Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 76/100
B
Median home value$1,863,200
San Francisco $1,140,700
Median rent$3,501/mo
San Francisco $2,474/mo
Cost-burdened households30%
San Francisco 38%
Orinda
Contra Costa County19,514 residents2 school districts
65
C+
Suburbgrade score
18th of 59 San Francisco suburbs. Strong on schools and housing & affordability, held back by commute & transport.
65
San Francisco median 60
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Orinda yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 65 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 Orinda is like to live in, by category
Bars show Orinda against San Francisco. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 79/100
B+
Within-state proficiency99th pct
San Francisco median 73rd pct
Student–teacher ratio20.6
San Francisco median 21.7
Graduation rate96%
San Francisco median 89%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 60/100
C
Housing cost index105
San Francisco 100
Eff. tax rate0.79%
San Francisco 0.73%
Local sales tax9.75%
San Francisco median 9.75%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 38/100
D−
Mean commute36.1 min
San Francisco 31.0 min
Under 30 minutes43%
San Francisco 52%
Transit stops / sq mi1.8
San Francisco median 8.8 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 53/100
C−
Restaurants & cafés27
San Francisco median 64 · within 2 miles
Groceries1
San Francisco median 7 · within 2 miles
Parks22
San Francisco median 59 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 75/100
B
Median household income$250,000+
San Francisco $136,027
Unemployment3.4%
San Francisco 5.7%
Professional occupations79%
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 Orinda 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 Orinda on commute & transport
Orinda's weakest grade is D−. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbCommuteOverall
Mill Valley20 mi from OrindaB 68 B− San Rafael20 mi from OrindaB− 58 C Berkeley7 mi from OrindaB− 66 C+ San Bruno23 mi from OrindaB− 61 C San Mateo24 mi from OrindaB− 68 B− Emeryville8 mi from OrindaC+ 56 C− Mean commute: ACS 2020–24 · Commuting under 30 minutes: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Orinda
Is Orinda, CA a good place to live?
Orinda scores 65 out of 100, 18th of 59 San Francisco suburbs. It is strongest on schools and weakest on commute & transport. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Orinda expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades C. The median home is $1,863,200, 63% above the San Francisco median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.79%. $3,501/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Orinda?
Schools grade B+. The districts serving Orinda sit at the 99th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 96% graduation rate and a 20.6 student–teacher ratio. Orinda is served by Acalanes Union High and Orinda Union. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Orinda?
The mean commute is 36.1 min, with 43% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 39% working from home. Transit density is 1.8 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Orinda?
Within two miles there are 1 groceries, 27 restaurants and cafés and 22 parks, which grades C− on amenities.
Are the homes in Orinda old or new?
The median home in Orinda 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. 96% 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 Orinda
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