Santa Clara, California
Cost of living, housing, income, commute, climate, and safety — compiled for relocators researching Santa Clara.
Key figures
Each metric shows how Santa Clara 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
- 129,239City limits · not metro/MSA
- Median household income
- $173,670Incorporated place (ACS)121% above U.S. avgU.S. $78,538
- Housing cost index
- 363ACS home+rent vs U.S. (100 = avg)263% above U.S. avgU.S. 100
- Median home value
- $1,527,900City limits (ACS)404% above U.S. avgU.S. $303,400
- Median rent
- $2,985City limits (ACS)121% above U.S. avgU.S. $1,348
- Unemployment
- 3.4%County LAUS · not city-onlyNear U.S. avg (4.2 pts)U.S. 4.2 pts
- Avg commute
- 26 minNear U.S. avg (25 min)U.S. 25 min
- Walk Score
- 5420% above U.S. avgU.S. 45
- Violent crime rate
- 163.1annualized per 100k · citywide73% below U.S. avgU.S. 602.7
- Property crime rate
- 3619.6annualized per 100k · citywide17% above U.S. avgU.S. 3084.9
- Summer high
- 80°F7.0°F below U.S. avgU.S. 87°F
- Winter low
- 42°F8.0°F above U.S. avgU.S. 34°F
- Annual rainfall
- 13.5 in59% below U.S. avgU.S. 32.9 in
- Sunny days
- 30615% above U.S. avgU.S. 266
Compare Santa Clara 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 26 minutes, and Walk Score estimates land around 54/100. Labor-market readings near 3.4% unemployment are neither boom nor bust by national standards. Violent-offense rates near 163.1 per 100k compare favorably with many peer metros, though local blocks still differ.
About 129,239 people live in Santa Clara, CA. With median income around $173,670 and a cost index of 363, the market reads well above the national housing-cost baseline. Ownership is a high bar — typical values near $1,527,900 push many newcomers toward renting first.
Santa Clara 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 Santa Clara 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 (Santa Clara city, 1600000US0669084)
- BLS: BLS LAUS LAUCN060850000000003 (Santa Clara 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 (USW00023293 SAN JOSE)
Last updated 2026-07-28