Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A city of 86,333, settled in 1970.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Lake Forest grades B+ overall, 88th of 841 graded towns in California. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 86% of the country and the median household earns $135K. What holds it back is price: homes are expensive, about $1.2 million for a typical one and 12.2 times the Los Angeles metro’s $96K median household income. Lake Forest’s median rent is $2,672 a month, above both the California town median ($1,895 a month) and the median of U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). On the outdoors, just 67 of California’s 1,064 towns do better. The biggest place to walk is Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park, 1,518 acres with 17.4 miles of trail.
Where Lake Forest beats most towns.
| Widest gap | Lake Forest | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.7% | 10.6% |
77,264 counted in 2010 and 85,858 in 2020; an estimated 86,333 in 2025.
Growth has leveled off: within 1% of 2020, after 11.1% 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 Lake Forest is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 8,654 in 1970, 85,858 in 2020. The archive holds 2 old photos and papers going back to 1863 and 6 maps from 1949 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Lake Forest. Close and well known come first.
Big draw18 mi Theme parkDisneyland17.3M visitors a year
Big draw23 mi Theme parkKnott's Berry Farm4.5M visitors a year
Big draw35 mi MuseumUSS Iowa
Big draw16 mi Stadium & arenaAngel Stadium of Anaheim
Big draw18 mi Theme parkDisney California Adventure10.1M visitors a year
16 mi Stadium & arenaHonda CenterDisneyland: HarshLight from San Jose, CA, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Knott's Berry Farm: Phydend at English Wikipedia, Public domain · USS Iowa: PH1 Jeff Hilton, Public domain · Angel Stadium of Anaheim: Staff Sgt. Chad McMeen, Public domain · Disney California Adventure: CrispyCream27, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Honda Center: Arnold C (Buchanan-Hermit), Attribution
Who provides power, water and the rest in Lake Forest, 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 Lake Forest.
Lake Forest fares better on crime within California than nationally and has milder winter nights than nearly all U.S. towns, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of California.
41 miles of trail in 42 parks and preserves. Lake Forest’s trail density is 2.5 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park | 17.4 mi | 1,518 |
| 2. Serrano Creek Park | 1.7 mi | 47 |
| 3. Portola Park | 0.8 mi | 8 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its A− for schools comes with a D− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $1.17M.
Its public schools are run by the Saddleback Valley Unified school district. Three of its 19 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foothill Ranch ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–6 | Grades K–6 | 990 | – |
| El Toro HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,902 | A |
| Oxford Preparatory Academy - Saddleback ValleyTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 565 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
At 12.2 years of the Los Angeles metro’s $96K median household income, the typical home (about $1.17M) costs more against local pay than in 86% of California towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living. Home values rose 37% in five years, to about $1.17M, against 13% across California.
The typical Lake Forest home is worth about $1,172,000, up 1.3% in a year, 54% above the California typical home.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its widest gap with California is no health insurance: 6.7% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 10.6% statewide. Against the 4,023 U.S. towns with household incomes like Lake Forest’s, it is healthier than 56%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
24% of adults have obesity in Lake Forest. Lake Forest beats the California average on 21 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 8.5% of adults smoke cigarettes in Lake Forest.
| Lake Forest | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 29% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 8.5% | 11% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 31% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Lake Forest | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.7% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 11.8% | 17.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 82% of U.S. communities. Since 1997, 7 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Lake Forest.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 46.9°, milder than in 97% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 83.7°.
Lake Forest has warm winters and pleasant summers, with very little rain. The January low in Lake Forest is 47°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Lake Forest | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 47°F | 40°F | 22°F |
| July high | 84°F | 89°F | 85°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Most working residents leave Lake Forest for work: only 8% work in town. 24% of Lake Forest workers work from home. The top destinations are Irvine (19%), Los Angeles (5%) and Santa Ana (5%).
| Lake Forest | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 24% | 14% | 11% |
| Median household income | $135,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 8.5% | 10% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 14.2 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 89% of California’s graded towns. Its B tops all 3 graded towns on its borders; Mission Viejo (B) comes closest.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
18 within 15 miles of the center of Lake Forest
About 8 of every 100 Lake Forest residents are enrolled in college, about the same as California.
20.3% of the town is conserved land, across 42 parks and preserves.
8 notable people were born in Lake Forest.
City in California, United States
Lake Forest is a city in Orange County, California, United States. The population was 85,858 at the 2020 census. Lake Forest incorporated as a city on December 20, 1991. Before incorporation, the community had been known as El Toro (in Spanish, "the bull"). In 2000, Lake Forest voted to expand its city limits to include the master-planned developments of Foothill Ranch and Portola Hills. This expansion brought new homes and commercial centers to the city's northeastern boundary. Lake Forest has two lakes from which the city gets its name. The lakes are man-made, and condominiums and custom homes ranging from large to small line their shores. Neighborhood associations manage the lakes (Lake …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Lake Forest.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Forest | #88 | B+ | D− | B | A− | A |
| Mission Viejo | #87 | B+ | D− | B | A | A |
| Trabuco Canyon | — | — | D | — | A− | A− |
| Irvine | #74 | B+ | D− | B− | A | A+ |
| Laguna Hills | #158 | B | D− | B− | A− | A |
| Modjeska | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Trabuco Canyon has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Trabuco Canyon reports no FBI crime data of its own. Modjeska isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Lake Forest with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Lake Forest grades B+ overall, better than 69% of U.S. towns and #88 of 841 in California. It grades A for health, B for safety and A− 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−.
8 notable people were born here, including Brian Krause and Austin Romine.
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