Caruthers, California, 2015
Caruthers’s story
135 years in pictures
Census counts: 1,514 in 1980, 2,613 in 2020. The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 2015 and 3 maps from 1925 on.
- 1891Caruthers is settled
CaruthersCA
A town of 1,683, settled in 1891.
Photo: Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0
Population
1,683
Census survey, 2020–24
Typical home
$387K
+3.8% in a year
Household income
$88K
median
Median age
33.7
years
Jobs based here
520
A commuter town
Is Caruthers a good place to live?
Caruthers’ best subject grade is an A for walkability; its weakest is a C− for health. Caruthers’ July high is 98°F, above both the California town median (89°F) and the median of U.S. towns (85°F). Only 83 of California’s 1,058 towns score higher on cost of living. On the outdoors, just 38 of California’s 1,064 towns do worse. Caruthers has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Caruthers stand out
Where Caruthers beats most towns.
A commuter town
92% of working residents leave Caruthers for work
Where Caruthers’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
520jobs based in Caruthers
8%of working residents work in town
17 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Caruthers grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Caruthers is from typical.
WalkabilityEPA walkability 9.6 of 20; 1.7% of households have no carAOpen →HealthCommunity Regional Medical Center 14.4 miles awayC−Open →Jobs & income$88K median household incomeBOpen →Hazard riskdrought tops the listC+Open →SchoolsBOpen →Cost of livingC+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–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 33.7; 21% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
Moving to Caruthers: who provides what
Caruthers is unincorporated, so Fresno County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerPG&E37.5¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterCaruthers Comm Serv Dist water system1 health-based violation in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet6 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesFresno CountyFresno County provides services here
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 hereFresno County Clerk, Registrar of VotersFresno County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jul 2021
ZIP code9360993609 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 Caruthers.
HousingCost of living grade C+
Homes in Caruthers are worth about $387K, by Zillow’s estimate
The typical Caruthers home is worth about $387,000, up 3.8% in a year, 49% below the California typical home. 52% of households own their home in Caruthers, below both California’s towns (64%) and U.S. towns (73%). Caruthers’ median rent is $1,186 a month.
$387KZillow home value
| Caruthers | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 52% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,186 a month | $1,896 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Caruthers$387K
California$762K
+3.8%
value change, 1 year
2
homes sold in April
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
SchoolsB
Caruthers’ public schools outperform 58% of California districts
Its public schools are run by the Caruthers Unified school district. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Caruthers High, with 682 students.
58%of CA districts it outscoresBSchool Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Caruthers ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 836 | C− |
| Caruthers HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 682 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
HealthC−
On CDC estimates, Caruthers is less healthy than 84% of U.S. towns
Caruthers beats the California average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 19. 30% of Caruthers adults worry about having enough food.
16%healthier than U.S. townsC−Health Grade
| Caruthers | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 22% | 19% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 16% | 14% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 9% | 8.1% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 35% | 24% | 25% |
32 measures vs. California
1 better12 too close to call19 worse
| What stands out | Caruthers | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 5.4% | 6.4% |
| More uninsured adults | 19.7% | 10.6% |
Community Regional Medical Center
14.4 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 B
Caruthers has 0.6 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Most working residents leave Caruthers for work: only 8% work in town. The average trip to work in Caruthers is 20 minutes. Jobs based in Caruthers fell to 520 in 2023, 50 fewer than in 2013.
8%work in town
| Caruthers | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $88,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
In Caruthers8%
Fresno27%
Clovis3%
Visalia2%
Hanford2%
17 mi
median commute distance
520
jobs based in Caruthers
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
A
Walkability grade: more walkable than 87% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Climate
In Caruthers, expect mild winters and hot summers
Caruthers has mild winters and hot summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 98°, January nights drop to 39° and snow is almost unheard of.
98°summer high
Typical low → high °F
Winter39–58°
Spring49–76°
Summer63–96°
Fall51–79°
Nov 22
typical first frost
Feb 24
typical last frost
+1.8°
vs. the 20th-century average
98°
typical summer high
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade C+
Moderate risk in Caruthers, with drought at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 56% of U.S. communities.
56risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
DroughtEarthquakesInland flooding
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Nearby attractions
All 14 attractions →Tulare Lake and 9 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Caruthers. Close and well known come first.
33 mi LakeTulare Lake
19 mi MuseumForestiere Underground Gardens
20 mi Stadium & arenaValley Children's Stadium
20 mi Stadium & arenaSave Mart Center
14 mi Stadium & arenaChukchansi Park
15 mi Zoo & aquariumFresno Chaffee ZooSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Tulare Lake: Trace Fleeman Garcia, CC0 · Forestiere Underground Gardens: R&sbwn, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Valley Children's Stadium: Emedina00, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Save Mart Center: Bobak Ha'Eri, CC BY 3.0 · Chukchansi Park: YAHQQLIGAN, CC BY 2.0 · Fresno Chaffee Zoo: Jim Moore, CC BY 2.0
.jpg){kind=link}
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Caruthers
17pages on Caruthers
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of Caruthers
Fresno Pacific UniversityUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Fresno14.3 mi$36,660 tuitionAgape College of Business and ScienceUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Fresno14.3 mi$25,672 tuition
About 3 of every 100 Caruthers residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
About Caruthers
Census-designated place in California, United States
Caruthers () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fresno County, California, United States. The population was 2,613 at the 2020 census, up from 2,497 at the 2010 census. Caruthers is located 15 miles (24 km) south of downtown Fresno, at an elevation of 246 feet (75 m).
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 2.0 sq mi
- Elevation
- 246 ft
- ZIP code
- 93609
- Area code
- 559
Questions about Caruthers
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Caruthers, CA expensive?
That is 5.2 years of the area's median household income ($74,468 across the Fresno, 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+.
What is Caruthers, CA known for?
2 notable people were born here, including Gene Rock and Ray Elder.