22. Santa Rosa, California
Population: 495,078
Average annual salary: $50,540
Overall rank on best places to live list: 52
Just 55 miles north of San Francisco sits Santa Rosa, one of Sonoma County's premier wine-country towns. According to US News' local expert, Santa Rosa is an originator of the farm-to-table movement and "a haven for bicyclists, who train on its rural western roads and visit en masse for two major cycling events: the Amgen Tour of California and the Levi's GranFondo."
The job market in Santa Rosa is powered by tourism: 9% of residents work in the industry, mainly at local farms, wineries, and brewpubs.