Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Pleasanton grades A− overall, 65th among California's 841 graded towns. It is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 98% of U.S. towns. Residents are healthier than 98% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and its schools outperform 94% of the state's. What holds it back is price: homes are expensive, about $1.5 million for a typical one and 11 times the San Francisco metro’s $136K median household income. 70% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Pleasanton, where California’s towns sit at 29% and U.S. towns at 29%. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 97% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top. Pleasanton has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Heathcote-MacKenzie House.
Where Pleasanton beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
70,285 counted in 2010 and 79,871 in 2020; an estimated 74,556 in 2025.
Since 2020 the trend has turned: down 6.6%, after 13.6% growth 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 Pleasanton is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 98% of comparable towns) to D− for hazard risk (better than 2%), so the A− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 350 in 1870, 79,871 in 2020. The archive holds 16 old photos and papers going back to 1902 and 4 maps from 1906 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Pleasanton. Close and well known come first.
Big draw32 mi MuseumAlcatraz Federal Penitentiary
Big draw19 mi Stadium & arenaLevi's Stadium
Big draw19 mi Theme parkCalifornia's Great America
Big draw24 mi MuseumUSS Hornet
Big draw29 mi Stadium & arenaChase Center
Big draw29 mi Stadium & arenaOracle ParkAlcatraz Federal Penitentiary: druchoy, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Levi's Stadium: Matthew Roth, 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 · Oracle Park: User Coasttocoast on en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Pleasanton, 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 Pleasanton.
Pleasanton draws workers from Livermore and beyond, reports less crime than Dublin or any other graded neighbor and has less no health insurance than most of California.
At 11 years of the San Francisco metro’s $136K median household income, the typical home (about $1.5M) costs more against local pay than in 82% of California towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living. The typical value, about $1.5M, is 13% below its June 2022 peak.
The median rent in Pleasanton is $3,060 a month. The typical Pleasanton home is worth about $1,501,000, down 3% in a year, 97% above the California typical home.
| Pleasanton | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $3,060 a month | $1,895 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 67% | 64% | 73% |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 48% | 55% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its A for schools comes with a D− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $1.5M.
Its public schools are run by the Pleasanton Unified school district. Two of its 25 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas S. Hart MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 1,129 | – |
| Amador Valley HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,583 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with California is no health insurance: 3.9% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 10.6% statewide. Against the 1,119 U.S. towns with household incomes like Pleasanton’s, it is healthier than 73%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
20% of Pleasanton adults have obesity. Pleasanton beats the California average on 21 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 9.9% of Pleasanton adults report frequent physical distress.
| Pleasanton | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 29% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 9.9% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 17% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 7.1% | 11% | 14% |
| What stands out | Pleasanton | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 3.9% | 10.6% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 4.7% | 10.6% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 7.5% | 6.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
44 miles of trail in 41 parks and preserves. Pleasanton’s trail density is 1.8 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is Pleasanton Ridge Regional Park, 417 acres with 6.2 miles of trail.
| Pleasanton | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.8 miles per square mile | 1.0 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 12% | 4.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pleasanton Ridge Regional Park | 6.2 mi | 417 |
| 2. Augustin Bernal Park | 4.7 mi | 215 |
| 3. Bernal Community Park | 1.9 mi | 89 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
61,125 jobs are based in Pleasanton, 1.7 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. 29.1% of workers work from home, against 17.2% across California.
Most working residents leave Pleasanton for work: only 15% work in town. 5.3% of residents live below the poverty line in Pleasanton. Jobs based in Pleasanton grew to 61,125 in 2023, 8,081 more than in 2013.
| Pleasanton | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $190,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 34 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 6.6% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 5.3% | 10% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Since 1983, 9 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Pleasanton.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Pleasanton has mild winters and warm summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 88°, January nights drop to 39° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Crime runs higher than in most U.S. towns, but its C+ tops all 3 graded towns on its borders; Dublin (C+) comes closest. Reported crimes fell from 1,586 to 1,113 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Within California, it does better than 73% of towns.
| Pleasanton | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.2 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 13.7 per 1,000 residents | 13.3 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
7 within 15 miles of the center of Pleasanton
About 6 of every 100 Pleasanton residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
Where Pleasanton’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
2 places in Pleasanton on the National Register of Historic Places.
17 notable people were born in Pleasanton.
City in California, United States
Pleasanton is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. Located in the Amador Valley, it is an upscale suburb in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 79,871 at the 2020 census. In 2005 and 2007, Pleasanton was ranked the wealthiest middle-sized city in the United States by the Census Bureau. Pleasanton is home to the headquarters of Safeway, Workday, Ellie Mae, Roche Molecular Diagnostics, Blackhawk Network Holdings, Veeva Systems, and Simpson Manufacturing Company. Other major employers include Kaiser Permanente, Oracle, and Macy's. Although Oakland is the Alameda County seat, a few county offices are located in Pleasanton. The Alameda County Fai…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Pleasanton.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pleasanton | #65 | A− | D− | C+ | A | A+ |
| Dublin | #58 | A− | D− | C+ | A+ | A+ |
| Sunol | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Livermore | #139 | B | D− | C | A− | A |
| Hayward | #528 | C− | D | D | C+ | B+ |
Sunol isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Pleasanton with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Pleasanton grades A− overall, better than 75% of U.S. towns and #65 of 841 in California. It grades A+ for health, C+ for safety and A for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Within California, it does better than 73% of towns.
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−.
17 notable people were born here, including William E. Moerner and Ellen Brown.
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