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Palm Springs from the Museum TrailPhoto: Visitor7 · CC BY-SA 3.0
The Palm Springs handbook

Living in Palm Springs, CA: what to set up and who to call

Ponce Recycling Center takes recycling in Palm Springs, open Mon–Sat 9 am–5 pm (OpenStreetMap). Palm Springs has its own train station.

I’m new in town

What to set up in Palm Springs, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.

Home services

Power, water and internet

Who to call to start service at a new address in Palm Springs.

Electricity

Power comes from Southern California Edison

Southern California Edison (Southern California Edison Co), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Palm Springs. Its homes paid an average of 31.5¢ per kWh in 2025, about $149 a month (its average across California, for customers on its standard service). California lets you buy power from another supplier; 30% of Southern California Edison’s home customers do, and Southern California Edison still delivers it.

Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.

Drinking water · reported to EPA

Water comes from Desert Water Agency

Desert Water Agency supplies almost all of Palm Springs. It draws surface water (EPA lists Coachella Vwd: Cove Community as seller) and serves 74,807 people in all.

No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 90% of the 597 systems serving 50,001–100,000 people.

Lead, 90th percentile0.0 ppb
015 ppb action level20

The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2022–Dec 2024, was 0.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. Results below detection are reported as 0, so 0 doesn’t mean no lead at any tap.

The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report

EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. CA3310005.

Internet

6 home internet providers serve Palm Springs

98% of 20,444 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 43% can get fiber.

ProviderTechnologyAddressesFastest (Mbps)
SpectrumCable, Fiber97%1,000/35
FrontierFiber, DSL47%7,000/7,000
VerizonFixed wireless65%300/20
T-MobileFixed wireless56%100/20
AT&TFixed wireless50%25/3
GeoLinksFixed wireless2%100/100

FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.

Trash & recycling

Ponce Recycling Center is open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday

Where to take trash and recycling in Palm Springs, and where the rules are.

Drop-off

Ponce Recycling Center

1729 E Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs, CA, 92264

MTWTFSS
8a
10a
12p
2p
4p
  • Mon9 am–5 pm
  • Tue9 am–5 pm
  • Wed9 am–5 pm
  • Thu9 am–5 pm
  • Fri9 am–5 pm
  • Sat9 am–5 pm

Hours from OpenStreetMap, last updated Oct 2024. They can change with the season, so check palmspringsca.gov before you go.

Drop-off hours: OpenStreetMap. © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Schools

Where your child goes to school

Public school districts and the school path by grade.

Palm Springs kids go to
K–53 elementary schoolsDepends on your address
6–8Raymond Cree MiddlePalm Springs Unified School District
9–12Palm Springs HighPalm Springs Unified School District

Most of Palm Springs (90%) is in Palm Springs Unified School District; parts are in Banning Unified School District (10%).

C+School gradeSee Schools →

U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.

Government & voting

Town hall and registering to vote

Who to call, and how to register.

Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Sep 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.

ZIP codes & area codes

Palm Springs spans 2 ZIP codes

ZIP codes where Palm Springs residents live, with the share of the town in each.

ZIPPost office nameShare of Palm SpringsZIP’s residents in Palm Springs
92262Palm Springs, CA57%96%
92264Palm Springs, CA43%99%

A few homes fall in 92258, 92234, 92549, 92282. 92263 is P.O. box or single-organization ZIP with no homes.

Area codes442, 760Wikidata

Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.

Everyday places

Getting around, the ER and the library

One line each; the subject pages have the rest.

Train: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors). ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.

Questions about living in Palm Springs

When is the Ponce Recycling Center open?

Mon–Sat 9 am–5 pm, according to OpenStreetMap (as of Oct 9, 2026). Check palmspringsca.gov before you go: the town sets the hours and who may use it.

Who supplies Palm Springs’ drinking water, and has it had violations?

Desert Water Agency (EPA ID CA3310005). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 90% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 0.0 ppb (Jan 2022–Dec 2024), against a 15 ppb action level.

Who provides electricity in Palm Springs?

Southern California Edison (Southern California Edison Co), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 31.5¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).

What internet providers serve Palm Springs?

Spectrum, Frontier, Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T, GeoLinks (FCC, as of December 2025).

What ZIP codes are in Palm Springs?

92262 (57%), 92264 (43%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.

What school district is Palm Springs in?

Palm Springs Unified School District. Parts of the city are in Banning Unified School District.

How do I register to vote in Palm Springs?

In California you can register online until 15 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before). Elections here are run by the Riverside Registrar of Voters. Check your registration at voterstatus.sos.ca.gov.

Sources & dates

Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.

  • Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
  • Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
  • Trash: OpenStreetMap, Geofabrik extract of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
  • ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
  • Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
  • Registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
  • Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
  • Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.