Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Banning grades D− overall, 799th among California's 841 graded towns, mostly because of schools and health. Its public schools trail 79% of California towns on state tests and graduation. CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 79% of the country. What it does well: it has 13 miles of trail. Banning’s July high is 96°F, above both the California town median (89°F) and the median of U.S. towns (85°F). FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 99% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top. Banning's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 93% of U.S. towns.
Where Banning beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Where Banning’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Banning is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 2,752 in 1930, 29,505 in 2020. The archive holds 21 old photos and papers going back to 1925 and 5 maps from 1942 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Banning, and how to reach them.
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 Banning.
Banning has a longer frost-free season than nearly all U.S. towns and has seen reported crime fall by about half.
Since 1995, 2 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Banning.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its public schools are run by the Banning Unified school district. Two of its 11 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Banning High, with 1,145 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicolet MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 966 | – |
| Banning HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,145 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
The typical Banning home is worth about $410,000, down 0.7% in a year, 46% below the California typical home. The median rent in Banning is $1,650 a month.
| Banning | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,650 a month | $1,898 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 70% | 64% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
42% of Banning adults have high blood pressure. Banning beats the California average on 4 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 20. 16% of Banning adults have diabetes.
| Banning | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 16% | 16% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 22% | 19% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 31% | 35% |
| What stands out | Banning | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 11.4% | 15.3% |
| More adults screened for colon cancer | 62.4% | 57.5% |
| More adults with heart disease | 9.2% | 5.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Most working residents leave Banning for work: only 10% work in town. 19% of residents live below the poverty line in Banning. Jobs based in Banning grew to 4,792 in 2023, 483 more than in 2013.
| Banning | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 19% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $62,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 8.3% | 14% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Reported crimes fell from 686 to 348 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Banning’s property crime rate is 7.9 per 1,000 residents. Within California, it does better than 56% of towns.
| Banning | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 7.9 per 1,000 residents | 13.4 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.9 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The San Jacinto weather station, 11 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 315 days, longer than in 96% of U.S. towns. The San Jacinto weather station, 11 miles away, records that about 120 days a year reach 90°, more than in 98% of U.S. towns.
Banning has mild winters and hot summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 96°, January nights drop to 40° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The biggest park or preserve is San Bernardino National Forest, at 1,184 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. San Bernardino National Forest | 0.7 mi | 1,184 |
| 2. Gilman Ranch Historic Park | 0.6 mi | 44 |
| 3. Roosevelt Williams Park | 0.4 mi | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Banning. Close and well known come first.
Big draw25 mi National ParkJoshua Tree National Park2.9M visitors a year
11 mi MountainSan Gorgonio Mountain
16 mi MountainSan Jacinto Peak
21 mi LakeBig Bear Lake
34 mi Stadium & arenaAcrisure Arena
39 mi Stadium & arenaToyota ArenaJoshua Tree National Park: Sergiy Galyonkin, CC BY-SA 4.0 · San Gorgonio Mountain: Doc Searls, CC BY-SA 2.0 · San Jacinto Peak: Wattewyl, CC BY 3.0 · Big Bear Lake: H.G. Judd, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Acrisure Arena: TheAHL, CC BY 2.0 · Toyota Arena: jondoeforty1, CC BY 2.0
2 within 15 miles of the center of Banning
About 4 of every 100 Banning residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
6 notable people were born in Banning.
City in California, United States
Banning is a city in the Inland Empire region of Riverside County, California, United States. Its population was 29,505 as of the 2020 census, down from 29,603 at the 2010 census. It is situated in the San Gorgonio Pass, also known as Banning Pass. It is named for Phineas Banning, stagecoach line owner and the "Father of the Port of Los Angeles." Banning shares geographic and regional features with its western neighbor, the city of Beaumont. Banning and Beaumont have been rapidly growing in size and population since the 1990s. Both cities are about 80 miles east of downtown Los Angeles and 30 miles west of Palm Springs, both connected by freeway and railroad.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Banning.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Banning | #799 | D− | C− | C | C− | C− |
| Cherry Valley | #501 | C− | C | — | B | B− |
| Beaumont | #388 | C | D− | B− | B | B− |
| Cabazon | — | — | C+ | — | C− | C− |
Cabazon has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Cherry Valley and Cabazon report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Banning with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Banning grades D− overall, in the bottom 2% of U.S. towns and #799 of 841 in California. It grades C− for health, C for safety and C− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Within California, it does better than 56% of towns.
Yes. That is 4.6 years of the area's median household income ($89,662 across the Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
6 notable people were born here, including John Moffet and Patricia Nelson Limerick.
