How Do I Find A Reasonably Priced Hotel In San Diego?

It's hard from outside the area.  San Diego has some of the most expensive hotel space in the USA.

That said, if you aren't too picky, the easiest thing to do is to find a room in one of the budget chain motels near one of the freeways (motorways).  The rooms will be clean and basic, but on the small side and perhaps a little noisy (from the freeway). The price will still not be great, but it will be as good as you are going to get for a clean basic room in SD. Chains to consider include Motel 6, Budget Inn and Days Inn.

There are plenty of still cheaper hotels in San Diego,  It's just that the quality of what you get won't be reliable, and these aren't the sorts of places that take bookings on the Internet.  Fine if you want to risk bedbugs, fleas, cigarrette smells and dodgy neighbours.

Whenever I travel I search the Internet for possible hotels to stay in and compare prices listed in the tourist information for a particular city and its surrounding area. Often motels and hotels just outside the main area are cheaper than those in the centre.