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Compare towns

Brawley vs El Centro

13 miles apart. The biggest differences: property tax bill (+40% in El Centro) and trails (+88% in El Centro).

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Brawley, CAHomes around $360KCalifornia · 27,283 people
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El Centro, CAHomes around $395KCalifornia · 44,240 people
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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.

BrawleyHomes around $360K
Housing$360K typical home53% below the CA typical home SchoolsBetter than 53%of CA districts Health78% of U.S. towns are healthieron CDC estimates All about Brawley →
El CentroHomes around $395K
Housing$395K typical home48% below the CA typical home Health77% of U.S. towns are healthieron CDC estimates Schools#190 for schools in CAof 574 towns All about El Centro →
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.

Property tax bill+40%
Tax bills are bigger in El Centro
El Centro $2,567Brawley $1,829
Trails+88%
El Centro has more miles of trail
El Centro 1.5 miBrawley 0.8 mi
Jobs per worker+62%
El Centro is more of a job hub
El Centro 1.05Brawley 0.65
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $250 more a month in El Centro

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.

Brawley$2,080/mo
Typical home $360K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.63% · or rent about $988/mo · Housing →
El Centro$2,330/mo
Typical home $395K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.79% · or rent about $1,052/mo · Housing →

The difference: $250 a month, about $3,000 a year, between El Centro and Brawley.

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

Brawley places higher on 14 of 24 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.

Safety
–BrawleyNot graded C+El CentroSafer than 38% of U.S. towns
Schools
B−BrawleyBetter than 53% of districts in the state BEl CentroBetter than 61% of districts in the state
Health
C−BrawleyHealthier than 22% of U.S. towns C−El CentroHealthier than 23% of U.S. towns
14Brawley
6El Centro

Lists won, of 24 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Most new homesHousing · 438 towns #87#305 Best schoolsSchools · 574 towns #456#190 Most remote workersWork · 801 towns #471#666 Highest graduation rateSchools · 720 towns #211#376 Rent easiest to affordCost of living · 422 towns #71#163 Most-used librariesLibraries · 117 towns #115#91 Most conserved landOutdoors · 777 towns #503#604 Lowest depressionHealth · 844 towns #288#184

Left end = #1 in California. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Brawley’s rankings →

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
BrawleyEl Centro
Snow a year0″0″
January low41°F43°F
July high108°F107°F
Growing season (days)335d363d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)91st89th
Outdoors & history
BrawleyEl Centro
Trails1 mi2 mi
Conserved land2.6%1.5%
Settled—1905
National Register places—1
Archive photos246
Famous people born here24—
Community
BrawleyEl Centro
Library hours a week20 hrs48 hrs
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined01

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.

Where they are

13 miles apart

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

BrawleyEl CentroBrawleyEl Centro
Brawley ↔ El Centro13 miles apart
Who commutes between them
1,418 Brawley residents work in El Centro (13.3% of its workers)
911 El Centro residents work in Brawley (5.1% of its workers)
Work & commute in Brawley →
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.

BrawleyEl Centro
People
Population 27,283Lowest 44,240Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +5.9%Highest CA: +6.1% +4%Lowest CA: +6.1%
Median age 30.6±1.4Lowest 19% below CA 31±1.2Highest 18% below CA
El Centro and Brawley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 30.3%±3.2 CA: 22% 30.3%±2.7 CA: 22%
Age 65+ 11.2%±1.7Lowest CA: 15.7% 14%±1.4Highest CA: 15.7%
El Centro and Brawley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 15.9%Highest CA: 37.1% 14.9%Lowest CA: 37.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 7.2%±1.5Highest CA: 7.6% 6%±1.1Lowest CA: 7.6%
Brawley and El Centro are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $59,311±$6kHighest 40% below CA $53,082±$6kLowest 46% below CA
Brawley and El Centro are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $290,700±$20kLowest 60% below CA $323,100±$12kHighest 56% below CA
Rentmedian gross, monthly $988±$62Lowest 51% below CA $1,052±$63Highest 48% below CA
El Centro and Brawley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $1,829Lowest 64% below CA $2,567Highest 50% below CA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 49%±8.9Lowest CA: 55.3% 54%±6Highest CA: 55.3%
El Centro and Brawley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 21.3%Lowest CA: 12% 21.6%Highest CA: 12%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 51.6%Highest CA: 55.9% 49.5%Lowest CA: 55.9%
Typical home builtmedian year 1985Highest 9 yrs newer than CA 1982Lowest 6 yrs newer than CA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 18 minLowest 37% below CA 22 minHighest 23% below CA
Work from home 11.1%±3.4Highest CA: 17.2% 5.9%±2.1Lowest CA: 17.2%
Brawley and El Centro are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 26.2%Lowest 34%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 13.8 miHighest 8.3 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.65Lowest 1.05Highest
Top workplaceoutside town El Centro (13%)Calexico (7%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 13% work in El Centro5% work in Brawley
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 2.6%Highest 1.5%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 0.8 miLowest 1.5 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.1 mi 0.1 mi
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 15Lowest 16Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 78.4Highest 68.2Lowest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #456 of 574 in CA#190 of 574 in CA
School district Brawley Elementary · Brawley Union HighImperial Valley ROP · Ballington Academy for the Arts and Sciences District
High school in town Brawley Union HighCentral Union High
Students per teacherat that high school 23.2Highest 20.9Lowest
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.

Brawley neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Brawley’s Town Square.

El Centro neighborsTown Square →
T Weaver · 5d

New to El Centro

1 neighbor in El Centro can answer.

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Towns like Brawley

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Reedley25,609 people · $335K homes
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Lemoore27,102 people · $328K homes
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Atwater32,162 people · $363K homes
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Dinuba25,475 people · $275K homes

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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