Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 4,093, settled in 1870.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Felton grades B overall, 132nd of 841 graded towns in California. It is healthier than 94% of U.S. towns and the median household earns $123K. The trade-off is money: homes are expensive, about $810K for a typical one and 7.3 times the Santa Cruz metro’s $111K median household income. 61% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Felton, above both California’s towns (29%) and U.S. towns (29%). On hazard risk, just 104 of California’s 1,064 towns do worse. Felton has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Felton Covered Bridge and Felton Presbyterian Church.
Where Felton beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
4,057 counted in 2010 and 4,489 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Felton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 271 in 1880, a low of 259 in 1890, 4,489 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1887 and 5 maps from 1943 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Felton. Close and well known come first.
Big draw26 mi Stadium & arenaLevi's Stadium
Big draw25 mi Theme parkCalifornia's Great America
23 mi Stadium & arenaSAP Center
6 mi Theme parkSanta Cruz Beach Boardwalk
31 mi Zoo & aquariumMonterey Bay Aquarium
in town Scenic railwayRoaring Camp and Big Trees Narrow Gauge RailroadLevi's Stadium: Matthew Roth, CC BY-SA 2.0 · California's Great America: Oleg Alexandrov, CC BY-SA 4.0 · SAP Center: Dicklyon, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk: Josta Photo, CC BY 2.0 · Monterey Bay Aquarium: Meij.kobayashi, Public domain · Roaring Camp and Big Trees Narrow Gauge Railroad: Josh Hallett, CC BY-SA 2.0
Felton is unincorporated, so Santa Cruz County and regional agencies provide most services.
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 Felton.
Felton has a longer frost-free season than nearly all U.S. towns, has less no health insurance than most of California and has added half again as many jobs in ten years.
8.6 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. The trail density in Felton is 1.9 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is Roaring Camp, 175 acres with 3.3 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Roaring Camp | 3.3 mi | 175 |
| 2. Covered Bridge Equestrian Center | 0.3 mi | 22 |
| 3. Wilder Ranch State Park | 0.1 mi | 41 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its widest gap with California is no health insurance: 4.4% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 10.6% statewide.
15% of Felton adults get no exercise outside work. Felton beats the California average on 17 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 25% of Felton adults have obesity.
| Felton | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 24% | 25% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 29% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 16% | 16% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 8.6% | 12% | 12% |
| What stands out | Felton | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 4.4% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.5% | 17.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.3% | 6.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 98% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Jobs based here grew from 686 in 2013 to 1,214.
Most working residents leave Felton for work: only 5% work in town. 3.6% of residents live below the poverty line in Felton. Jobs based in Felton grew to 1,214 in 2023, 528 more than in 2013.
| Felton | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $123,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 3.6% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.9% | 6.6% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The Santa Cruz weather station, 6 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 323 days, longer than in 96% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 77°, cooler than in 97% of U.S. towns; January nights average 39.7°.
Felton has mild winters and pleasant summers. Felton’s July high is 77°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Felton | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 77°F | 89°F | 85°F |
| January low | 40°F | 41°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Typical home values rose 5.9% in the year to September 2026.
| Felton | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,068 a month | $1,895 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 77% | 64% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
3 within 15 miles of the center of Felton
About 11 of every 100 Felton residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
15.4% of the town is conserved land, across 4 parks and preserves.
2 places in Felton on the National Register of Historic Places.
Census-designated place in California, United States
Felton is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Cruz County, California, United States. The population was 4,489 as of 2020 census and according to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 4.6 square miles (12 km2), all of it land.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Felton.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Felton | #132 | B | D | — | B+ | A |
| Ben Lomond | #201 | B− | D− | — | B+ | A |
| Bonny Doon | #302 | C+ | D− | — | A− | A− |
| Mount Hermon | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Felton, Ben Lomond and Bonny Doon report no FBI crime data of their own. Mount Hermon isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Felton with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Felton grades B overall, better than 61% of U.S. towns and #132 of 841 in California. It grades A for health 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.
2 notable people were born here, including Robert Levon Been and Waylon Prather.
