Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Palo Alto grades B+ overall, 112th of 841 graded towns in California. It is among the most walkable places in the country. On CDC health estimates it is near the top nationally and its schools outperform 96% of the state's. The catch is cost: homes are expensive, about $3.6 million for a typical one and 22.2 times the San Jose metro’s $162K median household income. 82% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Palo Alto, against 29% in California’s towns and 29% across U.S. towns. Palo Alto has 19 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Theophilus Allen House and Hewlett-Packard House and Garage. Only 27 of California’s 1,064 towns score higher on the outdoors.
Where Palo Alto beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Its 19 National Register listings are more than in 95% of California towns with a listing.
Census counts: 1,658 in 1900, 68,572 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1881 and 6 maps from 1897 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Palo Alto is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 99% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 3%), so the B+ overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Palo Alto. Close and well known come first.
Big draw10 mi Stadium & arenaLevi's Stadium
Big draw34 mi MuseumAlcatraz Federal Penitentiary
Big draw9 mi Theme parkCalifornia's Great America
Big draw27 mi MuseumUSS Hornet
Big draw29 mi Stadium & arenaChase Center
4 mi MuseumComputer History MuseumLevi's Stadium: Matthew Roth, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary: druchoy, CC BY-SA 2.0 · California's Great America: Oleg Alexandrov, CC BY-SA 4.0 · USS Hornet: kitmasterbloke, CC BY 2.0 · Chase Center: Gregory Varnum, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Computer History Museum: Dzou, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Palo Alto, 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 Palo Alto.
Palo Alto has schools in the top 5% of California, draws workers from San Jose and beyond and has less no health insurance than most of California.
At 22.2 years of the San Jose metro’s $162K median household income, the typical home (about $3.59M) costs more against local pay than in 97% of California towns; that ratio is one input to that grade.
Palo Alto’s typical rent is $3,484 a month. Values rose 5.9% in the 12 months to September 2026. Among households in the town, 55% own their home.
| Palo Alto | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $3,484 a month | $1,895 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 55% | 64% | 73% |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 44% | 55% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
That grade ranks #18 of the 847 California towns we grade for schools. It comes with a D− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $3.59M.
Its public schools are run by the Palo Alto Unified school district. Three of the 37 schools are below, and why each made the list. Public school enrollment in the town: 2,354 students across 6 schools.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jane Lathrop Stanford MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 1,002 | A+ |
| Palo Alto HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,891 | A+ |
| Henry M. Gunn HighTop results in townGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,643 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Its 6,660 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 96% of California towns. Its A+ for the outdoors ranks #16 of 847 in California.
Monte Bello Open Space Preserve, at 2,073 acres with 15.9 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. Walkers can cover 82 miles of trail in 38 parks and preserves. For Palo Alto, the trail density is 3.2 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Foothills Nature Preserve | 19.7 mi | 1,336 |
| 2. Monte Bello Open Space Preserve | 15.9 mi | 2,073 |
| 3. Enid Pearson-Arastradero Preserve | 11.2 mi | 654 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its widest gap with California is no health insurance: 3.4% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 10.6% statewide. Against the 585 U.S. towns with household incomes like Palo Alto’s, it is healthier than 73%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
In Palo Alto, 5.8% of adults smoke cigarettes. Against the California average, Palo Alto comes out ahead on 23 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 1.
| Palo Alto | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 29% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 17% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 8.8% | 14% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 35% | 36% |
| What stands out | Palo Alto | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 3.4% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.2% | 17.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 8.3% | 6.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
104,691 jobs are based in Palo Alto, 3.7 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 21.4 minutes, against 28.7 across California.
The top destinations are San Jose (9%), Stanford (8%) and San Francisco (8%). Just 16% of Palo Alto’s working residents have a job in town. The income of the median household in the town is $231,000. Employers in Palo Alto added 7,980 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 104,691.
| Palo Alto | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 35% | 14% | 11% |
| Median household income | $231,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 16% | 6.6% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
FEMA puts 59% of Palo Alto’s expected hazard losses down to earthquakes, and 40% to inland flooding. Compared with 94% of U.S. communities, expected storm and flood damage locally is higher. Paid flood insurance claims in the town since 1980: 376.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
At 36.7 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 69% of California’s graded towns.
The rate of thefts and burglaries for Palo Alto comes to 28.6 per 1,000 residents. The town’s rate of reported violence comes in at 1.6 per 1,000 residents.
| Palo Alto | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 28.6 per 1,000 residents | 13.3 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.6 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The Palo Alto weather station records that the frost-free season runs about 310 days, longer than in 95% of U.S. towns.
The typical July afternoon high is 80°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
21 within 15 miles of the center of Palo Alto
About 5 of every 100 Palo Alto residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
40.3% of the town is conserved land, across 38 parks and preserves.
19 places in Palo Alto on the National Register of Historic Places.
35 notable people were born in Palo Alto.
City in California, United States
Palo Alto ( PAL-oh AL-toh; Spanish for 'tall stick') is a charter city in northwestern Santa Clara County, California, United States. Part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it is named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. The population was 68,572 as of the 2020 United States census. Palo Alto was incorporated in 1894 by the American industrialist Leland Stanford and his wife, Jane Stanford, when they founded Stanford University in memory of their only child, Leland Stanford Jr. The city later expanded and now borders East Palo Alto, Mountain View, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Stanford, Portola Valley, and Menlo Park. Palo Alto has one of the highest costs of living in the United…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Palo Alto.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palo Alto | #112 | B+ | D− | C− | A+ | A+ |
| Menlo Park | #109 | B+ | D− | C+ | A− | A+ |
| Los Altos | #10 | A | D− | B | A+ | A+ |
| Mountain View | #113 | B+ | D− | C− | A | A+ |
| Los Altos Hills | #5 | A | D− | A− | A+ | A+ |
| East Palo Alto | #477 | C− | D | C− | B | B |
| Stanford | – | A+ | C | — | A+ | A |
| Portola Valley | #57 | A− | D− | — | A | A+ |
Stanford and Portola Valley report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Palo Alto with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Palo Alto grades B+ overall, better than 66% of U.S. towns and #112 of 841 in California. It grades A+ for health, C− 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−.
35 notable people were born here, including James Franco and Teri Hatcher.
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