Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For a city of 123,261, Concord does unevenly: it grades C, 377th among California's 841 graded towns. It is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 96% of U.S. towns. The trade-offs: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 93% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top, and it reports more crime per resident than 89% of U.S. towns, including 519 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. Concord’s trail density is 2.1 miles per square mile, above both California’s towns (1.0) and U.S. towns (0.4). The biggest place to walk is Thurgood Marshall Regional Park, 2,586 acres with 15.9 miles of trail. Homes are expensive, about $721K for a typical one and 5.3 times the San Francisco metro’s $136K median household income.
Where Concord beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Concord is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 96% of comparable towns) to D− for hazard risk (better than 4%), so the C overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 400 in 1870, 125,410 in 2020. The archive holds 7 old photos and papers going back to 1964 and 8 maps from 1897 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Concord. Close and well known come first.
Big draw25 mi MuseumAlcatraz Federal Penitentiary
Big draw21 mi MuseumUSS Hornet
Big draw25 mi Stadium & arenaChase Center
Big draw39 mi Stadium & arenaLevi's Stadium
Big draw26 mi LandmarkLombard Street
Big draw25 mi Stadium & arenaOracle ParkAlcatraz Federal Penitentiary: druchoy, CC BY-SA 2.0 · USS Hornet: kitmasterbloke, CC BY 2.0 · Chase Center: Gregory Varnum, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Levi's Stadium: Matthew Roth, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Lombard Street: The original uploader was Y6y6y6 at English Wikipedia., Public domain · Oracle Park: User Coasttocoast on en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Concord, 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 Concord.
Concord trades workers with San Francisco and other neighbors, costs less than Pleasant Hill or any other town next door and owes part of its health edge to its incomes.
65 miles of trail in 31 parks and preserves.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Thurgood Marshall Regional Park | 15.9 mi | 2,586 |
| 2. Lime Ridge Open Space | 13.5 mi | 615 |
| 3. Newhall Community Park | 3 mi | 125 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Mt. Diablo Unified school district. Three of its 46 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| El Dorado MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 861 | C− |
| Clayton Valley Charter HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,373 | A+ |
| Highlands ElementaryTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 512 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Reported crimes fell from 4,471 to 3,913 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
At 27.4 per 1,000 residents, Concord’s property crime rate is above both the California town median (13.3) and the median of U.S. towns (9.9). Concord’s violent crime rate is 4.2 per 1,000 residents. Concord reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 89% report less.
| Concord | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 27.4 per 1,000 residents | 13.3 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.2 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Since 1980, 29 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Concord.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Against the 7,330 U.S. towns with household incomes like Concord’s, it is less healthy than 50%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
Concord beats the California average on 5 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 71% of adults had a checkup this year in Concord.
| Concord | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 71% | 72% | 79% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 11% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 31% | 35% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 22% | 23% |
| What stands out | Concord | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.2% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 14.9% | 17.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Concord has mild winters and warm summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 87°, January nights drop to 39° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Concord has about as many jobs (54,009) as working residents, but only 7,108 people both live and work here.
Most working residents leave Concord for work: only 14% work in town. The average trip to work in Concord is 33 minutes. Since 2013, Concord has added 5,514 jobs, to 54,009 in 2023.
| Concord | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 18% | 14% | 11% |
| Median household income | $109,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 14% | 6.6% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the California average. 38% of Concord adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more.
| Concord | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 38% | 29% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 21% | 22% | 22% |
49.6% women, 50.4% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±0.8 points. Across California, 50.1% of residents are women. Median age: women 40.1, men 38.0.
| Concord | CA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.1% | 11.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.2% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.7% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 14.7% | 14.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 15.6% | 13.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.1% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.1% | 12.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 9.6% | 9.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.8% | 6.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 12.7% | 15.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 20.4% | 20.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 20.4% | 19.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 9% | 7.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 26.2% | 22.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 11.3% | 14.4% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Its typical home is the least expensive on its borders; Pleasant Hill is next at $973K. The typical value, about $721K, is 11% below its June 2022 peak.
The typical Concord home is worth about $721,000, about the same as a year ago, 5% below the California typical home.
| Concord | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,274 a month | $1,895 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 59% | 55% | 48% |
| Households that own their home | 62% | 64% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
4 within 15 miles of the center of Concord
About 6 of every 100 Concord residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
2 places in Concord on the National Register of Historic Places.
34 notable people were born in Concord.
City in California, United States
Concord is the most populous city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. According to an estimate completed by the United States Census Bureau, the city had a population of 123,261 in 2025, making it the tenth most populous city in the San Francisco Bay Area. Founded in 1869 as Todos Santos by Don Salvio Pacheco II, a noted Californio ranchero, the name was later changed to Concord. The city is a major regional suburban East Bay center within the San Francisco Bay Area, and is 29 miles (47 kilometers) east of San Francisco. The United States Census Bureau defines an urban area in the East Bay which is separated from the San Francisco–Oakland urban area and with Concord as the pr…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Concord.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Concord | #377 | C | D | D | B | B+ |
| Pleasant Hill | #300 | C+ | D− | D | B | A |
| Clayton | #83 | B+ | D− | A− | B | A |
| Walnut Creek | #223 | B− | D− | C− | B+ | A+ |
| Bay Point | #420 | C | C | — | B | C |
| Clyde | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Bay Point reports no FBI crime data of its own. Clyde isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Concord with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Concord grades C overall, better than 30% of U.S. towns and #377 of 841 in California. It grades B+ for health, D for safety and B for schools. Hazard risk 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.
34 notable people were born here, including Tom Hanks and Dave Brubeck.
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