Hayward, California
Cost of living, housing, income, commute, climate, and safety — compiled for relocators researching Hayward.
Key figures
Each metric shows how Hayward compares with the U.S. baseline (ACS/BLS nationals where available; catalog-city averages for crime, climate, and commute). Income, housing, population, and crime are for the incorporated city (city limits), not the broader metro/MSA — unemployment is county-level (BLS LAUS).
- Population
- 159,201City limits · not metro/MSA
- Median household income
- $113,775Incorporated place (ACS)45% above U.S. avgU.S. $78,538
- Housing cost index
- 223ACS home+rent vs U.S. (100 = avg)123% above U.S. avgU.S. 100
- Median home value
- $820,700City limits (ACS)171% above U.S. avgU.S. $303,400
- Median rent
- $2,360City limits (ACS)75% above U.S. avgU.S. $1,348
- Unemployment
- 3.8%County LAUS · not city-onlyNear U.S. avg (4.2 pts)U.S. 4.2 pts
- Avg commute
- 34 min36% above U.S. avgU.S. 25 min
- Walk Score
- 5420% above U.S. avgU.S. 45
- Violent crime rate
- 341.6annualized per 100k · citywide43% below U.S. avgU.S. 602.7
- Property crime rate
- 3023.7annualized per 100k · citywideNear U.S. avg (3084.9)U.S. 3084.9
- Summer high
- 75°F12.0°F below U.S. avgU.S. 87°F
- Winter low
- 44°F10.0°F above U.S. avgU.S. 34°F
- Annual rainfall
- 16 in51% below U.S. avgU.S. 32.9 in
- Sunny days
- 30615% above U.S. avgU.S. 266
Compare Hayward with another city
Pacific weather, wildfire seasons, and housing scarcity dominate relocation tradeoffs. Roughly 306 sunny days a year give outdoor routines unusual calendar reliability. Average one-way commute time is about 34 minutes, and Walk Score estimates land around 54/100. Labor-market readings near 3.8% unemployment are neither boom nor bust by national standards. Violent-offense rates around 341.6 per 100k are moderate for a large U.S. city, with meaningful variation by neighborhood.
Hayward, California counts about 159,201 residents inside the city limits. With median income around $113,775 and a cost index of 223, the market reads well above the national housing-cost baseline. Ownership is a high bar — typical values near $820,700 push many newcomers toward renting first.
Hayward is compact enough that a single wrong neighborhood choice is easy to feel day to day — visit at commute hour before signing. Figures on this page are merged from Census ACS, BLS LAUS, FBI Crime Data Explorer, and NOAA Climate Normals — use them to compare Hayward with nearby alternatives before you relocate.
Nearby & similar cities
Continue researching with these internal links — each page is a full data profile.
Sources
- Census / ACS: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2023 5-year (Hayward city, 1600000US0633000)
- BLS: BLS LAUS LAUCN060010000000003 (Alameda County, May 2026)
- Crime: FBI CIUS Table 8 (2019) city offenses known to law enforcement — rates per 100k; CDE API unavailable at enrich time
- Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 Monthly Normals (USW00093228 HAYWARD AIR TERMINAL)
Last updated 2026-07-28