Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 12,559, established in 1923.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Palos Verdes Estates grades A− overall, ranked 24th of 841 in California. It is healthier than 98% of U.S. towns and its schools outperform 95% of the state's. The trade-off is money: homes are expensive, about $2.7 million for a typical one and 28.5 times the Los Angeles metro’s $96K median household income. 80% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Palos Verdes Estates, where California’s towns sit at 29% and U.S. towns at 29%. On safety, just 23 of California’s 426 towns do better. Palos Verdes Estates has 4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Mirlo Gate Lodge Tower and Malaga Cove Plaza.
Where Palos Verdes Estates beats most towns.
Where Palos Verdes Estates’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 Palos Verdes Estates is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 987 in 1940, 13,347 in 2020. The archive holds 14 old photos and papers going back to 2006 and 7 maps from 1896 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Palos Verdes Estates. Close and well known come first.
Big draw13 mi Stadium & arenaSoFi Stadium
Big draw9 mi MuseumUSS Iowa
Big draw23 mi LandmarkHollywood Walk of Fame10.0M visitors a year
Big draw29 mi Theme parkDisneyland17.3M visitors a year
Big draw18 mi MuseumLucas Museum of Narrative Art
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaLos Angeles Memorial ColiseumSoFi Stadium: Thank You (21 Millions+) views, CC BY 2.0 · USS Iowa: PH1 Jeff Hilton, Public domain · Hollywood Walk of Fame: BenSherman, Public domain · Disneyland: HarshLight from San Jose, CA, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Lucas Museum of Narrative Art: Kriddl, CC0 · Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum: CanonStarGal, CC BY-SA 4.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Palos Verdes Estates, 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 Palos Verdes Estates.
Palos Verdes Estates has schools in the top 5% of California, fares better on crime within California than nationally and has less no health insurance than most of California.
At 28.5 years of the Los Angeles metro’s $96K median household income, the typical home (about $2.74M) costs more against local pay than in 98% of California towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living. Its typical home is the priciest on its borders; Rolling Hills Estates is next at $1.86M.
The median rent in Palos Verdes Estates is $3,217 a month. The typical Palos Verdes Estates home is worth about $2,737,000, up 4.2% in a year, 4 times the California typical home. 90% of households own their home in Palos Verdes Estates.
| Palos Verdes Estates | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $3,217 a month | $1,895 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 90% | 64% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its A+ ranks #29 of the 847 California towns we grade for schools. Its A+ for schools comes with a D− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $2.74M.
Its public schools are run by the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified school district. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Palos Verdes High, with 1,484 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palos Verdes IntermediateLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 735 | – |
| Palos Verdes HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,484 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with California is no health insurance: 2.6% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 10.6% statewide. Against the 487 U.S. towns with household incomes like Palos Verdes Estates’s, it is less healthy than 51%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
19% of Palos Verdes Estates adults have obesity. Palos Verdes Estates beats the California average on 25 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 17% of Palos Verdes Estates adults have been diagnosed with depression.
| Palos Verdes Estates | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 29% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 17% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 5.4% | 11% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 35% | 36% |
| What stands out | Palos Verdes Estates | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 2.6% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 5.2% | 17.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.2% | 6.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
20 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. Palos Verdes Estates’ trail density is 1.2 miles per square mile.
| Palos Verdes Estates | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.2 miles per square mile | 1.0 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 7% | 4.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Zumaya Canyon | — | 6 |
| 2. Coronel Plaza | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
26.1% of workers work from home, against 17.2% across California.
Since 2013, Palos Verdes Estates has added 394 jobs, to 2,490 in 2023. Most working residents leave Palos Verdes Estates for work: only 5% work in town. The top destinations are Los Angeles (25%), Torrance (10%) and El Segundo (4%).
| Palos Verdes Estates | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $242,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 26% | 14% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 2.9% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 32 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 78% of U.S. communities. Since 1980, 10 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Palos Verdes Estates.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
At 10.5 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 95% of California’s graded towns. Its B+ tops all 3 graded towns on its borders; Rancho Palos Verdes (B+) comes closest.
Among 437 California towns, just 5 have a lower violent crime rate than Palos Verdes Estates.
| Palos Verdes Estates | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.3 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 7.8 per 1,000 residents | 13.4 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
January nights average 50.2°, milder than in 99% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 78.1°.
Palos Verdes Estates has warm winters and pleasant summers, with very little rain. No town among the 846 in California we compare has a higher January low than Palos Verdes Estates. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Palos Verdes Estates | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 78°F | 89°F | 85°F |
| January low | 50°F | 40°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
13 within 15 miles of the center of Palos Verdes Estates
About 3 of every 100 Palos Verdes Estates residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
4 places in Palos Verdes Estates on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in California, United States
Palos Verdes Estates is a coastal city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated on the Palos Verdes Peninsula and neighboring Rancho Palos Verdes and Rolling Hills Estates. The city was master-planned by the noted American landscape architect and planner Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. The city is located along the Southern California coastline of the Pacific Ocean. The population was 13,347 at the 2020 census, a slight decrease from its 2010 population of 13,438. Palos Verdes Estates is one of the wealthiest cities in the United States, and was ranked as "California's richest suburb" in 2025. The 90274 ZIP code (covering the cities of Palos Verdes Estates and Rolling Hills) is …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Palos Verdes Estates.
At #24 in CA, it grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Rancho Palos Verdes (A−) comes closest.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palos Verdes Estates | #24 | A− | D− | B+ | A+ | A+ |
| Rancho Palos Verdes | #28 | A− | D− | B+ | A+ | A+ |
| Rolling Hills Estates | #107 | B+ | D− | C+ | A+ | A+ |
| Torrance | #220 | B− | D− | C− | A | A |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Palos Verdes Estates grades A− overall, better than 85% of U.S. towns and #24 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. The typical home is worth about $2,737,000, 259% above the California typical home and up 4.2% in a year. 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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