Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 27,936, settled in 1893.
Lemon Grove grades C overall, 432nd of 841 graded towns in California, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 87% of U.S. towns. On the other side, homes are expensive, about $758K for a typical one and 7.1 times the San Diego metro’s $106K median household income. On hazard risk, just 75 of California’s 1,064 towns do better. Lemon Grove’s January low is 45°F, above both California’s towns (40°F) and U.S. towns (22°F). Lemon Grove's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 92% of U.S. towns.
Where Lemon Grove beats most towns.
Where Lemon Grove’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Lemon Grove is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 19,348 in 1960, 27,627 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2008 and 5 maps from 1944 on.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Lemon Grove. Close and well known come first.
Big draw15 mi LandmarkMexico–United States border wall
Big draw6 mi Stadium & arenaSnapdragon Stadium
7 mi Stadium & arenaPetco Park
7 mi Zoo & aquariumSan Diego Zoo4.0M visitors a year
6 mi Park & preserveBalboa Park
11 mi Theme parkSeaWorld San Diego4.0M visitors a yearMexico–United States border wall: Földhegy, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Snapdragon Stadium: Terrible Tim, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Petco Park: Mds08011, CC BY 4.0 · San Diego Zoo: en:User:Cburnett, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Balboa Park: Antoine Taveneaux, CC BY-SA 3.0 · SeaWorld San Diego: ZooFari, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Lemon Grove, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Lemon Grove.
Lemon Grove carries less natural-hazard risk than nearly all of California (mostly inland flooding), has milder winter nights than nearly all U.S. towns and has seen reported crime fall by about half.
Most working residents leave Lemon Grove for work: only 4% work in town. Jobs based in Lemon Grove grew to 6,606 in 2023, 1,279 more than in 2013. Lemon Grove’s average trip to work is 29 minutes.
| Lemon Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 29 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 4% | 6.6% | 8% |
| Median household income | $88,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Lemon Grove school district. One of its 7 schools is below, with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lemon Grove Academy for the Sciences and HumanitiesLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 516 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Reported crimes fell from 576 to 304 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The violent crime rate in Lemon Grove is 3.4 per 1,000 residents. Within California, it does better than 53% of towns. The property crime rate in Lemon Grove is 7.5 per 1,000 residents.
| Lemon Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3.4 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 7.5 per 1,000 residents | 13.4 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
January nights average 44.5°, milder than in 97% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 81.9°.
Lemon Grove has warm winters and pleasant summers, with very little rain. Snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
| Lemon Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 1.0 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 0.8% | 4.3% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lemon Grove Park | 0.4 mi | 6 |
| 2. Berry Street Park | 0.3 mi | 6 |
| 3. Dan Kunkel Park | 0.1 mi | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Lemon Grove beats the California average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 5. 38% of adults feel lonely in Lemon Grove.
| Lemon Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 36% | 33% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 16% | 14% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 73% | 72% | 79% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 29% | 35% |
| What stands out | Lemon Grove | CA |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 13% | 10.6% |
| More adults facing housing insecurity | 18.2% | 14.9% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 8.8% | 7.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk lower than 92% of California towns, with expected losses of about $158 per resident a year; that rating is what its B− for hazard risk is built on.
Since 2014, 4 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Lemon Grove.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
53% of Lemon Grove households own their home. The typical Lemon Grove home is worth about $758,000, up 0.6% in a year, close to the California typical home.
| Lemon Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 53% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,893 a month | $1,898 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
28 within 15 miles of the center of Lemon Grove
About 7 of every 100 Lemon Grove residents are enrolled in college, about the same as California.
3 notable people were born in Lemon Grove.
City in California, United States
Lemon Grove is a city in San Diego County, California, United States. The population was 27,627 at the 2020 census, up from 25,320 at the 2010 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Lemon Grove.
All 4 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its C; Spring Valley (C) is closest.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lemon Grove | #432 | C | D | C | B− | B |
| San Diego | #249 | C+ | D− | C− | B+ | A |
| Spring Valley | #348 | C | D− | — | B− | B+ |
| La Mesa | #277 | C+ | D− | C | B | A− |
| La Presa | #283 | C+ | D | — | B | B |
Spring Valley and La Presa report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Lemon Grove with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Lemon Grove grades C overall, better than 26% of U.S. towns and #432 of 841 in California. It grades B for health, C for safety and B− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Within California, it does better than 53% of towns.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
3 notable people were born here, including Conan Gray and Boyd Rice.
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