Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 67/100
C+
Median home value$2,000,000+
San Jose $1,447,800
Median rent$3,501/mo
San Jose $2,840/mo
Cost-burdened households33%
San Jose 35%
Saratoga
Santa Clara County30,319 residents6 school districts
71
B−
Suburbgrade score
6th of 16 San Jose suburbs. Strong on schools and cost of living, held back by employment & income.
71
San Jose median 68
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Saratoga yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 71 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 Saratoga is like to live in, by category
Bars show Saratoga against San Jose. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 79/100
B+
Within-state proficiency97th pct
San Jose median 87th pct
Student–teacher ratio21.3
San Jose median 21.4
Graduation rate97%
San Jose median 92%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 74/100
B
Housing cost index103
San Jose 100
Eff. tax rate0.65%
San Jose 0.68%
Local sales tax9.75%
San Jose median 9.75%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 70/100
B−
Mean commute25.1 min
San Jose 26.6 min
Under 30 minutes58%
San Jose 62%
Transit stops / sq mi5.5
San Jose median 10 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 69/100
B−
Restaurants & cafés29
San Jose median 175 · within 2 miles
Groceries3
San Jose median 13 · within 2 miles
Parks58
San Jose median 113 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 65/100
C+
Median household income$250,000+
San Jose $162,111
Unemployment4.0%
San Jose 4.9%
Professional occupations78%
San Jose 58%
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 Saratoga 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 Saratoga on employment & income
Saratoga's weakest grade is C+. Four suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbEmploymentOverall
Mountain View10 mi from SaratogaB 74 B Cupertino4 mi from SaratogaB− 75 B Palo Alto11 mi from SaratogaB− 74 B Sunnyvale8 mi from SaratogaB− 73 B Median household income: ACS 2020–24 · Unemployment: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Saratoga
Is Saratoga, CA a good place to live?
Saratoga scores 71 out of 100, 6th of 16 San Jose suburbs. It is strongest on schools and weakest on employment & income. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Saratoga expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B. The median home is $2,000,000+, 38% above the San Jose median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.65%. $3,501/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Saratoga?
Schools grade B+. The districts serving Saratoga sit at the 97th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 97% graduation rate and a 21.3 student–teacher ratio. Saratoga is served by Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High, Saratoga Union Elementary, Fremont Union High, Cupertino Union, Campbell Union High and Campbell Union. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Saratoga?
The mean commute is 25.1 min, with 58% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 37% working from home. Transit density is 5.5 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Saratoga?
Within two miles there are 3 groceries, 29 restaurants and cafés and 58 parks, which grades B− on amenities.
Are the homes in Saratoga old or new?
The median home in Saratoga was built in 1967 — older than the San Jose median of 1976. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 92% 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.