Bodfish California guide sign, c. 2007
Bodfish’s story
134 years in pictures
Census counts: 1,379 in 1980, 2,008 in 2020. The archive holds 2 old photos and papers going back to 2007 and 2 maps from 1972 on.
- 1892Bodfish is settled
BodfishCA
A town of 1,694, settled in 1892.
1 bordering townMap →
Photo: David Jordan at English Wikipedia (Original text: David Jordan) · CC BY-SA 3.0
Population
1,694
Census survey, 2020–24
Typical home
$189K
+2% in a year
Household income
$40K
median
Median age
56.3
years
Jobs based here
58
A commuter town
Is Bodfish a good place to live?
Bodfish’s best subject grade is a B+ for cost of living; its weakest is a D− for incomes. 14% of the land in Bodfish is conserved, against 4.3% in California’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. The biggest park or preserve is Piute Cypress Instant Study Area, at 1,393 acres. Bodfish has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
A commuter town
97% of working residents leave Bodfish for work
Where Bodfish’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
58jobs based in Bodfish
3%of working residents work in town
38 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Bodfish grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Bodfish is from typical.
Jobs & income58 jobs based hereD−Open →Hazard riskwildfire tops the listD−Open →HealthLess healthy than 89% of U.S. towns; Kern Valley Healthcare District 6.2 miles awayDOpen →Cost of livingTypical home $189K, 2.7 years of the Bakersfield metro’s $70K median household incomeB+Open →SchoolsBehind 57% of California districts on tests and graduationC+Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 3.5 of 20; 15.3% of households have no car; 13.1% of workers walk, bike or ride transitB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
Climate–Open →Housing market$189K typical home, up 2% in a year–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 56.3; 15% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
Moving to Bodfish: who provides what
Bodfish is unincorporated, so Kern County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerSouthern California Edison31.5¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterErskine Creek Wc water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet2 providers99% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesKern CountyKern County provides services here
SchoolsKern High School DistrictKernville Union Elementary School District2 districts serve Bodfish; 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 hereKern County Clerk - Elections OfficeKern County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Sep 2025
ZIP code9320593205 100%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 Bodfish.
HousingCost of living grade B+
The median rent in Bodfish is lower than in most of California or the rest of the country
Over the 12 months to September 2026, the typical home gained 2% in value. 65% of households live in a home they own in Bodfish, where California’s towns sit at 64% and U.S. towns at 73%.
$189KZillow home value
| Bodfish | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $974 a month | $1,896 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 65% | 64% | 73% |
Typical home value
Bodfish$189K
California$762K
+2%
value change, 1 year
1
homes sold in May
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade D−
The biggest natural risk in Bodfish is wildfire, at a very high overall level
The natural-hazard score from FEMA for Bodfish comes to 99 of 100. One declared disaster, in 2023, has brought federal aid to Bodfish households. FEMA puts nearly two thirds of the town’s expected hazard losses down to wildfires, and 20% to inland flooding.
99risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
WildfireInland floodingEarthquakes
1
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
HealthD
A larger share of adults in Bodfish have diabetes than in the typical California or U.S. town
78% of Bodfish adults had a checkup this year. Among 848 California towns, just 9 have a higher share of adults who have high blood pressure than Bodfish. On the CDC’s 32 measures, Bodfish is ahead of California on 5 and behind on 19.
11%healthier than U.S. townsDHealth Grade
| Bodfish | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 12% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 14% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 45% | 31% | 35% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 22% | 19% |
32 measures vs. California
5 better8 too close to call19 worse
| What stands out | Bodfish | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 8% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults lacking emotional support | 24.5% | 28.6% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 26.4% | 10.6% |
Kern Valley Healthcare District
6.2 mi away · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D−
With only 0.1 jobs per working resident, most people in Bodfish work out of town
The top destinations are Lake Isabella (16%), Bakersfield (12%) and Los Angeles (5%). The share of residents in Bodfish who live below the poverty line: 32%. The median commute is under 38 miles. For Bodfish, the typical household income is $40,000.
3%work in town
| Bodfish | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 32% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $40,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 2.5% | 6.6% | 8% |
Where working residents work
In Bodfish3%
Lake Isabella16%
Bakersfield12%
Los Angeles5%
Kernville5%
38 mi
median commute distance
58
jobs based in Bodfish
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
B−
Walkability grade: more walkable than 50% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Climate
Expect four seasons and hot summers in Bodfish
July afternoons reach 93° and January nights drop to 35°.
93°summer high
Typical low → high °F
Winter35–56°
Spring43–68°
Summer61–90°
Fall49–75°
Nov 13
typical first frost
Apr 22
typical last frost
+1.8°
vs. the 20th-century average
93°
typical summer high
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
OutdoorsC
In Bodfish, 14.2% of the land is conserved
4.4 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. The trail density in Bodfish is 0.5 miles per square mile.
14.2%conserved
14.2%
conserved · 742 of 5,239 acres
4.4 mi
of trails · 0.5 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Piute Cypress Instant Study Area | 0.3 mi | 1,393 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Bodfish
17pages on Bodfish
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Bodfish; the nearest are
Bakersfield CollegeCommunity college · Public · Bakersfield29.7 mi$1,430 in-state tuitionCalifornia State University-BakersfieldUniversity or college · Public · Bakersfield38.1 mi$8,090 in-state tuitionPorterville CollegeCommunity college · Public · Porterville44.2 mi$1,438 in-state tuition
About 0 of every 100 Bodfish residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
About Bodfish
Census-designated place in California, United States
Bodfish is a census-designated place (CDP) in the southern Kern River Valley of the Southern Sierra Nevada, in Kern County, California, United States. Bodfish is located 32 miles (51 km) east-northeast of Bakersfield, at an elevation of 2,687 feet (819 m). The population was 2,008 at the 2020 census, up from 1,956 at the 2010 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 8.2 sq mi
- Elevation
- 2,687 ft
- ZIP code
- 93205
Bodfish’s neighbors
One town shares a border with Bodfish.
Lake IsabellaBodfish
How the neighbors grade
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bodfish | — | — | B+ | — | C+ | D |
| Lake Isabella | #756 | D− | B− | — | C+ | D− |
Bodfish has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Bodfish and Lake Isabella report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Bodfish with a neighbor →
Questions about Bodfish
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Bodfish, CA expensive?
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.