Who doesn’t love a great Farmers Market?
According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the popularity of Farmers Markets is growing. What was once a niche shopping experience for the wealthy and ultra health conscious has become mainstream. And to appease the diverse populations that have shown interest in farmers markets, vendors have expanded their offerings. You can now get ice cream, homemade soap and even beer to go along with your organic beets and mushrooms.
And they aren’t just popular in liberal enclaves and on the west coast.
Farmers markets are booming in areas that had trouble making inroads in the past. 20 years ago, you’d never think you’d find farmers’ markets in Kansas City, Detroit or St. Louis.
Simply put, farmers markets aren’t just for farmers any more.
So, where are the best farmers’ markets in California? We’ve got the answers here. (We’ll explain our methodology below.)
These are the best California farmers markets:
- Santa Rosa Community Farmers Market At The Veterans Building, Santa Rosa, CA
- Sunday Civic Center Farmers Market, San Rafael, CA
- Grand Lake-Oakland Farmers Market, Oakland, CA
- Downtown Berkeley Farmers’ Market, Berkeley, CA
- Davis Farmers Market, Davis, CA
- Thursday Civic Center Farmers Market, San Rafael, CA
- Atwater Village Farmers’ Market, Los Angeles, CA
- Hillcrest Farmers Market And Open Air Bazaar, San Diego, CA
- San Diego Little Italy Mercato, San Diego, CA
- Irvine Certified Farmers’ Market, Irvine, CA
Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how each market ranked. If you have a smile on your face, you probably live in one of these cities where things are oh-so farmers market friendly.
And after you find a great farmers market, check out the best places to live in California or the cheapest place to live in California.
How do you decide if a farmers market is awesome or not in California?
In order to rank the best farmers markets in California, we had to determine what criteria makes for a good market experience. It isn’t a stretch to assume that great farmers’ markets have a variety of options, are up to date with the latest technology, and are in areas with decent populations. Because everyone should be able to take home some homemade jam, right?
So we researched the internet for a database that contains all that information.
How we crunched the numbers for the Golden State
We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible. Using Department of Agriculture data produced for the state of California, along with the government census numbers, we looked at every single farmers market in the state. We paid particular attention to:
- Number of amenities
- Each market’s technology improvements
- Variety of items to buy
- Nearby population
- Number of organic vendors
We then gave each market a HomeSnacks Score. The higher the score, the better the farmer’s market ranked. What we found is there seems to be a balanced number of large farmers markets near major city centers as well as awesome farmers markets in smaller communities. That’s the way it should be!
1. Santa Rosa Community Farmers Market At The Veterans Building
Score: 91.4
City: Santa Rosa, CA
Address: 1351 Maple Ave, Santa Rosa, CA 95404
Times: Wed: 9:00 AM-1:00 PM Sat: 8:30 AM-1:00 PM
WIC: Y
Baked Goods: Y
Coffee: Y
Flowers: Y
2. Sunday Civic Center Farmers Market
Score: 91.4
City: San Rafael, CA
Address: 3501 Civic Center Dr., San Rafael, CA 94903
Times: Sun: 8:00 AM-1:00 PM
WIC: Y
Baked Goods: Y
Coffee: Y
Flowers: Y
3. Grand Lake-Oakland Farmers Market
Score: 85.7
City: Oakland, CA
Address: Splash Pad Park, Oakland, CA None
Times: Sat: 9:00 AM-2:00 PM
WIC: Y
Baked Goods: Y
Coffee: Y
Flowers: Y
4. Downtown Berkeley Farmers’ Market
Score: 85.7
City: Berkeley, CA
Address: Center Street & Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Berkeley, CA 94704
Times: Sat: 10:00 AM-3:00 PM
WIC: Y
Baked Goods: Y
Coffee: Y
Flowers: Y
5. Davis Farmers Market
Score: 85.7
City: Davis, CA
Address: C and 3rd Street, Davis, CA 95617
Times: Sat: 8:00 AM-1:00 PM
WIC: Y
Baked Goods: Y
Coffee: Y
Flowers: Y
6. Thursday Civic Center Farmers Market
Score: 85.7
City: San Rafael, CA
Address: Marin Center, Avenue of the Flags, San Rafael, CA 94903
Times: Thu: 8:00 AM-1:00 PM
WIC: Y
Baked Goods: Y
Coffee: Y
Flowers: Y
7. Atwater Village Farmers’ Market
Score: 82.9
City: Los Angeles, CA
Address: 3250 Glendale Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90039
Times: Sun: 10:00 AM-2:00 PM
WIC: Y
Baked Goods: Y
Coffee: Y
Flowers: Y
8. Hillcrest Farmers Market And Open Air Bazaar
Score: 82.9
City: San Diego, CA
Address: 3960 Normal Street, San Diego, CA 92103
Times: Sun: 9:00 AM-2:00 PM
WIC: N
Baked Goods: Y
Coffee: Y
Flowers: Y
9. San Diego Little Italy Mercato
Score: 82.9
City: San Diego, CA
Address: 519 W. Cedar Street at India Street, San Diego, CA 92101
Times: Sat: 8:00 AM-2:00 PM
WIC: Y
Baked Goods: Y
Coffee: Y
Flowers: Y
10. Irvine Certified Farmers’ Market
Score: 82.9
City: Irvine, CA
Address: Bonita Canyon and Turtle Ridge Road, Irvine, CA 92603
Times: Sat: 8:00 AM-12:00 PM
WIC: Y
Baked Goods: Y
Coffee: Y
Flowers: Y
There You Have It – The Best Farmers Markets In California
If you’re looking for a breakdown of farmers’ markets in the Golden State ranked by criteria that vendors and customers agree on, this is an accurate list.
For more California reading, check out:
- These Are The 10 Safest Places In California
- These Are The 10 Most Ghetto Cities In California
- These Are The 10 Most Dangerous Cities In California
Detailed List Of The Best Farmers Markets In California
Name | Rank |
---|---|
Santa Rosa Community Farmers Market At The Veterans Building | 1 |
Sunday Civic Center Farmers Market | 2 |
Grand Lake-Oakland Farmers Market | 3 |
Downtown Berkeley Farmers’ Market | 4 |
Davis Farmers Market | 5 |
Thursday Civic Center Farmers Market | 6 |
Atwater Village Farmers’ Market | 7 |
Hillcrest Farmers Market And Open Air Bazaar | 8 |
San Diego Little Italy Mercato | 9 |
Irvine Certified Farmers’ Market | 10 |
College Of San Mateo Certified Farmers’ Market | 11 |
Vista Farmers Market | 12 |
Coastside Farmers’ Market – Half Moon Bay | 13 |
Modesto Certified Farmers’ Market | 14 |
Santa Monica Farmers Market – Sunday Main Street | 15 |
Petaluma Farmers Market | 16 |
The Petaluma East Side Farmers’ Market | 17 |
Old Poway Farmers Market | 18 |
Saratoga Certified Farmers’ Market | 19 |
Stonestown Farmers Market | 20 |
Long Beach Southeast Cfm | 21 |
Jack London Square Farmers Market | 22 |
Galleria @ Tyler Riverside Farmers Market | 23 |
High Desert Farmer Market | 24 |
Old Town Temecula Cfm | 25 |
Sunrise Mall Farmers Market | 26 |
Lakewood Center Farmers’ Market | 27 |
Napa Downtown Farmers Market | 28 |
Mountain View Certified Farmers’ Market | 29 |
Diablo Valley Certified Farmers’ Market | 30 |
Downtown Novato Community Farmers Market | 31 |
Coastside Farmers’ Market – Rockaway Beach, Pacifica | 32 |
Windsor Certified Farmers Market | 33 |
Placerville Farmers Market | 34 |
North Park Thursday Certified Farmers’ Market | 35 |
Pacific Beach Tuesday Certified Farmers’ Market | 36 |
Blossom Hill Certified Farmers’ Market | 37 |
Ferry Plaza Farmers Market | 38 |
Fort Mason Center Certified Farmers’ Market | 39 |
Heart Of The City Farmers’ Market | 40 |
Visalia Farmers Market- Sears Saturday Market | 41 |
South Berkeley Farmers’ Market | 42 |
Santa Monica Farmers Market – Saturday Downtown | 43 |
Santa Monica Pico | 44 |
Altadena Farmers’ Market | 45 |
Morgan Hill Certified Farmers Market | 46 |
Los Altos Certified Farmers Market | 47 |
Live Oak Farmers Market | 48 |
Echo Park Farmers’ Market | 49 |
Clairemont Certified Farmers Market At Madison High School | 50 |
Willow Glen Farmers’ Market | 51 |
Clement St. Farmers Market | 52 |
Oceanside Certified Farmer’s Market | 53 |
Burbank Certified Farmers’ Market | 54 |
Shasta Growers Association Certified Farmers Markets/saturday Redding Market | 55 |
Walnut Creek Certified Farmers’ Market | 56 |
Camarillo Hospice Certified Farmers Market | 57 |
Whittier Host Lions Certified Farmers Market | 58 |
Thursday Marin Farmers Market | 59 |
Palm Springs Certified Farmers’ Market | 60 |
Newark Farmers Market | 61 |
Beverly Hills Farmers Market | 62 |
South Lake Tahoe Tuesday Farmers Market | 63 |
Arcata Plaza Farmers’ Market | 64 |
Moraga Certified Farmers Market | 65 |
Ukiah Saturday Cfm | 66 |
Sol Community Farmers’ Market | 67 |
Silver Lake Cfm | 68 |
Old Oakland Farmers’ Market | 69 |
Temescal Farmers’ Market | 70 |
Valley Farmers’ Market Association Llc | 71 |
Sunnyvale Farmers’ Market | 72 |
North Berkeley Farmers’ Market | 73 |
Costa Mesa Certified Farmers’ Market | 74 |
Murrieta Certified Farmers’ Market | 75 |
Daly City Certified Farmers’ Market At Serramonte Center | 76 |
San Leandro Certified Farmers’ Market At Bayfair Center | 77 |
Palm Desert Certified Farmers Market | 78 |
Danville Farmers’ Market | 79 |
Town Center Sunday Farmers’ Market | 80 |
Hollister Certified Farmers’ Market | 81 |
Laguna Hills Certified Farmers’ Market | 82 |
South Pasadena Farmers Market | 83 |
Nevada Ccounty Certified Growers Market – Grass Valley – North Star House | 84 |
Cambrian Park Farmers’ Makret | 85 |
Riverside Certified Farmers Market | 86 |
Santa Rosa Original Certified Farmers Market | 87 |
California Avenue Farmers’ Market | 88 |
Castro Valley Farmers’ Market | 89 |
Petaluma Wednesday Evening Farmers’ Market | 90 |
Santee Certified Farmer’s Market | 91 |
Campbell Farmers’ Market | 92 |
Old Town La Quinta Certified Farmers Market | 93 |
Solana Beach Farmers Market | 94 |
Healdsburg Certified Farmers’ Market | 95 |
Hollywood Farmers’ Market | 96 |
Golden Hill Certified Farmers Market | 97 |
Ocean Beach Certified Farmers Market | 98 |
Castro Certified Farmers’ Market | 99 |
Santa Clarita Certified Farmers’ Market | 100 |