Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 69/100
B−
Median home value$2,000,000+
San Francisco $1,140,700
Median rent$2,892/mo
San Francisco $2,474/mo
Cost-burdened households30%
San Francisco 38%
Lafayette
Contra Costa County25,285 residents2 school districts
67
C+
Suburbgrade score
10th of 59 San Francisco suburbs. Strongest on schools, held back by amenities.
67
San Francisco median 60
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Lafayette yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 67 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Lafayette is like to live in, by category
Bars show Lafayette against San Francisco. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 79/100
B+
Within-state proficiency98th pct
San Francisco median 73rd pct
Student–teacher ratio20.8
San Francisco median 21.7
Graduation rate96%
San Francisco median 89%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 64/100
C+
Housing cost index105
San Francisco 100
Eff. tax rate0.63%
San Francisco 0.73%
Local sales tax9.25%
San Francisco median 9.75%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 58/100
C
Mean commute29.3 min
San Francisco 31.0 min
Under 30 minutes56%
San Francisco 52%
Transit stops / sq mi1.5
San Francisco median 8.8 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 55/100
C−
Restaurants & cafés35
San Francisco median 64 · within 2 miles
Groceries4
San Francisco median 7 · within 2 miles
Parks14
San Francisco median 59 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 71/100
B−
Median household income$228,250
San Francisco $136,027
Unemployment4.3%
San Francisco 5.7%
Professional occupations73%
San Francisco 56%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Lafayette yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Lafayette on amenities
Lafayette's weakest grade is C−. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same six inputs.
SuburbAmenitiesOverall
Berkeley10 mi from LafayetteA+ 66 C+ Oakland10 mi from LafayetteA+ 54 C− Daly City23 mi from LafayetteA 60 C Albany11 mi from LafayetteA 69 B− Pleasant Hill5 mi from LafayetteA 60 C Emeryville11 mi from LafayetteA 56 C− Restaurants & cafés: OpenStreetMap Sep 2026 · Groceries: OpenStreetMap Sep 2026
Common questions about living in Lafayette
Is Lafayette, CA a good place to live?
Lafayette scores 67 out of 100, 10th of 59 San Francisco suburbs. It is strongest on schools and weakest on amenities. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Lafayette expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades C+. The median home is $2,000,000+, 75% above the San Francisco median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.63%. $2,892/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Lafayette?
Schools grade B+. The districts serving Lafayette sit at the 98th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 96% graduation rate and a 20.8 student–teacher ratio. Lafayette is served by Acalanes Union High and Lafayette Elementary. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Lafayette?
The mean commute is 29.3 min, with 56% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 43% working from home. Transit density is 1.5 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Lafayette?
Within two miles there are 4 groceries, 35 restaurants and cafés and 14 parks, which grades C− on amenities.
Are the homes in Lafayette old or new?
The median home in Lafayette was built in 1960 — older than the San Francisco median of 1968. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 81% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.
Six San Francisco lists
Best San Francisco suburbs for familiesMost affordable San Francisco suburbsBest San Francisco suburbs for schoolsShortest commutes to Downtown San FranciscoMost walkable San Francisco suburbsBest San Francisco suburbs for young professionalsCompare Lafayette
Every San Francisco suburb, side by side