San Diego is an awesome city. Significantly cheaper than the Bay Area for sure. I visited for the first time a few years ago and was blown away... a truly underrated city people sometimes forget about. I only spent a week there but we are now looking at retiring in that area at some point. Some of the cities around SD are incredible - we love Temecula. Anyhow, best of luck with your move!

Where in California are you wanting to live? California is a huge state and the COL can vary tremendously depending on where you relocate. If you are looking at something like the Bay Area you are going to need to double, maybe triple, your current income to be comfortable. Everybody hears about how expensive it is out here, but the reality often doesn't hit them until they have made the move - which can often be too late.