City comparison
Long Beach, CA is about 375 miles (600 km) from San Francisco, CA in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 475 miles, or about 8 h 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 Long Beach, CA to San Francisco, CA takes about 46 min, covering roughly 375 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 Francisco has a population of 851,036, vs 462,293 in Long Beach — about 1.8× larger by population. By land area, Long Beach covers about 51 sq mi vs 47 sq mi for San Francisco.
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 | Long Beach | San Francisco | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,698/mo | $2,316/mo | 36.4% higher in San Francisco |
| Median home value | $709,700 | $1,348,700 | 90.0% higher in San Francisco |
| Median household income | $78,995 | $136,689 | 73.0% higher in San Francisco |
| Groceries index | 106.4 | 103.9 | 2.4% higher in Long Beach |
| Utilities index | 151.7 | 162.7 | 7.2% higher in San Francisco |
| Transportation index | 104.0 | 102.0 | 1.9% higher in Long Beach |
| Healthcare index | 104.3 | 100.2 | 4.2% higher in Long Beach |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Long Beach, you'd need $108,055 in San Francisco to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Long Beach, CA is about 7.5% cheaper overall than San Francisco, CA, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 16% higher in San Francisco than in Long Beach. If you earn $80,000 in Long Beach, you'd need about $86,444 in San Francisco to keep the same standard of living.