San Diego is the 8th largest city in the United States and the 2nd largest city in California. Nicknamed, 'America's Finest City', San Diego was recently named by Forbes Magazine as the 5th wealthiest city in the United States. The economic landscape of the city is driven by agriculture, manufacturing, computer sciences, defense related manufacturing, electronics, telecommunications, and ship-repair and construction. The city is also known as one of the leaders in the field of biotechnology due to the presence of the UCSD Medical Center.

Tourism is another avenue of San Diego's economy. Every year, millions of tourists visit the city and frequent sites such as the city's Gaslamp Quarter, Balboa Park and the Horton Plaza. Other sites include the SeaWorld San Diego, the San Diego Zoo, Legoland and the San Diego Animal Park. San Diego is also the venue for events such as Comic-Con, the Street Scene Music Festival and the Del Mar Fair.

Most of the city's popular museums are located in Balboa Park. These museums include the San Diego Museum of Art and the San Diego Museum of Man. The city is also home to educational institutions such as San Diego State University and the University of California, San Diego.