Cold semi-arid
Lake San Marcos, California
San Diego County, California · Population 5k · 581 ft elevation
Living in Lake San Marcos
Lake San Marcos has a cold semi-arid climate: pleasantly warm summers (July highs around 73°F) and very mild winters (January lows around 47°F).
Precipitation is very dry at about 11″ a year, and it essentially never sees snow.
Skies are exceptionally sunny (81% of possible sunshine). Summers get sticky, with about 25 muggy days a year.
Air quality is poor: a median AQI of 67, with about 33 unhealthy-air days in the latest year.
There is plenty to explore outdoors around Lake San Marcos: about 14% of the land within 30 miles is public (parks, national forest and the like), and the terrain rises and falls about 3,400 ft around town.
Lake San Marcos at a glance
- Population
- 5k
- Elevation
- 581 ft
- Average daily high
- 68°F58th percentile
- Average daily low
- 55°F83th percentile
- Annual precipitation
- 11″4th percentile
- Annual snowfall
- 0″0th percentile
- Sunshine hours per year
- 3,585 hrs92th percentile
- Median AQI
- 6796th percentile
- Median home value
- $860k95th percentile
- Median rent
- $2,615/mo96th percentile
- Median household income
- $101k74th percentile
- Property tax rate
- 0.59%16th percentile
- Top state income-tax rate
- 13.3%
- Sales tax (state + local)
- 8.8%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.4%
- Homes with broadband
- 94%69th percentile
- Walkability index
- 13.890th percentile
- Average commute
- 22 min
- Math proficiency (8th grade)
- 48%56th percentile
- Reading proficiency (8th grade)
- 69%
- Overall natural-hazard risk
- 10093th percentile
- Outdoor access
- 8382th percentile
- Public land within 10 miles
- 3%
- Public land within 30 miles
- 14%
- Mountain relief within 30 miles
- 3,412 ft
Climate by month
| Month | High | Low | Precipitation | Snow | Sunshine |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 64°F | 47°F | 2.5″ | — | 247 hrs |
| Feb | 63°F | 48°F | 2.6″ | — | 233 hrs |
| Mar | 64°F | 50°F | 1.6″ | — | 291 hrs |
| Apr | 66°F | 53°F | 0.9″ | — | 310 hrs |
| May | 67°F | 57°F | 0.3″ | — | 327 hrs |
| Jun | 69°F | 60°F | 0.1″ | — | 335 hrs |
| Jul | 73°F | 63°F | 0.1″ | — | 371 hrs |
| Aug | 75°F | 65°F | 0.0″ | — | 368 hrs |
| Sep | 75°F | 63°F | 0.1″ | — | 322 hrs |
| Oct | 73°F | 58°F | 0.5″ | — | 288 hrs |
| Nov | 69°F | 51°F | 1.0″ | — | 256 hrs |
| Dec | 64°F | 47°F | 1.7″ | — | 236 hrs |
Near Lake San Marcos
- San Marcos, CA · 94k
- Carlsbad, CA · 115k
- Vista, CA · 99k
- Encinitas, CA · 62k
- Rancho Santa Fe, CA · 2.6k
- Escondido, CA · 150k
- Hidden Meadows, CA · 3.9k
- Oceanside, CA · 173k
Largest places in California
- Los Angeles, CA · 3.9M
- San Diego, CA · 1.4M
- San Jose, CA · 990k
- San Francisco, CA · 836k
- Fresno, CA · 544k
- Sacramento, CA · 525k
- Long Beach, CA · 458k
- Oakland, CA · 438k
Sources: NOAA climate normals, NASA POWER, EPA air quality, U.S. Census Bureau, FEMA, FBI, EPA walkability and EDFacts. Methodology