Chula Vista Spanish for "beautiful view" is the second largest city in the metropolitan area of San Diego, the seventh largest city in Southern California, California's fourteenth largest city and the 76th largest city in the United States. As of 2018, the total population is 271,651. Located roughly halfway 7.5 miles between the two downtowns of San Diego and Tijuana in the South Bay, the city is at the center of one of America's richest economic and cultural diverse areas. Chula Vista is so named for its scenic location between the San Diego Bay and the foothills of the coastal mountains.