City comparison
Indio, CA is about 70 miles (100 km) from San Bernardino, CA in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 80 miles, or about 1 h 30 min behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Indio, CA to San Bernardino, CA takes about 8 min, covering roughly 70 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
San Bernardino has a population of 221,041, vs 89,616 in Indio — about 2.5× larger by population. By land area, San Bernardino covers about 62 sq mi vs 33 sq mi for Indio.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Indio | San Bernardino | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,344/mo | $1,319/mo | 1.9% higher in Indio |
| Median home value | $373,200 | $347,100 | 7.5% higher in Indio |
| Median household income | $68,436 | $61,323 | 11.6% higher in Indio |
| Groceries index | 101.7 | 100.5 | 1.1% higher in Indio |
| Utilities index | 146.5 | 143.3 | 2.2% higher in Indio |
| Transportation index | 101.6 | 101.1 | ≈ equal (Indio slightly higher) |
| Healthcare index | 101.5 | 102.0 | ≈ equal (San Bernardino slightly higher) |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Indio, you'd need $99,476 in San Bernardino to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
San Bernardino, CA is about 0.5% cheaper overall than Indio, CA, based on our cost-of-living index. If you earn $80,000 in Indio, you'd need about $79,581 in San Bernardino to keep the same standard of living.