One of my good friends lives in Sacramento and he hates it. It has none of what makes California amazing.. the weather is too hot, there’s no beaches, no mountains, not really a good urban center either. And crime.
I lived in SoCal for 30+ year and now live in a Sacramento suburb. I previously had a pretty snobby view of Sacramento, but after living here for nine years I think it's the most underrated city in California. The restaurants aren't up to par with the bigger CA cities and it does get hot in the summer, but overall it's a great location.
One of the big benefits is that there are so many options for day trips. Visiting Lake Tahoe and the surrounding mountains is an easy day trip. Visiting SF or the beaches is doable in a day. Napa is close. For hikers, runners, and bikers there are tons of bikes paths and hiking trails all over the Sacramento region. And there are a lot of neat places in the nearby Sierra foothills.
To summarize: If you prioritize nightlife, music, and food, Sacramento might not be the best fit, but if you prioritize affordability (relatively speaking) and getting outside, it's hard to beat the Sacramento area.
That reminds me of Connecticut: there’s a little cool stuff in it, but the big thing people love to tell you is how close it is to other, better places like New York, Boston, and Vermont.
I've lived there and it's amazing, so many cool things, it's right on one of the largest navigable river deltas in the world, the farm fresh food is amazing, the art and music scenes are pretty great, on and on....
