Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Woodside grades A− overall, 35th of 841 graded towns in California. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 98% of the country and the median household earns $250K. The catch is cost: the typical home is worth about $4.0 million, 29.4 years of the San Francisco metro’s $136K median household income. 76% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Woodside, above both the California town median (29%) and the median of U.S. towns (29%). Only 61 of California’s 1,063 towns score higher on history. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 90% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top.
Where Woodside beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Census counts: 3,592 in 1960, 5,309 in 2020. The archive holds 22 old photos and papers going back to 1856 and 5 maps from 1940 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Woodside is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for health (better than 98% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 1%), so the A− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Woodside. Close and well known come first.
Big draw16 mi Stadium & arenaLevi's Stadium
Big draw29 mi MuseumAlcatraz Federal Penitentiary
Big draw16 mi Theme parkCalifornia's Great America
Big draw24 mi MuseumUSS Hornet
Big draw25 mi Stadium & arenaChase Center
4 mi MuseumFiloliLevi's Stadium: Matthew Roth, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary: druchoy, 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 · Filoli: Sukuru, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Woodside, 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 Woodside.
Woodside trades workers with San Francisco and other neighbors and owes part of its health edge to its incomes, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of California.
At 29.4 years of the San Francisco metro’s $136K median household income, the typical home (about $4M) costs more against local pay than in 99% of California towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living.
Woodside’s median rent is $3,501 a month. Typical home values rose 8.4% in the year to September 2026. 87% of Woodside households own their home.
| Woodside | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $3,501 a month | $1,895 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 87% | 64% | 73% |
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 $4M.
Its public schools are run by the Woodside Elementary school district. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Woodside ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–8 | Grades K–8 | 385 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
29 miles of trail in 8 parks and preserves. The trail density in Woodside is 2.5 miles per square mile. Teague Hill Open Space Preserve, at 625 acres with 6.8 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Teague Hill Open Space Preserve | 6.8 mi | 625 |
| 2. Wunderlich County Park | 2.1 mi | 81 |
| 3. Thornewood Open Space Preserve | 2 mi | 142 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Against the 436 U.S. towns with household incomes like Woodside’s, it is less healthy than 52%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
24% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Woodside. Woodside beats the California average on 21 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 6.3% of adults smoke cigarettes in Woodside.
| Woodside | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 35% | 36% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 17% | 17% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 29% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 6.3% | 11% | 14% |
| What stands out | Woodside | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 3% | 10.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 5.5% | 17.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.1% | 6.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Since 1978, 10 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Woodside.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Woodside has warm winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 80°, January nights drop to 40° and snow is almost unheard of.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Woodside has about as many jobs (1,770) as working residents, but only 81 people both live and work here. 30.5% of workers work from home, against 17.2% across California.
Since 2013, Woodside has lost 220 jobs, to 1,770 in 2023. Most working residents leave Woodside for work: only 4% work in town. The top destinations are San Francisco (10%), Palo Alto (7%) and San Jose (6%).
| Woodside | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $250,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 4.5% | 10% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 29 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.2% | 6.6% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
11 within 15 miles of the center of Woodside
About 3 of every 100 Woodside residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
4 places in Woodside on the National Register of Historic Places.
3 notable people were born in Woodside.
Town in California, United States
Woodside is an incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, United States, on the San Francisco Peninsula. It has a council–manager system of government. The population of the town was 5,309 at the 2020 census. The town's population has a median household income above $250,000 and median home price above $5 million. The town is known for its quaint and small town feel despite being close to Silicon Valley, and is home to many venture capital and investment firms.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Woodside.
| Town | CA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woodside | #35 | A− | D− | — | A | A+ |
| Portola Valley | #57 | A− | D− | — | A | A+ |
| Redwood City | #160 | B | D− | C− | A | A |
| Atherton | #34 | A− | D− | B | A+ | A+ |
| Menlo Park | #109 | B+ | D− | C+ | A− | A+ |
Woodside and Portola Valley report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Woodside with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Woodside grades A− overall, better than 82% of U.S. towns and #35 of 841 in California. It grades A+ for health and A for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
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−.
3 notable people were born here, including Karl Cook and Zachary Test.
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