I’m a big fan of this analysis of the places in the US with the most pleasant weather. It looks good and it’s fun to play with, but its conclusion isn’t surprising: Los Angeles has the best weather in the country.
I already know that, which is one of the many reasons I live in LA, but it’s a big city and its denizens love to argue about the merits of their respective neighborhoods. So where in LA has the best weather?
I decided to focus on the daily high temperature. I don’t care if it gets cold at night and drags down the average (in fact I prefer it). For me, the perfect day is between 70F and 80F with no rain — ideal bike-riding weather. But when I asked a friend to define her range, she said 72F – 95F! I was stunned at how different our answers were. (She explained that her perfect day involves a swimming pool.)
I realized that not everyone hates sweating as much as I do (which is why 1.8 million people live in the Valley) and trying to pick a single perfect temperature range is a fool’s errand. So I made this map interactive. Just use the slider to pick your ideal high temp range and click Refresh Map. It will analyze data from 160 weather stations in LA County and show you the 5 best areas where you should live (green pins), the 5 worst (red pins), and the rest (gray). Hover your mouse over a pin to see how many perfect days your new neighborhood had last year.
But don’t fret if you’re not living in your ideal neighborhood. Regardless of weather, it’s always a perfect day when you’re on heroin: