You have to be either a trust fund baby, married to a Kardashian, super good at a sport, or a famous movie producer to live in our top ten richest cities in California for 2025.
You can stop searching if you’re looking for safe cities and neighborhoods, excellent schools, large green spaces, grand swimming pools, good food, and high-end shopping with a paycheck to match. We found the cities with the highest home prices and incomes in California.
Cities like Palos Verdes Estates and Pleasanton grace the Pacific Coast. And cities like San Ramon and Mill Valley are the playground to San Francisco.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Richest Places In California For 2025
To narrow down the richest cities in California, we looked at median household income and home prices for all cities also with a population of at least 3,000. This filter left us with 446 cities.
What is the richest city in California? The richest city in California for 2025 is Atherton.
To take a closer look at the wealthiest cities in California for 2025, warm up your yacht, head to the sunny side of Half Moon Beach, and read on.
Rich people not your cup of tea? Feel free to check out some more reading about California:
The 10 Richest Cities In California For 2025
1. Atherton
/10
Population: 7,021
Median Income: $250,001
Median Home Values: $7,619,338
More on Atherton: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
2. Los Altos Hills
/10
Population: 8,367
Median Income: $250,001
Median Home Values: $5,764,119
More on Los Altos Hills: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
3. Hillsborough
/10
Population: 11,122
Median Income: $250,001
Median Home Values: $5,062,403
More on Hillsborough: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
4. Los Altos
/10
Population: 30,736
Median Income: $250,001
Median Home Values: $4,332,738
More on Los Altos: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
5. Monte Sereno
/10
6. Portola Valley
/10
Population: 4,329
Median Income: $250,001
Median Home Values: $4,033,636
More on Portola Valley: Data
7. Woodside
/10
Population: 5,181
Median Income: $250,001
Median Home Values: $3,706,415
More on Woodside: Data | Cost Of Living
8. Saratoga
/10
Population: 30,335
Median Income: $241,348
Median Home Values: $3,880,499
More on Saratoga: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
9. Palo Alto
/10
Population: 67,231
Median Income: $220,408
Median Home Values: $3,453,770
More on Palo Alto: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
10. Cupertino
/10
Population: 58,886
Median Income: $231,139
Median Home Values: $2,948,793
More on Cupertino: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Methodology: How We Determined The Richest Places In California For 2025
The first thing that comes to most people’s minds when they think about determining the richest places is simply identifying personal incomes. After all, rich people have really high salaries.
However, we don’t believe that one statistic wholly encompasses what it means to be one of the “richest places.” So we looked at this set of criteria from the newly released 2019-2023 American Community Survey and applied Saturday Night Science:
- Median Home Values
- Median Household Income
Median household income is the most digestible way to understand how rich a place is. And home values are a measure of wealth. The two combine to define a “Rich City.”
After we collected the data for all 446 places with more than 3,000 people in California, we ranked each place from 1 to 446 for each of the criteria, with 1 being the richest.
We then averaged all the rankings for a place into a “Rich Score,” with the place having the lowest overall Rich Score, Atherton, crowned the “Richest City In California For 2025.”
The data has been updated for 2025. This is our tenth time ranking the wealthiest cities in California.
You can skip to the end to see the rankings for all 446 places.
Summary: The Wealthiest Places In California For 2025
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the richest places in California, we weren’t sure what we’d encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in California.
The richest cities in California are Atherton, Los Altos Hills, Hillsborough, Los Altos, Monte Sereno, Portola Valley, Woodside, Saratoga, Palo Alto, and Cupertino.
When you look at the data, the cities and places mentioned above meet the criteria for being at the very top of the income ladder for everyone that lives there.
If you’re curious enough, here are the poorest cities in California, according to data:
Poorest: Needles
2nd Poorest: Clearlake
3rd Poorest: Huron
For more California reading, check out:
- Worst Places To Live In California
- Best Places To Raise A Family In California
- Best Places To Live In California
Detailed List Of The Richest Cities In California
| Rank | City | RichScore | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Atherton | 3.0 | $250,001 | $7,619,338 |
| 2 | Los Altos Hills | 3.5 | $250,001 | $5,764,119 |
| 3 | Hillsborough | 4.0 | $250,001 | $5,062,403 |
| 4 | Los Altos | 4.5 | $250,001 | $4,332,738 |
| 5 | Monte Sereno | 5.0 | $250,001 | $4,084,920 |
| 6 | Portola Valley | 5.5 | $250,001 | $4,033,636 |
| 7 | Woodside | 6.5 | $250,001 | $3,706,415 |
| 8 | Saratoga | 9.0 | $241,348 | $3,880,499 |
| 9 | Palo Alto | 13.5 | $220,408 | $3,453,770 |
| 10 | Cupertino | 14.0 | $231,139 | $2,948,793 |
| 11 | Palos Verdes Estates | 15.0 | $247,500 | $2,688,953 |
| 12 | Piedmont | 16.0 | $250,001 | $2,249,755 |
| 13 | Tiburon | 17.5 | $212,794 | $2,825,485 |
| 14 | San Carlos | 18.5 | $233,333 | $2,309,778 |
| 15 | Del Mar | 19.0 | $192,845 | $3,559,628 |
| 16 | Manhattan Beach | 20.5 | $193,904 | $3,076,975 |
| 17 | Orinda | 20.5 | $250,001 | $1,887,931 |
| 18 | Menlo Park | 20.5 | $206,588 | $2,694,649 |
| 19 | Malibu | 21.5 | $192,159 | $3,205,716 |
| 20 | Los Gatos | 21.5 | $207,891 | $2,440,617 |
| 21 | San Marino | 24.5 | $187,633 | $2,708,353 |
| 22 | Belmont | 24.5 | $207,609 | $2,197,632 |
| 23 | Villa Park | 25.0 | $204,750 | $2,251,326 |
| 24 | Danville | 26.0 | $223,206 | $1,843,806 |
| 25 | Mill Valley | 26.5 | $208,466 | $1,944,158 |
| 26 | Lafayette | 28.0 | $222,393 | $1,830,020 |
| 27 | Newport Beach | 30.5 | $158,461 | $3,446,521 |
| 28 | Corte Madera | 31.0 | $220,771 | $1,744,669 |
| 29 | Sunnyvale | 33.5 | $181,862 | $1,979,371 |
| 30 | Burlingame | 33.5 | $168,832 | $2,585,405 |
| 31 | Mountain View | 34.5 | $179,917 | $1,948,838 |
| 32 | Rolling Hills Estates | 34.5 | $187,500 | $1,871,459 |
| 33 | Foster City | 35.0 | $193,633 | $1,815,930 |
| 34 | Moraga | 40.5 | $199,800 | $1,575,765 |
| 35 | Rancho Palos Verdes | 41.5 | $175,307 | $1,791,757 |
| 36 | Millbrae | 44.0 | $157,567 | $1,942,938 |
| 37 | Hermosa Beach | 44.0 | $152,019 | $2,159,662 |
| 38 | San Ramon | 44.5 | $197,358 | $1,504,291 |
| 39 | Santa Clara | 45.0 | $173,670 | $1,666,520 |
| 40 | Solana Beach | 46.0 | $150,820 | $2,114,003 |
| 41 | Pleasanton | 46.0 | $186,206 | $1,550,911 |
| 42 | Laguna Beach | 46.5 | $140,508 | $2,905,029 |
| 43 | Calabasas | 49.5 | $157,938 | $1,672,456 |
| 44 | Westlake Village | 49.5 | $174,069 | $1,550,579 |
| 45 | San Anselmo | 51.0 | $170,457 | $1,574,966 |
| 46 | Encinitas | 51.0 | $150,471 | $1,839,650 |
| 47 | Fremont | 51.0 | $176,350 | $1,480,796 |
| 48 | Redwood City | 52.0 | $150,840 | $1,794,203 |
| 49 | St. Helena | 52.0 | $158,218 | $1,634,468 |
| 50 | La Habra Heights | 52.5 | $186,837 | $1,386,098 |
| 51 | Campbell | 53.0 | $147,128 | $1,833,684 |
| 52 | Milpitas | 53.0 | $176,822 | $1,431,087 |
| 53 | Sausalito | 54.5 | $173,030 | $1,453,438 |
| 54 | Coronado | 55.0 | $135,056 | $2,453,730 |
| 55 | Dublin | 55.0 | $205,046 | $1,300,238 |
| 56 | San Mateo | 56.0 | $152,669 | $1,595,907 |
| 57 | El Segundo | 56.5 | $149,149 | $1,668,465 |
| 58 | Beverly Hills | 58.0 | $127,979 | $3,444,707 |
| 59 | Half Moon Bay | 58.5 | $153,199 | $1,519,908 |
| 60 | Larkspur | 60.0 | $134,744 | $2,002,706 |
| 61 | Morgan Hill | 65.5 | $159,758 | $1,306,008 |
| 62 | Yorba Linda | 66.5 | $152,060 | $1,372,576 |
| 63 | Redondo Beach | 67.5 | $144,588 | $1,454,228 |
| 64 | Indian Wells | 69.5 | $145,313 | $1,395,945 |
| 65 | San Clemente | 70.0 | $134,735 | $1,663,935 |
| 66 | Agoura Hills | 70.5 | $171,944 | $1,219,811 |
| 67 | Sierra Madre | 72.0 | $141,094 | $1,396,581 |
| 68 | Laguna Niguel | 72.0 | $140,605 | $1,439,205 |
| 69 | San Jose | 72.5 | $141,565 | $1,382,249 |
| 70 | Newark | 72.5 | $164,909 | $1,218,602 |
| 71 | Pacifica | 74.0 | $156,819 | $1,230,140 |
| 72 | South Pasadena | 78.5 | $128,105 | $1,617,943 |
| 73 | Dana Point | 79.0 | $127,246 | $1,653,005 |
| 74 | Irvine | 80.5 | $129,647 | $1,550,367 |
| 75 | Carmel-By-The-Sea | 81.5 | $115,729 | $2,338,612 |
| 76 | San Francisco | 81.5 | $141,446 | $1,254,030 |
| 77 | Scotts Valley | 84.0 | $140,887 | $1,234,447 |
| 78 | Poway | 85.0 | $143,825 | $1,201,095 |
| 79 | Carlsbad | 85.5 | $139,326 | $1,237,927 |
| 80 | Brisbane | 87.5 | $151,593 | $1,129,347 |
| 81 | San Bruno | 87.5 | $135,976 | $1,253,305 |
| 82 | Livermore | 87.5 | $153,602 | $1,095,551 |
| 83 | Union City | 88.5 | $137,194 | $1,222,294 |
| 84 | Clayton | 90.0 | $172,226 | $1,021,071 |
| 85 | Mission Viejo | 92.5 | $136,071 | $1,183,757 |
| 86 | South San Francisco | 93.5 | $135,909 | $1,185,138 |
| 87 | San Juan Capistrano | 95.0 | $127,893 | $1,301,855 |
| 88 | Albany | 95.0 | $135,927 | $1,171,851 |
| 89 | Eastvale | 100.5 | $161,322 | $941,162 |
| 90 | Fairfax | 101.5 | $131,875 | $1,169,904 |
| 91 | Lake Forest | 101.5 | $131,378 | $1,176,914 |
| 92 | Walnut | 102.5 | $133,762 | $1,149,665 |
| 93 | Santa Monica | 103.0 | $109,739 | $1,645,444 |
| 94 | Culver City | 103.0 | $122,312 | $1,271,464 |
| 95 | Solvang | 103.5 | $118,208 | $1,367,084 |
| 96 | Rancho Santa Margarita | 104.0 | $146,827 | $1,008,115 |
| 97 | Huntington Beach | 105.0 | $119,885 | $1,302,985 |
| 98 | Goleta | 105.5 | $118,039 | $1,328,427 |
| 99 | Arcadia | 106.5 | $116,142 | $1,371,745 |
| 100 | Alameda | 106.5 | $132,015 | $1,112,370 |