Delivery of first Airo trainset seen at Alta, July 2025, 2025
Alta’s story
155 years in pictures
The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 2025.
- 1871Alta is settled
AltaCA
A town of 656, settled in 1871.
Population
656
Census survey, 2020–24
Typical home
$449K
+0.8% in a year
Household income
$97K
median
Median age
46.9
years
Jobs based here
25
A commuter town
Is Alta a good place to live?
Alta’s average commute is 47 minutes, above both the California town median (28 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Alta has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Small town
656 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
Dutch FlatAlta
Getting set up
Moving to Alta: who provides what
Alta is unincorporated, so Placer County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerPG&E37.5¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
InternetProviders and speedsData pending · D4
Trash & county servicesPlacer CountyPlacer County provides services here
SchoolsAlta-Dutch Flat Union Elementary School DistrictPlacer Union High School District2 districts serve Alta; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
Register to voteOnlineIn California you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before).vote.govWho runs elections herePlacer County Registrar of VotersPlacer County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Aug 2023
ZIP codes95701, 9571495701 97% · 95714 3%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Alta.
Natural hazards
Natural hazards: very high risk in Alta, mostly avalanches
Alta’s risk rating from FEMA stands at 98 of 100, where California’s towns sit at 88 of 100 and U.S. towns at 44 of 100. 64% of the town’s expected losses from natural hazards come from avalanches, followed by wildfires at 29%.
98risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
AvalanchesWildfireInland flooding
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Schools
The schools Alta’s kids attend
Public schools: the Alta-Dutch Flat Union Elementary school district. Its one school is below. The town’s only public school teaches 99 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alta-Dutch Flat ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 99 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts
Housing
A larger share of households in Alta own their home than in the typical California or U.S. town
The typical Alta home is worth about $449,000, up 0.8% in a year, 41% below the California typical home.
$449KZillow home value
Typical home value
Alta$449K
California$762K
+0.8%
value change, 1 year
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Work & commute
With 0.1 jobs for every working resident, most of Alta’s workers commute out
Half the trips to work are shorter than 44 miles. 0.9% of Alta working residents work locally. The top destinations are Sacramento (12%), Grass Valley (5%) and Auburn (5%).
1%work in town
| Alta | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 0.9% | 6.6% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 7.3% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $97,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
In Alta1%
Sacramento12%
Grass Valley5%
Auburn5%
North Auburn4%
44 mi
median commute distance
25
jobs based in Alta
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Who lives here
Fewer children than California overall
Children under 18 are 11% of residents (22% statewide); people 65 and older are 21% of residents (16% statewide). The midpoint age in Alta is 46.9 years. 38% of adults 25 and older hold at least a bachelor’s degree, against 37% across California.
46.9median age · CA 37.9
| Alta | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 11% | 22% | 22% |
| Median age | 46.9 years | 39 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 38% | 29% | 29% |
AltaCaliforniaUnited States
Ages · share of residents
19%
Education · adults 25 and older
No diploma1%
High school18%
Some college36%
Associate’s7%
Bachelor’s24%
Graduate15%
Women and men · all residents
Somewhere between 25% and 69% women
The Census survey reached too few of Alta’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±22.3 points. Across California, 50.1% of residents are women.
| Alta | CA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 5.9% | 11.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 5.3% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 11.7% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.7% | 14.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 9.3% | 13.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 14.2% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 19.2% | 12.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 13.7% | 9.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.9% | 6.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 0.6% | 15.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 18% | 20.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 36% | 19.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7.3% | 7.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 23.6% | 22.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.5% | 14.4% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 700, single groups can be off by several points
Climate
Four seasons and pleasant summers in Alta
The range runs from 33° on a January night to 87° on a July afternoon, with about 15 inches of snow a winter.
15″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter33–50°
Spring40–62°
Summer56–84°
Fall45–69°
Nov 20
typical first frost
Apr 14
typical last frost
+0.7°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Health
How healthy Alta is
Just over one in ten adults worry about having enough food in Alta. Against the California average, Alta comes out ahead on 9 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 10. Among adults locally, 32% feel lonely and 16% report frequent physical distress.
| Alta | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 31% | 35% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 36% | 33% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 76% | 72% | 79% |
32 measures vs. California
9 better13 too close to call10 worse
| What stands out | Alta | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 5.4% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 10.1% | 14.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.8% | 6.4% |
Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital
13.3 mi away · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Outdoors
0% of Alta is conserved land
1.7 miles of trail. For Alta, the trail network density is 0.7 miles per square mile.
0%conserved
0%
conserved · 0 of 1,521 acres
1.7 mi
of trails · 0.7 per sq mi
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Alta
17pages on Alta
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Alta; the nearest are
Sierra CollegeCommunity college · Public · Rocklin36.8 mi$1,446 in-state tuitionCalifornia State University-SacramentoUniversity or college · Public · Sacramento56.4 mi$8,018 in-state tuition
About 1 of every 100 Alta residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
A commuter town
99% of working residents leave Alta for work
Where Alta’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
25jobs based in Alta
1%of working residents work in town
44 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Alta
Unincorporated community in California, United States
Alta (Spanish for "Upper") is a small unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Placer County, California, United States, about 30 miles (48 km) northeast of Auburn. The village is located off Interstate 80 and along the historical First transcontinental railroad. The ZIP code is 95701 and the area code 530. One of the few buildings other than private residences is the Alta-Dutch Flat Grammar School serving kindergarten through eighth grade students. The high school that serves Alta is named Colfax High School. Colfax High School is 11 miles southwest in the incorporated town of Colfax. The population of Alta was 615 at the 2020 census. A historical California place once…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 2.4 sq mi
- Elevation
- 3,743 ft
- ZIP code
- 95701
- Area code
- 530
Questions about Alta
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Alta, CA a good place to live?
Alta has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.