Crushed house, 2007
Pleasure Point’s story
Pleasure Point in pictures
Census counts: 3,825 in 1960, 5,821 in 2020. The archive holds 10 old photos and papers going back to 1879 and 6 maps from 1912 on.
Explore the history →
Pleasure PointCA
A town of 5,489.
2 bordering townsMap →
Photo: Grmc922 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
5,489
Census survey, 2020–24
Median home value
$1.18M
Census ACS
Household income
$120K
median
Median age
47.2
years
Jobs based here
1,107
A commuter town
TownGrade
B
#163 of 841 in CA
Is Pleasure Point a good place to live?
For most people who can afford it, yes. Pleasure Point grades B overall, 163rd among California's 841 graded towns. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 88% of the country. The catch is cost: homes are expensive, about $1.2 million for a typical one and 10.7 times the Santa Cruz metro’s $111K median household income. Pleasure Point’s median rent is $2,705 a month, above both California’s towns ($1,895 a month) and U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). Pleasure Point is more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns. The biggest park or preserve is Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, at 795 acres.
What makes Pleasure Point stand out
Where Pleasure Point beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
A commuter town
96% of working residents leave Pleasure Point for work
Where Pleasure Point’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
1,107jobs based in Pleasure Point
4%of working residents work in town
8 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Pleasure Point grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Pleasure Point is from typical.
Its grades run from A for walkability (better than 94% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 2%), so the B overall blends very different results.
Cost of livingD−Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 14.7 of 20; 4.3% of households have no carAOpen →Hazard riskearthquakes tops the listDOpen →HealthDominican Hospital 2.1 miles awayAOpen →Jobs & incomeB+Open →SchoolsBeat 65% of California districts on tests and graduationB+Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
ClimateMild winters, 72° summer afternoons–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 47.2; 56% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Nearby attractions
All 115 attractions →Levi's Stadium and 78 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Pleasure Point. Close and well known come first.
Big draw31 mi Stadium & arenaLevi's Stadium
Big draw30 mi Theme parkCalifornia's Great America
3 mi Theme parkSanta Cruz Beach Boardwalk
24 mi Zoo & aquariumMonterey Bay Aquarium
26 mi Stadium & arenaSAP Center
25 mi MuseumMonterey Museum of ArtSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Levi's Stadium: Matthew Roth, CC BY-SA 2.0 · California's Great America: Oleg Alexandrov, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk: Josta Photo, CC BY 2.0 · Monterey Bay Aquarium: Meij.kobayashi, Public domain · SAP Center: Dicklyon, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Monterey Museum of Art: Sgerbic, CC BY-SA 4.0
Getting set up
Moving to Pleasure Point: who provides what
Pleasure Point is unincorporated, so Santa Cruz County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerPG&E37.5¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterSanta Cruz Water DepartmentNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet7 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesSanta Cruz CountySanta Cruz County provides services here
SchoolsSanta Cruz City High School District (9-12)Live Oak Elementary School District2 districts serve Pleasure Point; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
Register to voteOnlineIn 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).vote.govWho runs elections hereSanta Cruz County Clerk - ElectionsSanta Cruz County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jul 2025
ZIP code9506295062 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Pleasure Point.
Pleasure Point has a longer frost-free season than nearly all U.S. towns and has less tooth loss than most of California, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of California.
HealthA
Pleasure Point earns an A for health
Its widest gap with California is tooth loss: 5% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 10.6% statewide.
17% of Pleasure Point adults get no exercise outside work. Pleasure Point beats the California average on 13 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 26% of Pleasure Point adults have obesity.
88%healthier than U.S. townsAHealth Grade
| Pleasure Point | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 24% | 25% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 29% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 35% | 36% |
32 measures vs. California
13 better18 too close to call1 worse
| What stands out | Pleasure Point | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 5% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 10.2% | 17.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 8.7% | 6.4% |
Dominican Hospital
2.1 mi away · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
81st
percentile among CA towns
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade D
Very high risk in Pleasure Point, with earthquakes at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 88% of U.S. communities. Since 2008, 8 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Pleasure Point.
88risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
EarthquakesTsunamisInland flooding
8
paid flood claims since 2008
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Work & commuteJobs & income grade B+
With 0.5 jobs for every working resident, most of Pleasure Point’s workers commute out
Jobs based here grew from 794 in 2013 to 1,107. 26.1% of workers work from home, against 17.2% across California.
Most working residents leave Pleasure Point for work: only 4% work in town. Pleasure Point’s median household income is $120,000. Since 2013, Pleasure Point has added 313 jobs, to 1,107 in 2023.
4%work in town
| Pleasure Point | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $120,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.3% | 6.6% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 8.9% | 10% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Pleasure Point4%
Santa Cruz21%
Live Oak7%
San Jose7%
Capitola6%
8 mi
median commute distance
1,107
jobs based in Pleasure Point
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
A
Walkability grade: more walkable than 94% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
#504for trails in CA
| Pleasure Point | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.4% | 4.3% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 1.0 | 0.4 |
1.4%
conserved · 18 of 1,283 acres
1.2 mi
of trails · 0.6 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Moran Lake County Park | 0.5 mi | 11 |
| 2. Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary | — | 795 |
| 3. Corcoran Lagoon Coastal Access | — | 12 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Climate
Mild winters and pleasant summers in Pleasure Point
The Santa Cruz weather station records that the frost-free season runs about 323 days, longer than in 96% of U.S. towns. January nights average 42.5°, milder than in 96% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 70°.
Pleasure Point has warm winters and cool summers. The July high in Pleasure Point is 70°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
72°summer high
| Pleasure Point | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 70°F | 89°F | 85°F |
| January low | 43°F | 40°F | 22°F |
Typical low → high °F
Winter43–60°
Spring47–65°
Summer54–70°
Fall50–69°
Dec 13
typical first frost
Jan 29
typical last frost
+1.8°
vs. the 20th-century average
72°
typical summer high
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
HousingCost of living grade D−
A home in Pleasure Point sells for about $3.25M at the median
At 10.7 years of the Santa Cruz metro’s $111K median household income, the typical home costs more against local pay than in 81% of California towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living.
38% of renter households spend 30% or more of their income on rent in Pleasure Point.
$3.25Mmedian sale price
| Pleasure Point | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 38% | 55% | 48% |
| Households that own their home | 60% | 64% | 73% |
3
homes sold in May
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Pleasure Point
17pages on Pleasure Point
The big questions
Out and about
The story
Day to day
After high school
Colleges nearby
3 within 15 miles of the center of Pleasure Point
Five Branches UniversityUniversity or college · Private for-profit · Santa Cruz1.6 miCabrillo CollegeCommunity college · Public · Aptos3.2 mi$1,270 in-state tuitionUniversity of California-Santa CruzUniversity or college · Public · Santa Cruz5.5 mi$16,005 in-state tuition
About 8 of every 100 Pleasure Point residents are enrolled in college, about the same as California.
About Pleasure Point
Census-designated place in California, United States
Pleasure Point is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Cruz County, California, United States. Pleasure Point sits at an elevation of 33 feet (10 m). The 2020 United States census reported Pleasure Point's population was 5,821. Prior to the 2010 census, this CDP was called Opal Cliffs.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 2.0 sq mi
- Elevation
- 33 ft
Pleasure Point’s neighbors
2 towns share a border with Pleasure Point.
CapitolaTwin LakesPleasure Point
How the neighbors grade
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pleasure Point | #163 | B | D− | — | B+ | A |
| Capitola | #305 | C+ | D | C− | A− | A− |
| Twin Lakes | #206 | B− | D− | — | B+ | A− |
Pleasure Point and Twin Lakes report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Pleasure Point with a neighbor →
Questions about Pleasure Point
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Pleasure Point, CA a good place to live?
For most people who can afford it, yes. Pleasure Point grades B overall, better than 55% of U.S. towns and #163 of 841 in California. It grades A for health and B+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
Is Pleasure Point, CA expensive?
Yes. The typical home is worth about $1,184,000, 55% above the California typical home.