The 10 Worst Santa Ana Suburbs For 2022


We used science and data to determine which Santa Ana suburbs are the real pits.

Sam Sparkes, RoadSnacks
April 8, 2022 - 984 views
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Not everyone is cut out for city life. Some people would prefer to live in the cities and towns that surround Santa Ana.

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 Santa Ana 'burbs need a little tender loving care - the sore thumbs of the Santa Ana area if you will. Realistically, you can't expect all the suburbs to live up to Santa Ana proper, although Redondo Beach certainly tries.

Of course, not all suburbs of Santa Ana are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones..

We examined the 100 biggest suburbs of Santa Ana 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 Santa Ana in terms of quality of life.

Here are the 10 worst suburbs around Santa Ana for 2022:

  1. Huntington Park
  2. Commerce
  3. Cudahy
  4. Compton
  5. Bell Gardens
  6. Montclair
  7. Lynwood
  8. Bell
  9. Maywood
  10. Pomona

What's the worst suburb of Santa Ana? Huntington Park ranks as the worst suburb of Santa Ana for 2022 based on the most recent Census and FBI data.

Read on to see how we determined the places around Santa Ana 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 Santa Ana 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:

The 10 Worst Santa Ana Suburbs To Live For 2022

1. Huntington Park

We'll get the ball rolling with Huntington Park, the absolute worst place to live around Santa Ana according to the data.

And in the world of worst rankings, Huntington Park beat the competition pretty handily thanks to scoring in the bottom 15% in three major categories. Income is the 4th worst in the Santa Ana area, and to make matters worse, the city ranks 13th 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 Huntington Park.

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.

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 57,761
Rank Last Year: 3 (Up 2)
Median Income: $46,738 (4th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 10.1% (highest)
Median Home Value: $426,700 (13th lowest)
More on Huntington Park:  Data | Photos

Huntington Park, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Jmiles92 | GFDL

2. Commerce

Welcome to Commerce. Home to KMart, Big Lots, and a lot of gas stations.

This city is 23.5 miles to Santa Ana. Income levels here are the 10th lowest in the metro area, where families bring in about $54,639 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.

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 12,738
Rank Last Year: 1 (Down 1)
Median Income: $54,639 (10th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 5.6% (38th highest)
Median Home Value: $429,800 (16th lowest)
More on Commerce:  Data | Photos

Commerce, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Justefrain | CC BY-SA 3.0

3. Cudahy

Back up the highway we go for the third worst Santa Ana 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 Santa Ana suburbs.

But at least there are nice parks to bring the kids during the day.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 23,606
Rank Last Year: 5 (Up 2)
Median Income: $46,279 (2nd lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.7% (7th highest)
Median Home Value: $422,700 (12th lowest)
More on Cudahy:  Data | Photos

Cudahy, CA

Source: Flickr User [email protected] | CC BY 2.0

4. Compton

If you live in Compton, most likely you struggle to make ends meet every month. It ranks as the 15th lowest Santa Ana suburb when it comes to residents making money.

Not only that, but this is the 3rd worst unemployed suburb you can live in if you choose to live near Santa Ana. Remember, we looked at 100 cities for this study.

Compton is about 22.6 miles to downtown.

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 95,804
Rank Last Year: 6 (Up 2)
Median Income: $58,703 (15th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 9.1% (3rd highest)
Median Home Value: $383,500 (4th lowest)
More on Compton:  Data | Photos

Compton, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Epolk at English Wikipedi | GFDL

5. Bell Gardens

Bell Gardens has the distinction of being a Santa Ana suburb. Which means that's about all it has going for it.

All snarkiness aside, Bell Gardens has the 7th lowest home values in the metro Santa Ana area, where the median price is $402,600. To put that into perspective, in Redondo Beach, the median income is $197,826, which is the best in the area.

Bell Gardens has an unemployment rate of 6.47% which ranks 25th worst.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 41,770
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 3)
Median Income: $45,289 (lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.5% (25th highest)
Median Home Value: $402,600 (7th lowest)
More on Bell Gardens:  Data | Photos

Bell Gardens, CA

Source: Public domain

6. Montclair

Montclair has 40,041 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 18.28513955242645%.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 40,041
Rank Last Year: 11 (Up 5)
Median Income: $63,245 (20th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.2% (12th highest)
Median Home Value: $388,100 (5th lowest)
More on Montclair:  Data | Photos

Montclair, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Westpacificmovement | CC BY-SA 4.0

7. Lynwood

Ah, Lynwood. You rank as the 7th worst place to live around Santa Ana.

It's the place with the 2nd most out of work residents in the Santa Ana metro area (9.68%).

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 69,625
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 2)
Median Income: $57,063 (12th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 9.7% (2nd highest)
Median Home Value: $422,200 (11th lowest)
More on Lynwood:  Data | Photos

Lynwood, CA

Source: Public domain

8. Bell

Bell is a city about 23.9 miles from Santa Ana, but Santa Ana 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. Bell has the 11th most uninsured people, 5th worst incomes, and has the 8th highest unemployment rate (7.63%) in the entire Santa Ana metro area.

Homes only cost $436,400 for a reason. That's cheap for Santa Ana standards.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 35,301
Rank Last Year: 7 (Down 1)
Median Income: $47,740 (5th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.6% (8th highest)
Median Home Value: $436,400 (18th lowest)
More on Bell:  Data | Photos

Bell, CA

Source: Public domain

9. Maywood

If you absolutely have to live near Santa Ana, then Maywood might be a place for you to consider as it's only the 9th worst Santa Ana suburb.

About 6.81% of residents are out of work.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 27,127
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 6)
Median Income: $50,996 (6th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.8% (20th highest)
Median Home Value: $427,300 (14th lowest)
More on Maywood:  Data | Photos

Maywood, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Justefrain | CC BY-SA 3.0

10. Pomona

Rounding out the ten worst Santa Ana suburbs to call home is Pomona.

Located 23.3 miles outside the city, Pomonas is a real pit when you look at the data. Its residents have the 30th highest unemployment rate (6.29%), and poverty is far above the area average.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 151,124
Rank Last Year: 7 (Down 3)
Median Income: $62,407 (18th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.3% (30th highest)
Median Home Value: $420,600 (10th lowest)
More on Pomona:  Data | Photos

Pomona, CA

Source: Public domain

Methodology: Determining The Worst Suburbs Around Santa Ana for 2022

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 from 2016-2020, 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 Santa Ana.

Richest Cities In California

Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 3,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 100 suburbs to evaluate around Santa Ana.

We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 100 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 Santa Ana." We're lookin' at you, Huntington Park. You can download the data here.

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.

Summary: The areas around Santa Ana where the dream is more of a nightmare for 2022

Well there you have it -- the worst of the 'burbs surrounding Santa Ana with Huntington Park casting itself ahead of the pack.

As we mentioned earlier, the suburbs around Santa Ana aren't all bad. Redondo Beach takes the cake as the best place to live around Santa Ana.

  • Redondo Beach
  • Palos Verdes Estates
  • Newport Beach

For more California reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Worst Santa Ana Suburbs

Rank City Population Median Income Median Home Values
1 Huntington Park 57,761 $46,738 $426,700
2 Commerce 12,738 $54,639 $429,800
3 Cudahy 23,606 $46,279 $422,700
4 Compton 95,804 $58,703 $383,500
5 Bell Gardens 41,770 $45,289 $402,600
6 Montclair 40,041 $63,245 $388,100
7 Lynwood 69,625 $57,063 $422,200
8 Bell 35,301 $47,740 $436,400
9 Maywood 27,127 $50,996 $427,300
10 Pomona 151,124 $62,407 $420,600
11 South Gate 94,905 $55,084 $438,100
12 Ontario 178,194 $67,357 $408,000
13 South El Monte 20,791 $54,208 $452,700
14 Paramount 53,949 $57,313 $388,300
15 El Monte 113,917 $53,874 $480,100
16 Azusa 49,584 $65,912 $438,700
17 Stanton 38,317 $66,017 $432,600
18 Montebello 62,697 $62,781 $519,000
19 La Puente 39,780 $66,132 $446,800
20 Bellflower 76,339 $63,848 $483,100
21 Hawaiian Gardens 14,212 $61,422 $428,300
22 Baldwin Park 75,659 $68,741 $436,800
23 Hawthorne 85,410 $57,849 $602,100
24 Lawndale 32,533 $65,923 $551,800
25 Duarte 21,399 $82,620 $519,700
26 Long Beach 462,081 $66,410 $584,200
27 Chino 89,170 $85,659 $476,800
28 Westminster 90,857 $67,142 $624,000
29 Anaheim 353,085 $76,723 $602,400
30 Carson 91,354 $86,040 $494,800
31 Santa Fe Springs 17,643 $69,922 $462,400
32 Rosemead 53,850 $60,006 $576,000
33 Garden Grove 172,800 $73,611 $580,300
34 Norwalk 104,524 $77,425 $461,000
35 Gardena 59,401 $64,015 $519,000
36 Covina 47,787 $77,913 $549,500
37 La Habra 62,787 $83,532 $577,900
38 Pico Rivera 62,507 $70,620 $464,700
39 Corona 168,112 $88,434 $491,000
40 Upland 77,348 $76,259 $547,100
41 Fullerton 141,061 $85,471 $667,300
42 Monterey Park 60,597 $63,389 $641,700
43 Los Alamitos 11,521 $89,323 $772,300
44 Downey 111,263 $75,974 $582,500
45 Midway 3,132 $51,005 $162,900
46 Artesia 16,456 $74,375 $600,000
47 Temple 4,709 $67,628 $123,800
48 Signal Hill 11,430 $86,140 $528,300
49 Whittier 84,821 $76,026 $598,000
50 Laguna Woods 16,056 $46,449 $309,400
51 West Covina 105,808 $85,626 $578,800
52 San Gabriel 40,108 $70,892 $712,400
53 Norco 27,021 $106,370 $559,100
54 La Verne 32,346 $93,473 $602,000
55 Buena Park 82,228 $84,680 $608,800
56 Costa Mesa 112,958 $90,370 $807,000
57 Glendora 51,087 $99,153 $637,500
58 Alhambra 84,509 $66,593 $630,200
59 Lomita 20,212 $76,090 $618,700
60 Orange 139,322 $96,605 $680,300
61 Seal Beach 24,268 $72,596 $417,700
62 Tustin 80,815 $88,386 $693,000
63 San Dimas 33,812 $90,234 $604,600
64 San Juan Capistrano 35,976 $103,922 $760,400
65 Chino Hills 82,800 $104,661 $642,500
66 Fountain Valley 56,118 $89,924 $777,200
67 La Mirada 48,260 $92,493 $606,200
68 Irvine 272,694 $108,318 $861,700
69 Lakewood 79,676 $96,487 $595,200
70 Claremont 35,610 $101,080 $688,600
71 Lake Forest 84,666 $112,988 $682,700
72 Brea 44,182 $100,969 $687,700
73 Laguna Hills 31,613 $102,358 $744,800
74 Placentia 52,049 $100,707 $653,400
75 Huntington Beach 199,778 $97,469 $803,400
76 Arcadia 57,053 $95,736 $1,136,700
77 Diamond Bar 55,870 $100,723 $690,500
78 Walnut 29,764 $108,264 $806,900
79 Torrance 144,430 $94,781 $796,800
80 Laguna Niguel 65,048 $119,608 $863,600
81 Cypress 49,137 $102,005 $665,100
82 Laguna Beach 22,991 $128,099 $1,874,400
83 Eastvale 65,766 $127,881 $596,200
84 El Cerrito 25,280 $108,294 $858,000
85 Cerritos 49,388 $109,229 $716,000
86 La Habra Heights 5,318 $163,750 $916,500
87 San Clemente 64,929 $108,183 $931,400
88 Dana Point 33,782 $105,250 $923,100
89 Rancho Santa Margarita 48,280 $125,329 $679,500
90 Rolling Hills Estates 8,025 $149,632 $1,362,900
91 Aliso Viejo 50,385 $118,540 $656,600
92 Villa Park 5,883 $164,476 $1,238,800
93 Mission Viejo 95,638 $121,299 $732,100
94 La Palma 15,657 $108,363 $686,800
95 San Marino 13,020 $164,423 $2,000,001
96 Rancho Palos Verdes 41,635 $146,163 $1,209,200
97 Yorba Linda 68,103 $133,088 $862,900
98 Newport Beach 86,694 $133,849 $1,976,400
99 Palos Verdes Estates 13,359 $197,826 $1,935,900
100 Redondo Beach 66,663 $116,832 $974,200
Download The Entire Santa Ana Worst Suburbs Ranking Data

How Is Your Town In ?

Editor's Note: This article is an opinion based on facts and is meant as infotainment. Don't freak out we updated this article for 2022. This is our ninth time ranking the worst suburbs around Santa Ana.
 Worst