The everyday basics are strong; the price of a home is the catch. Health is its strong suit (A+). Add schools to its strengths (A+): its schools outperform 96% of the state's. What counts against it is cost of living (D−): the typical home is worth about $3.1 million, 22.9 years of the San Francisco metro’s $136K median household income. It lags on hazard risk as well — FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 74% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top. Overall, that makes an A, good for 11th of 841 in California. Nationally, it does better than 88% of U.S. towns. Four in five adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Tiburon, against 29% in California’s towns and 29% across U.S. towns.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · schools, state test and graduation results · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · FEMA National Risk Index.
Tiburon fares better on crime within California than nationally, has schools in the top 5% of California and has milder winter nights than nearly all U.S. towns.
At 22.9 years of the San Francisco metro’s $136K median household income, the typical home (about $3.12M) costs more against local pay than in 97% of California towns; that ratio is one input to that grade.
Values rose 9.3% in the 12 months to September 2026. The median rent for Tiburon comes to $3,501 a month. The share of households in Tiburon who live in a home they own: 75%.
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 $3.12M.
Below: Two of its 4 schools, each with why it was picked. Its public schools are run by the Reed Union Elementary school district. Also worth knowing: 3 public schools serve Tiburon, with 1,043 students in all.
Against the 562 U.S. towns with household incomes like Tiburon’s, it is healthier than 76%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
Just over one in ten adults say their health is fair or poor in Tiburon. Among 847 California towns, just 9 have a lower share of adults who get no exercise outside work than Tiburon. In Tiburon, 27% of adults feel lonely, and 12% report frequent mental distress. The town does better than the California average on 22 of 32 CDC measures and worse on 2.
Its A+ for the outdoors ranks #3 of 847 in California.
Angel Island State Park, at 763 acres with 11.9 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. 17 miles of trail in 9 parks and preserves. For Tiburon, the density of trails is 1.3 miles per square mile.
42.7% of workers work from home, against 17.2% across California.
The mean commuting time in Tiburon is 29 minutes. The top destinations are San Francisco (36%), San Rafael (5%) and Oakland (3%). 5.1% of Tiburon working residents work locally.
5%work in town
Tiburon
California towns
U.S. towns
Median household income
$233,000
$95,000
$80,000
Below the poverty line
1.9%
10%
9.6%
Average trip to work
29 minutes
28 minutes
25 minutes
Working residents who work in town
5.1%
6.6%
8%
Where working residents work
In Tiburon5%
San Francisco36%
San Rafael5%
Oakland3%
Novato3%
9 mi
median commute distance
1,680
jobs based in Tiburon
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
A+
Walkability grade: more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns
At 10.9 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 95% of California’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 5 reported in 2025, 0.6 per 1,000 residents.
Tiburon’s level of violent crime is 0.6 per 1,000 residents. In Tiburon, the rate of thefts and burglaries is 7.9 per 1,000 residents.
Flood insurance has paid out on 23 claims in Tiburon since 1980. Of the losses FEMA expects here, 44% come from earthquakes and 41% from inland flooding. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Tiburon after 3 declared disasters, most recently in 2022.
Tiburon ( TIB-ər-on; Spanish: Tiburón, [tiβuˈɾon]) is an incorporated town in Marin County, California, United States. It is located on the Tiburon Peninsula, which reaches south into the San Francisco Bay. It shares a ZIP code (94920) with the smaller incorporated city of Belvedere (formerly a separate island), which occupies the southwestern part of the peninsula and is contiguous with Tiburon. Tiburon is bordered by Corte Madera to the north and Mill Valley to the west, but is otherwise mostly surrounded by the bay. Besides Belvedere and Tiburon, much of the peninsula is unincorporated, including portions of the north side and the communities of Strawberry and Paradise Cay. The populatio…
Belvedere has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Strawberry and Corte Madera report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Tiburon with a neighbor →
Questions about Tiburon
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Tiburon, CA a good place to live?
For most people who can afford it, yes. Tiburon grades A overall, better than 88% of U.S. towns and #11 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−.
Is Tiburon, CA expensive?
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−.
What is Tiburon, CA known for?
4 notable people were born here, including Shoshana Bush and Sam Chapman.