Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A city of 185,007, settled in 1850.
For a city of 185,007, Elk Grove does well: it grades B, 154th among California's 841 graded towns. It is healthier than 80% of U.S. towns. The trade-off: homes are expensive, about $625K for a typical one and 6.4 times the Sacramento metro’s $97K median household income. Only 19 of California’s 1,064 towns score higher on hazard risk. Elk Grove is home to California Northstate University. Elk Grove is more walkable than 73% of U.S. towns.
Where Elk Grove beats most towns.
| Widest gap | Elk Grove | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.7% | 10.6% |
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Miwok Village Elementary | K–6 | 1,050 |
| Zehnder Ranch Elementary | K–6 | 1,019 |
| Arthur C. Butler Elementary | K–6 | 949 |
153,015 counted in 2010 and 176,124 in 2020; an estimated 185,007 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 5% since 2020, after 15.1% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Elk Grove is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 2,205 in 1960, 176,124 in 2020. The archive holds 19 old photos and papers going back to 2010 and 5 maps from 1909 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Elk Grove. Close and well known come first.
12 mi State parkSutter's Fort
18 mi Stadium & arenaARCO Arena
10 mi Stadium & arenaHornet Stadium
13 mi State parkGovernor's Mansion State Historic Park
13 mi MuseumCalifornia State Railroad Museum500K visitors a year
13 mi State parkLeland Stanford Mansion State Historic ParkSutter's Fort: Ian Howard, CC BY 2.5 · ARCO Arena: CLopez63, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Hornet Stadium: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0 · Governor's Mansion State Historic Park: Mark James Miller, CC BY 3.0 · California State Railroad Museum: The original uploader was Swampyank at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 3.0 · Leland Stanford Mansion State Historic Park: M.Mierzwa. MCalamari at en.wikipedia, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Elk Grove, 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 Elk Grove.
Elk Grove carries less natural-hazard risk than nearly all of California (mostly inland flooding), is healthier than Vineyard and its other neighbors and has home values still below their peak.
Its A− for health tops all 3 graded neighbors; Vineyard (B) comes closest. Its widest gap with California is no health insurance: 6.7% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 10.6% statewide.
39% of adults feel lonely in Elk Grove, where California’s towns sit at 36% and U.S. towns at 33%. 13% of Elk Grove adults binge drink. Elk Grove beats the California average on 9 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0.
| Elk Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 36% | 33% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 16% | 16% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 71% | 72% | 79% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 29% | 35% |
| What stands out | Elk Grove | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.7% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 13.9% | 17.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Elk Grove Unified school district. Three of its 44 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Katherine L. Albiani MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 7–8 | Grades 7–8 | 1,447 | A |
| Franklin HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,650 | A |
| Pleasant Grove HighTop results in townGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,536 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Jobs based here grew from 24,889 in 2013 to 40,148.
Most working residents leave Elk Grove for work: only 14% work in town. Elk Grove’s median household income is $126,000, above both California’s towns ($95,000) and U.S. towns ($80,000). 21% of workers work from home in Elk Grove.
| Elk Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 21% | 14% | 11% |
| Median household income | $126,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 31 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 14% | 6.6% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
33 miles of trail in 85 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Elk Grove County Park, 125 acres with 3 miles of trail.
| Elk Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 1.0 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.4% | 4.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Elk Grove County Park | 3 mi | 125 |
| 2. Bartholemew Sports Park | 2 mi | 45 |
| 3. Kloss Park | 1.3 mi | 17 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Elk Grove has mild winters and hot summers, with very little rain. The July high in Elk Grove is 93°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The typical value, about $625K, is 9% below its June 2022 peak.
Elk Grove’s median rent is $2,262 a month. The typical Elk Grove home is worth about $625,000, down 1.6% in a year, 18% below the California typical home.
| Elk Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,262 a month | $1,895 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 74% | 64% | 73% |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 53% | 55% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk lower than 97% of California towns, with expected losses of about $167 per resident a year; that rating is what its B for hazard risk is built on.
Since 2017, 6 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Elk Grove.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Adults 18 to 34 are 19% of residents (24% statewide). Elk Grove has grown 5% since 2020, to 185,007 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 39% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 37% across California.
| Elk Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 39% | 29% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 25% | 22% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 14% | 16% | 18% |
51.4% women, 48.6% men
About 95 men for every 100 women. Across California, 50.1% of residents are women. Median age: women 40.7, men 38.1.
| Elk Grove | CA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.5% | 11.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 13.7% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.9% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11% | 14.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 15.1% | 13.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 14.2% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.7% | 12.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 8.4% | 9.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.5% | 6.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9% | 15.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 17.7% | 20.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 24.1% | 19.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.4% | 7.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 26% | 22.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.9% | 14.4% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Within California, it does better than 78% of towns.
| Elk Grove | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.6 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 12 per 1,000 residents | 13.4 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
6 within 15 miles of the center of Elk Grove
About 8 of every 100 Elk Grove residents are enrolled in college, about the same as California.
2 places in Elk Grove on the National Register of Historic Places.
19 notable people were born in Elk Grove.
City in California, United States
Elk Grove is a city in Sacramento County, California, United States. Located just south of the state capital of Sacramento, it is part of the Sacramento metropolitan area. As of the 2020 Census, the population of the city was 176,124. A 2025 Census estimate puts the population of the city at 185,007. Elk Grove has many wineries, wine cellars, and vineyards. Elk Grove was the fastest-growing city in the U.S. between July 1, 2004, and July 1, 2005, and is also presently the second-largest city in Sacramento County by population. It is a general law city with a council/manager form of government. One of Elk Grove's largest employers is the Elk Grove Unified School District, which is the city's…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Elk Grove.
It grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Vineyard (C+) comes closest.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk Grove | #154 | B | D− | B− | B+ | A− |
| Sacramento | #509 | C− | D | D | B− | B |
| Florin | #328 | C+ | C | — | B+ | C |
| Vineyard | #241 | C+ | D | — | B+ | B |
Florin and Vineyard report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Elk Grove with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Elk Grove grades B overall, better than 57% of U.S. towns and #154 of 841 in California. It grades A− for health, B− for safety and B+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
Within California, it does better than 78% of towns.
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−.
19 notable people were born here, including Kyle Larson and Riley Voelkel.
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