Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 26,326, settled in 1900.
Hercules's standout: it is more walkable than 98% of U.S. towns. Overall it grades B−, 195th among California's 841 graded towns. It is healthier than 83% of U.S. towns and the median household earns $129K. Its weakest subject is cost of living: homes are expensive, about $736K for a typical one and 5.4 times the San Francisco metro’s $136K median household income. Hercules’ median rent is $2,991 a month, above both the California town median ($1,895 a month) and the median of U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). On safety, just 37 of California’s 426 towns do better. Hercules's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 90% of U.S. towns.
Where Hercules beats most towns.
Where Hercules’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Hercules is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 98% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 4%), so the B− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 279 in 1910, a low of 252 in 1970, 26,016 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 2005 and 4 maps from 1916 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Hercules. Close and well known come first.
Big draw15 mi MuseumAlcatraz Federal Penitentiary
Big draw17 mi MuseumUSS Hornet
Big draw17 mi LandmarkLombard Street
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaChase Center
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaOracle Park
Big draw18 mi GardenPresidio of San FranciscoAlcatraz Federal Penitentiary: druchoy, CC BY-SA 2.0 · USS Hornet: kitmasterbloke, CC BY 2.0 · Lombard Street: The original uploader was Y6y6y6 at English Wikipedia., Public domain · Chase Center: Gregory Varnum, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Oracle Park: User Coasttocoast on en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Presidio of San Francisco: Robert Campbell, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Hercules, 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 Hercules.
Hercules fares better on crime within California than nationally, has milder winter nights than nearly all U.S. towns and is healthier than Pinole and its other neighbors.
Its A− for health tops all 3 graded neighbors; Pinole (B+) comes closest. Its widest gap with California is no health insurance: 6% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 10.6% statewide.
16% of adults have been diagnosed with depression in Hercules. Hercules beats the California average on 19 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 25% of adults have obesity in Hercules.
| Hercules | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 22% | 23% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 16% | 16% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 29% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 17% | 17% |
| What stands out | Hercules | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6% | 10.6% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.2% | 10.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the West Contra Costa Unified school district. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Hercules High, with 767 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hercules MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 596 | – |
| Hercules HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 767 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 83% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The average commute for its 11,729 working residents takes 37.6 minutes, against 28.7 across California.
Most working residents leave Hercules for work: only 5% work in town. The average trip to work in Hercules is 38 minutes. The top destinations are San Francisco (18%), Oakland (11%) and Richmond (6%).
| Hercules | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 38 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $129,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 19% | 14% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 5.6% | 10% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
January nights average 42.8°, milder than in 96% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 75.3°.
Hercules has warm winters and cool summers, with very little rain. Hercules’ July high is 75°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Hercules | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 75°F | 89°F | 85°F |
| January low | 43°F | 40°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
11 miles of trail in 12 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is San Pablo Bay Regional Shoreline, at 33 acres.
| Hercules | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 1.0 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.7% | 4.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Duck Pond Park | 0.9 mi | 13 |
| 2. Foxboro Park | 0.5 mi | 4 |
| 3. San Pablo Bay Regional Shoreline | 0.2 mi | 33 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 13 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 92% of California’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 211 to 163 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Adults 18 to 34 are 19% of residents (24% statewide); people 65 and older are 20% of residents (16% statewide). 46% of Hercules adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more.
| Hercules | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 46% | 29% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 18% | 22% | 22% |
| Median age | 43.9 years | 39 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 20% | 16% | 18% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2 points. Across California, 50.1% of residents are women.
| Hercules | CA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 9.6% | 11.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.8% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.9% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.1% | 14.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.4% | 13.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.5% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 15.6% | 12.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.5% | 9.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.6% | 6.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7.5% | 15.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 13.8% | 20.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 22.3% | 19.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.3% | 7.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 32.1% | 22.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14% | 14.4% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
The typical value, about $736K, is 11% below its June 2022 peak.
The typical Hercules home is worth about $736,000, down 0.7% in a year, close to the California typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
20 within 15 miles of the center of Hercules
About 7 of every 100 Hercules residents are enrolled in college, about the same as California.
City in California, United States
Hercules is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. Situated along the coast of San Pablo Bay, it is located in the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay Area, approximately 10 miles (16 km) north of Berkeley. As of the 2020 census, its population was 26,016, according to the United States Census Bureau. The site of Hercules was first developed in 1881 as a manufacturing facility of the California Powder Works for the production of its patented dynamite formulation, Hercules powder. In 1882, the Hercules Powder Company was incorporated and assumed responsibility for the Hercules site. It was one of several explosive manufacturers that were active along the Pinole…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Hercules.
It grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Pinole (C) comes closest.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hercules | #195 | B− | D− | B+ | C+ | A− |
| Pinole | #411 | C | D | C− | C+ | B+ |
| Rodeo | #480 | C− | C− | — | C | B− |
| Vallejo | #724 | D− | D− | D− | C | B− |
Rodeo reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Hercules with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Hercules grades B− overall, better than 51% of U.S. towns and #195 of 841 in California. It grades A− for health, B+ for safety and C+ for schools. Cost of living 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−.
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