Metro area · California
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA metro area
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA is a metropolitan area of 2 counties in California, home to 4,769,007 residents. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA metro area has a quality-of-life score of 27 out of 100 (low), ranking #674 of 925 US metro and micro areas. Among metro and micro areas based in California it ranks #23 of 34. It ranks best on suicide rate (low), firearm deaths (low) and broadband subscriptions (high). It ranks worst on median Air Quality Index (high), days with unhealthy air (high) and high ozone days (high).
- Quality-of-life score
- #674 of 925 metro and micro areas
- California
- #23 of 34 in CA
- Population
- 4,769,007 (2025)
- Land area
- 27,277 mi²
- Density
- 174.8 /mi²
- CBSA code
- 40140
Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 69 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.
Scores by category
Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US metro and micro areas.
- Safety44#519/924
- Economy54#430/925
- Housing1#919/925
- Health69#290/925
- Healthcare50#465/923
- Environment1#907/917
- Education32#629/925
- Infrastructure67#306/925
- Community15#790/925
- Leisure & amenities27#680/925
Strengths · Weaknesses
Indicators where Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA metro area ranks highest and lowest among US metro and micro areas (score = percentile, 100 = best).
Strengths
- Suicide rate · low9.9 /100k96/100California 9.9 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties
- Firearm deaths · low7.2 /100k95/100California 6.7 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties
- Broadband subscriptions · high93.4%
- Comfortable days · high33.0%93/100California 34.8%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationAggregated from counties
- Median household income · high$89,662
- Adult smoking · low12.0%89/100California 12.6%United States 16.1%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAggregated from counties
Weaknesses
- Median Air Quality Index · high87
- Days with unhealthy air · high37.3%
- High ozone days · high104 days0/100California 38 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyAggregated from counties
- Average commute time · high33.2 min
- Severe housing problems · high24.9%2/100California 25.8%United States 16.8%2017-2021University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAggregated from counties
- Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · high9.7 µg/m³2/100California 9.4 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyAggregated from counties
Trends
The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.
- Drought exposureImproving
99% (2021) → 18% (Nov 2025–Oct 2026)
−80 pts5 yearsUS 40% → 43%
- Days with unhealthy airImproving
48.1% (2020) → 37.3% (2025)
−11 pts5 years
- Cost of buying a home todayWorsening
37.2% (Dec 2021) → 46.9% (Aug 2026)
+9.7 pts5 yearsUS 26.4% → 34.1%
- Homicide rateImproving
6.7 /100k (2021) → 3.7 /100k (May 2025–Apr 2026)
−44%5 yearsUS 7.8 /100k → 4.8 /100k
- Broadband subscriptionsImproving
85.6% (2015-2019) → 93.4% (2020-2024)
+7.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
- Median household incomeImproving
$65,121 (2015-2019) → $89,662 (2020-2024)
+38%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
What changed in five years
How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.
Metro and micro areas like Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA metro area five years ago that improved
The places whose measures looked most like those of Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA metro area in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.
Who lives here
Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).
Income
How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.
Homes
Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.
Getting to work
How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.
Jobs and pay
What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.
Local businesses
Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.
Federal contract spending
Federal grants & assistance
Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.
Counties in Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA
Whole counties, as the U.S. Office of Management and Budget delineates the area. Federal spending below is the exact sum of these counties.
Principal cities
The cities the area is named for.
Largest cities and towns
By population, for places with most of their residents in the area.
- Riverside319,069
- San Bernardino222,724
- Fontana214,169
- Moreno Valley211,666
- Ontario180,547
- Rancho Cucamonga175,411
- Corona159,670
- Victorville137,627
- Murrieta112,064
- Temecula111,167
- Menifee110,305
- Jurupa Valley107,011
- Rialto104,143
- Hesperia100,775
- Chino92,652
- Indio91,950
- Hemet91,326
- Perris80,511
- Upland79,257
- Chino Hills77,927
- Apple Valley75,473
- Redlands73,375
- Lake Elsinore72,461
- Eastvale70,633
Other metro and micro areas in California
Areas based in California, best score first.
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA56
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA83
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA73
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA65
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA87
- Fresno, CA17
- Bakersfield-Delano, CA5
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA77
- Stockton-Lodi, CA28
- Modesto, CA27
- Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA93
- Visalia, CA11
- Vallejo, CA61
- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA76
- Salinas, CA61
- Merced, CA4
- San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA85
- Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA89
- Chico, CA44
- Yuba City, CA21
- Redding, CA48
- El Centro, CA12
- Hanford-Corcoran, CA10
- Napa, CA87
Neighboring metro and micro areas
Places that share a border, best score first.
Similar metro and micro areas
Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).
- Modesto, CA27Alike on Price level, Foreign-born, Housing problems
- Stockton-Lodi, CA28Alike on PM2.5, Commute, Housing problems
- Yuba City, CA21Alike on Associations, Price level, January low
- Fresno, CA17Alike on Suicides, Housing problems, Firearm deaths
- Vallejo, CA61Alike on Price level, Rent / income, Rent burden
Data and sources
Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.
- Mapping Injury, Overdose, and ViolenceCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2026-10-01
- PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
- Daily county PM2.5 and ozone (EPA downscaler model)Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2022
- Care Compare: Hospital General Information and Timely and Effective CareCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services · release 2026-07-22
- Distance to airports and intercity railFederal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau · release 2025+amtrak-2026-04-23
- Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Return A master filesFederal Bureau of Investigation · release 2025
- Public Libraries SurveyInstitute of Museum and Library Services · release FY2024
- U.S. Drought Monitor county statisticsNational Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA · release 2026-10-06
- Fatality Analysis Reporting SystemNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration · release 2024
- nClimGrid-Daily county averagesNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · release 2025
- Regional Economic AccountsU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis · release 2024
- Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
- Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2026 Q1
- American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
- Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
- Business Formation StatisticsU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-10-01
- Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
- Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
- Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
- Alternative Fuels Data Center station locatorU.S. Department of Energy · release 2026-10
- Election Administration and Voting SurveyU.S. Election Assistance Commission · release 2024
- Air Quality Index Annual Summary by CountyU.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2025
- County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement
- Zillow Home Value Index, Observed Rent Index and affordabilityZillow Research · release 2026-08