerous Cities In California
Determining The Worst Suburbs Around Pomona for 2018
To figure out how bad a place is to live in, we only needed to know what kinds of things people like and then decide what cities have the least amount of those things.
We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible. Using the most recent American Community Survey data, this is the criteria we used:
- High unemployment rate
- Low median household incomes
- Low population density (no things to do)
- Low home values
- A lot of high school drop outs
- High poverty
- High rate of uninsured families
FYI: We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Pomona.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 5,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 91 suburbs to evaluate around Pomona.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 91 in each category, where 1 was the ‘worst’.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality of life index.
And finally, we crowned the city with the worst quality of life index the ‘Worst Suburb near Pomona.’ We’re lookin’ at you, San Bernardino.
Read on below to learn more about what it’s like to live in the worst of the worst. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from worst to best.
1. San Bernardino
Population: 214,581
Unemployment Rate: 14.1%
Median Home Price: $176,800
Median Income: $38,456
More on San Bernardino: Data | Jobs
We’ll get the ball rolling with San Bernardino, the absolute worst place to live around Pomona according to the data.
And in the world of worst rankings, San Bernardino beat the competition pretty handily thanks to scoring in the bottom 15% in three major categories. Income is the 5th worst in the Pomona area, and to make matters worse, the city ranks 1st worst when it comes to home values.
But hey, at least it’s cheap to live there. But there’s a reason for that… it’s San Bernardino.
You won’t feel bad about not having a great income for the area, there aren’t a bunch of places to spend your money anyway.
2. Commerce
Population: 12,997
Unemployment Rate: 11.4%
Median Home Price: $343,200
Median Income: $42,235
More on Commerce: Data | Jobs
Welcome to Commerce. Home to KMart, Big Lots, and a lot of gas stations.
This city is 22.7 miles to Pomona. Income levels here are the 9th lowest in the metro area, where families bring in about $42,235 a year, which doesn’t go a long ways even on a shoestring budget.
But on the bright side, there are a lot of fast food joints in the area.
3. Cudahy
Population: 24,106
Unemployment Rate: 11.9%
Median Home Price: $285,900
Median Income: $39,058
More on Cudahy: Data | Jobs
Back up the highway we go for the third worst Pomona suburb you can live in. You might have expected to see Cudahy on here. While the cost of living is low, your entertainment and work options are limited. And that’s an understatement.
In terms of numbers, it’s in the worst 15% for insurance, and the adult high school drop out rate is poor compared to other Pomona suburbs.
But at least there are nice parks to bring the kids during the day.
4. Jurupa Valley
Population: 100,737
Unemployment Rate: 12.7%
Median Home Price: $270,700
Median Income: $58,849
More on Jurupa Valley: Data | Jobs
If you live in Jurupa Valley, most likely you struggle to make ends meet every month. It ranks as the 37th lowest Pomona suburb when it comes to residents making money.
Not only that, but this is the 4th worst unemployed suburb you can live in if you choose to live near Pomona. Remember, we looked at 91 cities for this study.
Jurupa Valley is about 17.2 miles to downtown.
5. Rialto
Population: 102,418
Unemployment Rate: 13.8%
Median Home Price: $236,100
Median Income: $52,347
More on Rialto: Data | Jobs
Rialto has the distinction of being a Pomona suburb. Which means that’s about all it has going for it.
All snarkiness aside, Rialto has the 3rd lowest home values in the metro Pomona area, where the median price is $236,100. To put that into perspective, in Sierra Madre, the median income is $139,792, which is the best in the area.
Rialto has an unemployment rate of 13.8% which ranks 3rd worst.
6. Colton
Population: 53,856
Unemployment Rate: 9.8%
Median Home Price: $189,500
Median Income: $43,966
More on Colton: Data | Jobs
Colton has 53,856 residents that probably know it’s a pretty crummy place to live when you look at the data. (Or, if you’ve ever been there, you don’t need to look at the data.)
Incomes are towards the bottom and the poverty rate sits at 20.5%.
7. Compton
Population: 97,740
Unemployment Rate: 13.9%
Median Home Price: $264,300
Median Income: $45,406
More on Compton: Data | Jobs
Ah, Compton. You rank as the 7th worst place to live around Pomona.
It’s the place with the 2nd most out of work residents in the Pomona metro area (13.9%).
8. Huntington Park
Population: 58,921
Unemployment Rate: 11.1%
Median Home Price: $322,300
Median Income: $35,629
More on Huntington Park: Data | Jobs
Huntington Park is a city about 26.7 miles from Pomona, but Pomona probably wishes it was further away. It ranks as the 8th worst burb for 2018.
You’d be hard pressed to find a worse place to live. Huntington Park has the 4th most uninsured people, 1st worst incomes, and has the 9th highest unemployment rate (11.1%) in the entire Pomona metro area.
Homes only cost $322,300 for a reason. That’s cheap for Pomona standards.
9. Bell Gardens
Population: 42,805
Unemployment Rate: 10.6%
Median Home Price: $318,700
Median Income: $37,183
More on Bell Gardens: Data | Jobs
If you absolutely have to live near Pomona, then Bell Gardens might be a place for you to consider as it’s only the 9th worst Pomona suburb.
About 10.6% of residents are out of work.
10. Bell
Population: 35,927
Unemployment Rate: 11.4%
Median Home Price: $322,900
Median Income: $38,823
More on Bell: Data | Jobs
Rounding out the ten worst Pomona suburbs to call home is Bell.
Located 24.5 miles outside the city, Bells is a real pit when you look at the data. Its residents have the 7th highest unemployment rate (11.4%), and poverty is far above the area average.
The areas around Pomona where the dream is more of a nightmare for 2018
Well there you have it — the worst of the ‘burbs surrounding Pomona with San Bernardino casting itself ahead of the pack.
As we mentioned earlier, the suburbs around Pomona aren’t all bad. Sierra Madre takes the cake as the best place to live around Pomona.
For more California reading, check out:
- 10 Most Ghetto Cities In California
- These Are The 10 Richest Cities In California
- 10 Safest Places In California
- 10 Worst Places To Live In California
Detailed List Of The Worst Pomona Suburbs
Rank | City | Population |
---|---|---|
1 | San Bernardino | 214,581 |
2 | Commerce | 12,997 |
3 | Cudahy | 24,106 |
4 | Jurupa Valley | 100,737 |
5 | Rialto | 102,418 |
6 | Colton | 53,856 |
7 | Compton | 97,740 |
8 | Huntington Park | 58,921 |
9 | Bell Gardens | 42,805 |
10 | Bell | 35,927 |
11 | Hawaiian Gardens | 14,468 |
12 | Maywood | 27,672 |
13 | Lynwood | 71,233 |
14 | South Gate | 95,219 |
15 | Ontario | 169,389 |
16 | Paramount | 54,941 |
17 | Montclair | 38,294 |
18 | El Monte | 115,665 |
19 | South El Monte | 20,566 |
20 | Riverside | 318,678 |
21 | Fontana | 205,228 |
22 | Stanton | 38,594 |
23 | Baldwin Park | 76,511 |
24 | Santa Ana | 333,605 |
25 | La Puente | 40,384 |
26 | Duarte | 21,792 |
27 | Montebello | 63,416 |
28 | Azusa | 48,498 |
29 | Rosemead | 54,507 |
30 | Pico Rivera | 63,724 |
31 | Loma Linda | 23,859 |
32 | Chino | 83,670 |
33 | Bellflower | 77,687 |
34 | Long Beach | 469,793 |
35 | Anaheim | 346,776 |
36 | Norwalk | 106,360 |
37 | Grand Terrace | 12,393 |
38 | La Habra | 61,660 |
39 | Santa Fe Springs | 17,436 |
40 | Garden Grove | 174,676 |
41 | Signal Hill | 11,404 |
42 | Westminster | 91,635 |
43 | Monterey Park | 61,001 |
44 | Corona | 161,614 |
45 | West Covina | 107,634 |
46 | Covina | 48,539 |
47 | Glendale | 197,895 |
48 | Fullerton | 139,491 |
49 | Monrovia | 37,090 |
50 | Downey | 113,223 |
51 | San Gabriel | 40,200 |
52 | Norco | 26,809 |
53 | Glendora | 51,285 |
54 | Artesia | 16,789 |
55 | Upland | 75,851 |
56 | Alhambra | 84,866 |
57 | Orange | 139,919 |
58 | Rancho Cucamonga | 173,309 |
59 | Whittier | 86,630 |
60 | Buena Park | 82,771 |
61 | Tustin | 79,396 |
62 | Seal Beach | 24,510 |
63 | Pasadena | 140,268 |
64 | Costa Mesa | 112,439 |
65 | Los Alamitos | 11,661 |
66 | Eastvale | 58,217 |
67 | San Dimas | 34,109 |
68 | La Verne | 32,078 |
69 | Placentia | 52,168 |
70 | La Mirada | 49,130 |
71 | Chino Hills | 77,266 |
72 | Claremont | 35,827 |
73 | Diamond Bar | 56,456 |
74 | Lakewood | 81,054 |
75 | Brea | 41,351 |
76 | La Palma | 15,834 |
77 | Fountain Valley | 56,670 |
78 | Lake Forest | 80,658 |
79 | Arcadia | 57,755 |
80 | Walnut | 30,026 |
81 | Villa Park | 5,922 |
82 | Irvine | 246,992 |
83 | El Cerrito | 24,646 |
84 | Cypress | 48,978 |
85 | Huntington Beach | 198,724 |
86 | Cerritos | 49,797 |
87 | South Pasadena | 25,936 |
88 | La Habra Heights | 5,406 |
89 | Yorba Linda | 67,362 |
90 | San Marino | 13,324 |
91 | Sierra Madre | 11,067 |