Squaw ValleyCA
This town of 3,361 people was settled in 1879.
Is Squaw Valley a good place to live?
A town with more to fix than most. Its weakest subject is incomes (D) — the median household income is $50K, and 16% of residents live below the poverty line. It lags on hazard risk as well — FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 94% of U.S. communities, with wildfire at the top. Where it does best is schools: its public schools beat 64% of California towns on state tests and graduation. Homes run about $388K for a typical one, 5.2 times the Fresno metro’s $74K median household income. The overall grade lands at D, 592nd of 841 in California. On that grade it does better than 12% of U.S. towns. On the outdoors, just 19 of California’s 1,064 towns do worse.
Figures: schools, state test and graduation results · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · FEMA National Risk Index · home values, Zillow · USGS PAD-US.
Squaw Valley has grown 13% from 2010 to 2020
3,162 counted in 2010 and 3,564 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
How Squaw Valley grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Squaw Valley is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to Squaw Valley: who provides what
Squaw Valley is unincorporated, so Fresno County and regional agencies provide most services.
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 Squaw Valley.
Squaw Valley has hotter summers than nearly all U.S. towns and sends most of its workers to Fresno and beyond, but it is a long drive from an emergency room.
Top of a very high hazard risk in Squaw Valley: wildfire
FEMA puts 58% of Squaw Valley’s expected hazard losses down to wildfires, and 37% to inland flooding. One declared disaster, in 2020, has brought federal aid to Squaw Valley households.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chestry Oak Academy PrivateLargest high schoolGrades 3–12 | Grades 3–12 | 6 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Squaw Valley’s grade for cost of living is a C+
The median property tax bill is $1,962, against $5,124 across California, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
For households in Squaw Valley, the share who own their home is 80%. The going rate for rent for Squaw Valley comes to $1,129 a month, where California’s towns sit at $1,898 a month and U.S. towns at $1,185 a month. Home values are up 1.9% over the year to September 2026.
| Squaw Valley | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,129 a month | $1,898 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 80% | 64% | 73% |
Typical home value
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
The average trip to work in Squaw Valley is longer than in most of California or the rest of the country
Squaw Valley has 254 jobs for its 1,134 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. The average commute takes 56.8 minutes, against 28.7 across California.
Employers in Squaw Valley added 49 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 254. The top destinations are Fresno (23%), Clovis (6%) and Reedley (4%). Half commute less than 31 miles.
| Squaw Valley | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 57 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4% | 6.6% | 8% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Older than California overall
The median household earns $49,904, against $99,122 across California, one input to its D for jobs and income.
Squaw Valley’s median age stands at 50.7 years. People 65 and older are just over a quarter of residents (16% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 16% of residents (24% statewide). Four-year graduates: 28% of adults 25 and older here, 37% across California.
| Squaw Valley | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 50.7 years | 39 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 26% | 16% | 18% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
48% women, 52% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±8.2 points. Across California, 50.1% of residents are women. Among residents 18 to 24, 100% are men (CA 51%).
| Squaw Valley | CA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.3% | 11.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 12.3% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5.7% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.4% | 14.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 7.3% | 13.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.4% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 19.6% | 12.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 15.5% | 9.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.3% | 6.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9.1% | 15.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23.5% | 20.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 32.8% | 19.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7% | 7.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 21.3% | 22.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 6.3% | 14.4% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 3,400, single groups can be off by several points
Four seasons and hot summers: that is Squaw Valley’s year
July afternoons average 96.5°, hotter than in 98% of U.S. towns; January nights average 39°.
The January low for Squaw Valley comes to 39°F, close to California’s towns (41°F) and above U.S. towns (22°F). The town’s July high is 97°F.
| Squaw Valley | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 97°F | 89°F | 85°F |
| January low | 39°F | 41°F | 22°F |
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Health in Squaw Valley trails 58% of U.S. towns
The nearest emergency room, Clovis Community Medical Center, is 27.4 miles away in a straight line. Against the 5,763 U.S. towns with household incomes like Squaw Valley’s, it is healthier than 81%, so its C+ isn’t only a matter of income.
In Squaw Valley, 15% of adults report frequent physical distress. The town does better than the California average on 9 of 32 CDC measures and worse on 9. 14% of adults in Squaw Valley binge drink; 36% have obesity.
| Squaw Valley | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 31% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 16% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 29% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 76% | 72% | 79% |
| What stands out | Squaw Valley | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 7.7% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 11.4% | 14.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.2% | 6.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
0% of Squaw Valley is conserved land
11 miles of trail. The trail network density for Squaw Valley comes to 0.2 miles per square mile.
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about Squaw Valley
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Squaw Valley; the nearest are
About 6 of every 100 Squaw Valley residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
96% of working residents leave Squaw Valley for work
Where Squaw Valley’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Questions about Squaw Valley
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Squaw Valley, CA a good place to live?
Squaw Valley grades D overall, better than 12% of U.S. towns and #592 of 841 in California. It grades C+ for health and B for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Is Squaw Valley, CA expensive?
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.