Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 7,714, settled in 1853. 3.1 times the nonprofits per person than the typical California town.
Yreka grades D− overall, 804th of 841 graded towns in California, mostly because of incomes and health. The median household income is $44K, and 17% of residents live below the poverty line. CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 81% of the country. One bright spot: it has 14 miles of trail. 53% of working residents work locally in Yreka, above both the California town median (6.6%) and the median of U.S. towns (8%). Yreka's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 99% of U.S. towns. Yreka has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Yreka Carnegie Library and Forest House.
Where Yreka beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within California), ordered by how far Yreka is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,327 in 1860, 7,807 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1859 and 5 maps from 1922 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Yreka, 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 Yreka.
Yreka is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has milder winter nights than most of the country, though not than most of California; it also has household incomes well below the California norm.
The median property tax bill is $1,605, against $5,124 across California, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
The median rent in Yreka is $987 a month. The typical Yreka home is worth about $252,000, about the same as a year ago, 67% below the California typical home. 57% of Yreka households own their home.
| Yreka | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $987 a month | $1,898 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 57% | 64% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Yreka Union Elementary school district. Two of its 12 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Yreka High, with 612 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson Street ElementaryLargest public middle schoolGrades 4–8 | Grades 4–8 | 438 | C− |
| Yreka HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 612 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CA on state tests and graduation
Yreka’s trail density is 1.4 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is Greenhorn Park, 160 acres with 3.6 miles of trail.
| Yreka | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.4 miles per square mile | 1.0 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.5% | 4.3% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Greenhorn Park | 3.6 mi | 160 |
| 2. Siskiyou County Fairgrounds | 0.8 mi | 55 |
| 3. Yreka Park | — | 7 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Against the 3,666 U.S. towns with household incomes like Yreka’s, it is healthier than 61%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
26% of adults have been diagnosed with depression in Yreka. Yreka beats the California average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 17. 39% of adults have high blood pressure in Yreka.
| Yreka | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 17% | 17% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 22% | 19% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 22% | 23% |
| What stands out | Yreka | CA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 8.6% | 10.6% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 75.4% | 71.3% |
| More adults with COPD | 10.2% | 5.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 85% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
January nights average 28.8°: milder than most of the country, but colder than 90% of California places with climate records; July afternoons average 91.2°.
Yreka has mild winters and warm summers, with very little rain. About 12 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Yreka | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 91°F | 89°F | 85°F |
| January low | 29°F | 41°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 2,937 working residents takes 15.9 minutes, against 28.7 across California.
Since 2013, Yreka has added 820 jobs, to 4,297 in 2023. The top destinations are Redding (4%), Weed (2%) and Happy Camp (2%).
| Yreka | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 16 minutes | 28 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $44,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Yreka's reported crime rate is above California's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. 61 violent crimes were reported in 2025.
| Yreka | California towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 8 per 1,000 residents | 2.9 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 20 per 1,000 residents | 13.3 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
None within 15 miles of Yreka; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 Yreka residents are enrolled in college, against 8 across California.
3 places in Yreka on the National Register of Historic Places.
5 notable people were born in Yreka.
City in California, United States
Yreka ( wy-REE-kə) is a city in and the county seat of Siskiyou County, California, United States, near the Shasta River and about 22 miles south of the state border with Oregon. The city has an area of about 10 square miles (26 km2), most of it land. As of the 2020 census, its population was 7,807, reflecting an increase from 7,765 in the 2010 census. Yreka is home to the College of the Siskiyous, Klamath National Forest Interpretive Museum, and the Siskiyou County Museum. It was incorporated on April 21, 1857.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yreka grades D− overall, in the bottom 2% of U.S. towns and #804 of 841 in California. It grades C− for health and C for schools. Jobs & income 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 C−.
5 notable people were born here, including Erik Bennett and Edward Silsby Farrington.
