162 years in pictures
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
- 1864Newcastle is settled
Each edition grades its towns against each other only.

A town of 1,585, settled in 1864.
The best of Newcastle’s subject grades are an A− for health and schools; the weakest is a D for cost of living. Newcastle’s July high is 95°F, above both California’s towns (89°F) and U.S. towns (85°F). On the outdoors, just 104 of California’s 1,064 towns do worse. Newcastle Portuguese Hall is on the National Register of Historic Places. Newcastle has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Newcastle beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Newcastle is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Newcastle is unincorporated, so Placer 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 Newcastle.
Newcastle beats the California average on 15 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 30% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Newcastle, below both the California town median (35%) and the median of U.S. towns (36%). 31% of Newcastle adults feel lonely.
| Newcastle | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 35% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 36% | 33% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 24% | 25% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 8.6% | 16% | 14% |
| What stands out | Newcastle | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 4.5% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.6% | 17.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.3% | 6.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Newcastle Elementary school district. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvest Ridge Cooperative CharterLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 349 | – |
| Newcastle CharterTop results in townGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 333 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
People 65 and older are 27% of residents (16% statewide); adults 35 to 64 are 33% of residents (39% statewide). 18% of residents are under 18 in Newcastle. 28% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 37% across California.
| Newcastle | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 18% | 22% | 22% |
| Median age | 42.3 years | 39 years | 40.5 years |
Somewhere between 28% and 69% women
The Census survey reached too few of Newcastle’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±20.4 points. Across California, 50.1% of residents are women.
| Newcastle | CA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 8.6% | 11.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.3% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 3% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 19.2% | 14.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.6% | 13.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 6.5% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11.4% | 12.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 16.6% | 9.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.8% | 6.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 11% | 15.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23.4% | 20.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 25.5% | 19.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 12.5% | 7.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 14.5% | 22.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 13.2% | 14.4% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,600, single groups can be off by several points
The typical Newcastle home is worth about $937,000, up 2.6% in a year, 23% above the California typical home. The median rent in Newcastle is $1,798 a month.
| Newcastle | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 89% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,798 a month | $1,896 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Newcastle has mild winters and hot summers. Newcastle’s January low is 38°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Most working residents leave Newcastle for work: only 1% work in town. Since 2013, Newcastle has added 44 jobs, to 470 in 2023. The top destinations are Sacramento (12%), Roseville (9%) and Auburn (7%).
| Newcastle | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $109,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.1% | 6.6% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 10% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 62% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Newcastle. Close and well known come first.
26 mi Stadium & arenaARCO Arena
27 mi State parkSutter's Fort
27 mi Stadium & arenaHornet Stadium
27 mi State parkGovernor's Mansion State Historic Park
28 mi MuseumCalifornia State Railroad Museum500K visitors a year
24 mi State parkEmpire Mine State Historic ParkARCO Arena: CLopez63, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sutter's Fort: Ian Howard, CC BY 2.5 · 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 · Empire Mine State Historic Park: Beej71, CC BY 2.5
3 within 15 miles of the center of Newcastle
About 2 of every 100 Newcastle residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes. That is 9.6 years of the area's median household income ($97,188 across the Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.