Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 41,705, settled in 1887.
Homes are expensive, about $1.1 million for a typical one and 11.7 times the Los Angeles metro’s $96K median household income. Overall it grades B−, 205th of 841 graded towns in California. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 84% of the country and the median household earns $129K. Its weakest subject is hazard risk: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 92% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top. Altadena’s typical home value is $1,126,000, against $709,000 in California’s towns and $332,000 across U.S. towns. Altadena has 13 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Mount Lowe Railway and Zane Grey Estate. Altadena is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 86% of U.S. towns.
Where Altadena beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Census counts: 40,568 in 1960, 42,846 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1887 and 8 maps from 1896 on.
13 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Altadena is from typical.
Its grades run from A for walkability (better than 86% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 1%), so the B− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Altadena. Close and well known come first.
Big draw14 mi LandmarkHollywood Walk of Fame10.0M visitors a year
Big draw20 mi Stadium & arenaSoFi Stadium
Big draw15 mi MuseumLucas Museum of Narrative Art
Big draw29 mi Theme parkDisneyland17.3M visitors a year
Big draw15 mi Stadium & arenaLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Big draw11 mi LandmarkHollywood SignHollywood Walk of Fame: BenSherman, Public domain · SoFi Stadium: Thank You (21 Millions+) views, CC BY 2.0 · Lucas Museum of Narrative Art: Kriddl, CC0 · Disneyland: HarshLight from San Jose, CA, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum: CanonStarGal, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hollywood Sign: Thomas Wolf, www.foto-tw.de, CC BY-SA 3.0
Altadena is unincorporated, so Los Angeles County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Altadena.
Altadena has milder winter nights than nearly all U.S. towns and has less tooth loss than most of California, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of California.
14 miles of trail in 14 parks and preserves. The trail density in Altadena is 1.7 miles per square mile. The biggest park or preserve is Angeles National Forest, at 382 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. San Gabriel Mountains National Monument | 4.3 mi | 377 |
| 2. Rubio Canyon | 1.7 mi | 40 |
| 3. The Cobb Estate | 1.2 mi | 39 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Pasadena Unified school district.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mary W. Jackson STEAM Multilingual Magnet ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 658 | – |
| Pasadena Waldorf School PrivateLargest high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 247 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Since 1978, 14 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Altadena.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
At 11.7 years of the Los Angeles metro’s $96K median household income, the typical home (about $1.13M) costs more against local pay than in 85% of California towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living. The typical value, about $1.13M, is 15% below its December 2024 peak.
Altadena’s median rent is $2,355 a month. Typical home values fell 5.4% in the year to September 2026. The typical Altadena home is worth about $1,126,000, down 5.4% in a year, 48% above the California typical home.
| Altadena | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,355 a month | $1,895 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 61% | 55% | 48% |
| Households that own their home | 77% | 64% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its widest gap with California is tooth loss: 5.9% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 10.6% statewide. Against the 4,682 U.S. towns with household incomes like Altadena’s, it is healthier than 56%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
25% of Altadena adults have obesity. Altadena beats the California average on 16 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 14% of Altadena adults report frequent mental distress.
| Altadena | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 29% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 17% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 8.7% | 11% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 22% | 23% |
| What stands out | Altadena | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 5.9% | 10.6% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.5% | 10.6% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 7.9% | 6.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Jobs based here grew from 4,470 in 2013 to 6,046. 25.4% of workers work from home, against 17.2% across California.
Most working residents leave Altadena for work: only 5% work in town. 25% of workers work from home in Altadena. Jobs based in Altadena grew to 6,046 in 2023, 1,576 more than in 2013.
| Altadena | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 25% | 14% | 11% |
| Median household income | $129,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 7.9% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.8% | 6.6% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
January nights average 45.3°, milder than in 97% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 89°.
Altadena has warm winters and warm summers, with very little rain. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Altadena | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 45°F | 40°F | 22°F |
| July high | 89°F | 89°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
48 within 15 miles of the center of Altadena
About 5 of every 100 Altadena residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
Where Altadena’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
13 places in Altadena on the National Register of Historic Places.
22 notable people were born in Altadena.
Unincorporated community in California, United States
Altadena (AL-tə-DEE-nə) is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in the San Gabriel Valley and the Verdugos regions of Los Angeles County, California. Directly north of Pasadena, it is located approximately 14 miles (23 km) from Downtown Los Angeles. Its population was 42,846 at the 2020 census, up slightly from a 2010 figure of 42,777. In early 2025, the community was severely impacted by the Eaton Fire.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with Altadena.
Altadena reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Altadena with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Altadena grades B− overall, better than 49% of U.S. towns and #205 of 841 in California. It grades A− for health and B for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D−.
22 notable people were born here, including Jon Postel and Marni Nixon.
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