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Bellflower vs Downey

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: trails (+80% in Downey) and homeowners (+11.8 pts renters in Bellflower).

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Bellflower, CAKnown for its schoolsCalifornia · 76,819 people
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Downey, CAHometown of 64 notable peopleCalifornia · 110,939 people
Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

The biggest differences

Where they differ most

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $470 more a month in Downey

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Bellflower$4,620/mo
Typical home $798K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.66% · or rent about $1,830/mo · Housing →
Downey$5,100/mo
Typical home $879K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.67% · or rent about $1,937/mo · Housing →

The difference: $470 a month, about $5,700 a year, between Downey and Bellflower.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Downey places higher on 11 of 20 CA lists

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every California ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Where they are

Bellflower and Downey share a border

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

BellflowerDowneyBellflowerDowney
Bellflower ↔ Downey3.5 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
907 Bellflower residents work in Downey (2.8% of its workers)
Work & commute in Bellflower →
Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
BellflowerDowney
Snow a year0″0″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)87th83rd
Outdoors & history
BellflowerDowney
Trails7 mi13 mi
Conserved land2.9%4.4%
Settled19571873
National Register places—2
Archive photos224
Famous people born here5464
Community
BellflowerDowney
Library hours a week40 hrs54 hrs
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

BellflowerDowney
People
Population 76,819Lowest 110,939Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +3.4%Highest CA: +6.1% +2.3%Lowest CA: +6.1%
Median age 36±1.1Lowest 5% below CA 37.7±1.2Highest about the CA average
Downey and Bellflower are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 23.1%±1.4Highest CA: 22% 21.3%±1.2Lowest CA: 22%
Bellflower and Downey are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 12.5%±1Lowest CA: 15.7% 14.2%±0.9Highest CA: 15.7%
Downey and Bellflower are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 21.6%Lowest CA: 37.1% 26.1%Highest CA: 37.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 8.2%±0.9Lowest CA: 7.6% 8.3%±0.7Highest CA: 7.6%
Downey and Bellflower are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $78,722±$4kLowest 21% below CA $90,699±$4kHighest 8% below CA
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $705,700±$21kLowest 4% below CA $796,600±$15kHighest 8% above CA
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,830±$40Lowest 10% below CA $1,937±$41Highest 5% below CA
Property taxmedian, yearly $4,666Lowest 9% below CA $5,323Highest 4% above CA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 57.9%±4.3 CA: 55.3% 57.9%±4.2 CA: 55.3%
Below poverty line 13.3%Highest CA: 12% 9%Lowest CA: 12%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 39.3%Lowest CA: 55.9% 51.1%Highest CA: 55.9%
Typical home builtmedian year 1966Highest 10 yrs older than CA 1959Lowest 17 yrs older than CA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 29 minLowest about the CA average 31 minHighest 8% above CA
Work from home 10.1%±1.7Highest CA: 17.2% 9.2%±1.1Lowest CA: 17.2%
Bellflower and Downey are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 4.7%Lowest 8.7%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 11.8 miHighest 10.8 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.52Lowest 0.88Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Los Angeles (18%)Los Angeles (22%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 3% work in DowneyFew work in Bellflower
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 2.9%Lowest 4.4%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 7.0 miLowest 12.6 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 1.1 miHighest 1.0 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 7Lowest 13Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 100Lowest 129Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #38 of 574 in CA—
School district California Advancing Pathways Students in LA County ROC/P · Bellflower UnifiedLos Angeles County ROP · Downey Unified
High school in town Bellflower HighDowney High
Students per teacherat that high school 20.0Lowest 23.9Highest
California average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Bellflower neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Bellflower’s Town Square.

Downey neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Downey’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Bordering Bellflower

Towns like Bellflower

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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