Cheapest Pasadena and San Gabriel Valley Cities to Rent in 2026

Last updated: October 29, 2026. By the Apartments Club Editorial Team.

Pasadena and the San Gabriel Valley give you some of LA County’s best food, mountain views and the Metro A Line, often for less than central LA. Zillow’s September 2026 data shows typical rents from about $2,451 in El Monte to about $3,412 in Arcadia. Pasadena itself comes in at about $3,010.

This is part six of our Cheapest LA Neighborhoods to Rent series. Earlier parts covered the cheapest City of LA ZIPs, the San Fernando Valley and the areas around Downtown.

About the numbers: every rent figure in this article comes from the Zillow Observed Rent Index (ZORI), at the ZIP-code level for City of LA areas and the city level for separate cities, all homes plus multifamily, smoothed, for September 2026 (the latest month published when we wrote this), compared with September 2025. ZORI measures the typical asking rent for listed units in the middle of the market (roughly the 35th to 65th percentile), so it covers all unit sizes together. It is not a per-bedroom figure, and you will find listings above and below it. ZIP codes don’t line up exactly with neighborhood borders, so read each ZIP as an approximation of the area named next to it.

Pasadena and San Gabriel Valley cities ranked by typical rent

Area	ZIP / level	Typical rent, Sep 2026	Change vs Sep 2025
El Monte	city-wide	$2,451	+1.4%
Azusa	city-wide	$2,532	+1.9%
West Covina	city-wide	$2,552	+1.6%
Covina	city-wide	$2,598	+3.1%
Monterey Park	city-wide	$2,638	+1.6%
Alhambra	city-wide	$2,645	+0.1%
San Gabriel	city-wide	$2,706	+3.0%
Rosemead	city-wide	$2,755	+0.0%
Duarte	city-wide	$2,779	-1.3%
Monrovia	city-wide	$2,822	-0.6%
Sierra Madre	city-wide	$2,850	+2.2%
Glendora	city-wide	$2,950	+0.9%
Pasadena	city-wide	$3,010	+1.4%
Temple City	city-wide	$3,298	-0.8%
Arcadia	city-wide	$3,412	+2.2%

Source: Zillow ZORI (ZIP and city level), September 2026 vs September 2025.

Pasadena: pricier, but with renter protections

Pasadena is the region’s best-known city, with Old Pasadena, Caltech and the A Line. It’s a separate city that adopted its own rent stabilization charter amendment (Measure H) in 2022. Check the current rules with the City of Pasadena. Our Pasadena guide and the AMLI Old Pasadena profile have more.

Alhambra, Monterey Park, San Gabriel, Rosemead

The western SGV cities are famous for their dining along Valley Boulevard and Garfield Avenue, and they’re close to Downtown LA via the I-10. Their typical rents sit below Pasadena’s.

El Monte, Azusa, the Covinas: the most affordable

Farther east, El Monte, Azusa, Covina and West Covina are among the cheapest options in the table. El Monte has a major bus station, and Azusa and the foothill cities are on the A Line’s eastern extension. Check Metro for current service and stations.

Arcadia, Temple City and the foothills

Arcadia and Temple City are at the higher end, partly because of their schools and partly because their housing is more single-family. Monrovia, Duarte and Sierra Madre sit in the middle, with foothill access and small downtowns.

City rules differ. Separate cities like Santa Monica, Culver City, Pasadena and others have their own rental rules. Some have local rent control or just-cause ordinances, and some rely only on California’s statewide AB 1482 cap. Check the city’s housing department website for any unit you’re considering. The City of LA’s RSO applies only inside LA city limits.

How we picked the areas

We included every area in this part of the county that Zillow tracks and that has enough rental listings to publish a typical-rent figure. Inside the City of Los Angeles, we used ZIP codes so neighborhoods show up separately. For separate cities, we used Zillow’s city-level figure, which blends all of that city’s ZIPs. A few smaller places don’t appear because Zillow doesn’t publish a reliable figure for them. Rents change every month, and we’ll update this table as new data comes out.

Tips for renting in the SGV

• Summer heat: the SGV gets hot, so ask about air conditioning and typical utility bills.
• Transit: living near an A Line station makes a commute to Downtown possible without a car.
• Budget: start with our rent affordability guide and the calculator.

Frequently asked questions

How often is this rent data updated?

Zillow publishes ZORI once a month, usually around the middle of the month, covering the previous month. We plan to refresh the tables in this series when new data comes out. You can always download the raw files from Zillow Research yourself.

Why does my listing search show higher prices than the table?

Listing sites usually sort by newest or featured, and newer, larger and renovated units get the most exposure. ZORI is a middle-of-the-market measure across all unit sizes, so a typical studio will often cost less than the figure shown and a typical two-bedroom more. Use the table to compare areas, not to predict the rent on any one apartment.

Is a rent-stabilized apartment always cheaper?

Not on day one. Under the RSO, a landlord can generally set the rent at market rate when a new tenant moves in. The benefit is that annual increases afterward are limited to the amount the city sets each year. The LA Housing Department publishes the current allowable increase. Over a multi-year stay, that limit can be worth more than a lower starting rent somewhere else.

Are these areas safe?

Safety varies block by block, so we don’t rate whole ZIP codes. Visit at night and on weekends, talk to current tenants if you can, and check the LAPD’s official crime mapping and statistics for the exact address.

Before you sign: how to make a cheaper neighborhood actually cheaper

A lower rent only helps if the rest of the deal holds up. Some checks to run on any listing in these ZIPs:

• Find out if the unit is rent-stabilized. In the City of Los Angeles, the Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO) generally covers rental units built on or before October 1, 1978. These areas have plenty of older buildings, so an RSO unit is common, and that limits how much your rent can go up each year. You can look up any address on the LA Housing Department site. Newer buildings may still fall under California’s statewide cap (AB 1482).
• Know the deposit rules. Since July 1, 2024, California’s AB 12 caps most security deposits at one month’s rent. Our guide on getting your security deposit back covers what happens when you move out.
• Budget for the full monthly cost. Add parking, utilities and renters insurance, then run the total through our rent affordability calculator. Our guide to how much rent you can afford explains the 30% rule and where it falls short.
• Watch for scams. Below-market listings attract fake ones. Read how to spot a rental scam before you send money to anyone.
• Get your application ready early. Good-value units in these ZIPs go fast. Our rental application tips cover the documents landlords ask for.

Looking, or renting one out?

Our free Apartments Club rentals board is new. Landlords and property managers in these neighborhoods can list a rental for free. If you’re still deciding where to live, start with our LA neighborhood guides.

Featured image: Garfield Avenue, Alhambra, California (14331338867).jpg by Ken Lund, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.

Sources: Zillow Observed Rent Index (ZORI), as cited in the text above. Figures reflect the data release noted where they appear; listings and prices change. How we source and update data: Editorial Standards & Sources.