Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Woodland grades C overall, ranked 379th of 841 in California, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 92% of U.S. towns. On the other side, the typical home is worth about $548K, 5.6 years of the Sacramento metro’s $97K median household income. Woodland’s July high is 95°F, against 89°F in California’s towns and 85°F across U.S. towns. Woodland has 11 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Woodland Opera House and William B. Gibson House. Woodland's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 80% of U.S. towns.
Where Woodland beats most towns.
Woodland Opera House| College | Students |
|---|---|
| Woodland Community College | 1,696 |
Census counts: 2,257 in 1880, 61,032 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1857 and 7 maps from 1907 on.
11 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Woodland is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Woodland. Close and well known come first.
27 mi LakeLake Berryessa
13 mi Stadium & arenaARCO Arena
17 mi State parkSutter's Fort
16 mi State parkGovernor's Mansion State Historic Park
15 mi MuseumCalifornia State Railroad Museum500K visitors a year
19 mi Stadium & arenaHornet StadiumLake Berryessa: Unknown, Public domain · ARCO Arena: CLopez63, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Sutter's Fort: Ian Howard, CC BY 2.5 · Governor's Mansion State Historic Park: Mark James Miller, CC BY 3.0 · California State Railroad Museum: The original uploader was Swampyank at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 3.0 · Hornet Stadium: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Woodland, 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 Woodland.
Woodland has a longer frost-free season than nearly all U.S. towns and has seen reported crime fall by about half.
The median rent in Woodland is $1,583 a month. The typical Woodland home is worth about $548,000, about the same as a year ago, 28% below the California typical home. 59% of households own their home in Woodland.
| Woodland | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 59% | 64% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,583 a month | $1,898 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 52% | 55% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Woodland Joint Unified school district. Three of its 20 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ramon S. Tafoya ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–6 | Grades K–6 | 772 | – |
| Pioneer HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,582 | A− |
| Freeman ElementaryTop results in townGrades K–6 | Grades K–6 | 415 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 70% of U.S. communities. Since 1980, 9 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Woodland.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Reported crimes fell from 1,519 to 786 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Within California, it does better than 60% of towns.
| Woodland | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.8 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 10.6 per 1,000 residents | 13.4 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The Woodland 1 Wnw weather station records that the frost-free season runs about 301 days, longer than in 95% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 94.9°, hotter than in 96% of U.S. towns; January nights average 39.2°.
Woodland has mild winters and hot summers, with very little rain. Woodland’s January low is 39°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
About one in 4 of Woodland’s working residents works in town. Since 2013, Woodland has added 4,786 jobs, to 21,708 in 2023. The top destinations are Sacramento (13%), Davis (6%) and University of California-Davis (3%).
| Woodland | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 25% | 6.6% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 25 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 8.2% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $90,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
7.5 miles of trail in 22 parks and preserves.
| Woodland | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 1.0 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.6% | 4.3% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pioneer Park | 0.7 mi | 10 |
| 2. Dave Douglass Park ("The Holding Ponds") | — | 12 |
| 3. Rick Gonzales Senior Park | 0.2 mi | 11 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Woodland beats the California average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 31% of Woodland adults sleep under 7 hours.
| Woodland | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 35% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 71% | 72% | 79% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 31% | 35% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 9% | 8.1% |
| What stands out | Woodland | CA |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 12.3% | 10.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Woodland has grown 2.4% since 2020, to 62,513 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 30% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 37% across California.
| Woodland | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 14% | 16% | 18% |
| Median age | 36.6 years | 39.1 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 24% | 22% | 22% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±1.1 points. Across California, 50.1% of residents are women. Median age: women 37.5, men 35.7.
| Woodland | CA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.5% | 11.4% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11.1% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 10.6% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.9% | 14.8% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.8% | 13.9% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.1% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.4% | 12.1% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 8% | 9.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.6% | 6.5% | 7% |
| No diploma | 16.2% | 15.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23.1% | 20.5% | 26% |
| Some college | 22.8% | 19.3% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7.5% | 7.9% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.6% | 22.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 11.8% | 14.4% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
2 within 15 miles of the center of Woodland
About 8 of every 100 Woodland residents are enrolled in college, about the same as California.
11 places in Woodland on the National Register of Historic Places.
33 notable people were born in Woodland.
City in California, United States
Woodland is a city in and the county seat of Yolo County, California, United States. Located approximately 15 miles (24 km) northwest of Sacramento, it is a part of the Sacramento metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, Woodland had a population of 61,032. Woodland's origins date to 1850 when California gained statehood and Yolo County was established. The area was well irrigated due to the efforts of James Moore, which drew people into farming as the soil was very fertile. The city gained a federal post office in 1861 with the help of Missourian Frank S. Freeman. A year after this, in 1862, the county seat was moved from Washington (present day West Sacramento) to Woodland after Washingt…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Woodland grades C overall, better than 30% of U.S. towns and #379 of 841 in California. It grades B for health, C for safety and B− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Within California, it does better than 60% 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.
33 notable people were born here, including Thomas Haden Church and Dustin Pedroia.
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