Most expensive cities for renters in California

Name: Most Expensive Cities to Rent in California
Creator: RentDataNow

Cities in California ranked by highest median rent. Cities with 15,000+ residents. Updated monthly.

Key findings

Los Altos ranks first, with a median rent of $6,886/mo.
Across all 310 cities on this list, the median rent is $2,786/mo.
South San Francisco moved from #42 to #24 compared with a year ago.

Data as of September 2026. Median rent from RentDataNow's monthly city data (Zillow's rent index where Zillow covers the city). Rank a year ago compares the same cities' rent 12 months earlier. Updated monthly. Download this list (CSV)

Best value (RRS)Overheated (RRS)Most affordable Most expensive Rent falling Rent rising Best rent/income Most rent-burdened Record-high rent Seasonal swings Rent vs. income

310 cities

Rank	City	Median rent	1-yr change	5-yr change	Rent/income	Vs. a year ago
01	Los AltosCA Pop. 31KCompare →	$6,886/mo	+19.3%	+43.7%	33.1%	↑1 from #2
02	Manhattan BeachCA Pop. 34KCompare →	$6,406/mo	+9.8%	+39.3%	37.6%	↓1 from #1
03	SaratogaCA Pop. 30KCompare →	$6,140/mo	+7.8%	+30.0%	29.5%	same
04	Laguna BeachCA Pop. 23KCompare →	$5,519/mo	+7.0%	+34.6%	46.0%	same
05	OrindaCA Pop. 20KCompare →	$5,239/mo	0.0%	--	25.1%	--
06	CoronadoCA Pop. 19KCompare →	$5,122/mo	+2.0%	+36.6%	45.7%	↓1 from #5
07	San FranciscoCA Pop. 830KCompare →	$4,784/mo	+26.3%	+47.1%	40.7%	↑17 from #24
08	Palo AltoCA Pop. 67KCompare →	$4,558/mo	+10.0%	+28.4%	23.7%	↑2 from #10
09	Rancho MirageCA Pop. 18KCompare →	$4,556/mo	+1.5%	--	50.9%	↓3 from #6
10	CalabasasCA Pop. 23KCompare →	$4,552/mo	+5.3%	+20.0%	33.0%	↓3 from #7
11	Mountain ViewCA Pop. 84KCompare →	$4,535/mo	+10.2%	+26.9%	28.7%	same
12	Rancho Palos VerdesCA Pop. 41KCompare →	$4,522/mo	+5.5%	+24.9%	30.2%	↓4 from #8
13	Foster CityCA Pop. 33KCompare →	$4,450/mo	+12.1%	+32.7%	26.8%	↑2 from #15
14	Newport BeachCA Pop. 84KCompare →	$4,364/mo	+7.8%	+32.2%	33.4%	same
15	EncinitasCA Pop. 61KCompare →	$4,340/mo	+5.8%	+36.0%	32.1%	↓3 from #12
16	DanvilleCA Pop. 43KCompare →	$4,324/mo	+3.3%	+16.2%	22.3%	↓7 from #9
17	Dana PointCA Pop. 33KCompare →	$4,323/mo	+6.3%	+32.3%	36.7%	↓4 from #13
18	CupertinoCA Pop. 59KCompare →	$4,307/mo	+9.0%	+30.1%	22.0%	↓1 from #17
19	Redwood CityCA Pop. 82KCompare →	$4,301/mo	+9.3%	+25.0%	32.7%	same
20	Menlo ParkCA Pop. 33KCompare →	$4,277/mo	+10.8%	+32.0%	24.4%	same
21	East Palo AltoCA Pop. 29KCompare →	$4,250/mo	0.0%	--	44.9%	--
22	San CarlosCA Pop. 30KCompare →	$4,248/mo	+7.7%	+28.4%	21.5%	↓4 from #18
23	San Juan CapistranoCA Pop. 35KCompare →	$4,164/mo	+8.6%	--	38.6%	↓2 from #21
24	South San FranciscoCA Pop. 64KCompare →	$4,141/mo	+19.2%	+32.4%	36.4%	↑18 from #42
25	BurlingameCA Pop. 31KCompare →	$4,119/mo	+13.6%	+31.8%	28.4%	↑7 from #32
26	Agoura HillsCA Pop. 20KCompare →	$4,107/mo	+3.9%	--	28.8%	↓10 from #16
27	MillbraeCA Pop. 23KCompare →	$4,081/mo	+18.5%	+34.2%	30.0%	↑17 from #44
28	TruckeeCA Pop. 17KCompare →	$4,044/mo	+7.0%	--	37.2%	↓2 from #26
29	Beverly HillsCA Pop. 32KCompare →	$4,016/mo	+5.5%	+30.6%	36.2%	↓7 from #22
30	Los GatosCA Pop. 33KCompare →	$4,004/mo	+7.9%	+30.3%	22.1%	↓2 from #28
31	SunnyvaleCA Pop. 154KCompare →	$3,972/mo	+10.4%	+30.1%	25.6%	↑2 from #33
32	Hermosa BeachCA Pop. 19KCompare →	$3,970/mo	+9.0%	+36.2%	28.6%	↓1 from #31
33	NovatoCA Pop. 53KCompare →	$3,969/mo	+4.8%	+22.6%	41.2%	↓10 from #23
34	San MateoCA Pop. 103KCompare →	$3,968/mo	+10.7%	+28.7%	31.0%	↑1 from #35
35	Santa ClaraCA Pop. 130KCompare →	$3,958/mo	+8.2%	+29.7%	26.5%	↓6 from #29
36	Yorba LindaCA Pop. 67KCompare →	$3,870/mo	+2.4%	+27.3%	29.5%	↓9 from #27
37	GoletaCA Pop. 33KCompare →	$3,838/mo	+1.4%	--	37.6%	↓12 from #25
38	AltadenaCA Pop. 42KCompare →	$3,814/mo	0.0%	--	35.6%	--
39	BelmontCA Pop. 27KCompare →	$3,798/mo	+12.4%	+31.6%	22.2%	↑9 from #48
40	Morgan HillCA Pop. 45KCompare →	$3,797/mo	+5.8%	+23.4%	27.8%	↓6 from #34
41	NewarkCA Pop. 47KCompare →	$3,670/mo	+4.8%	+19.7%	26.0%	↓3 from #38
42	EastvaleCA Pop. 71KCompare →	$3,659/mo	+0.2%	+15.7%	27.4%	↓12 from #30
43	Santa BarbaraCA Pop. 88KCompare →	$3,642/mo	+4.4%	+30.5%	41.2%	↓2 from #41
44	La QuintaCA Pop. 39KCompare →	$3,617/mo	+3.3%	+30.1%	43.7%	↓5 from #39
45	MilpitasCA Pop. 79KCompare →	$3,614/mo	+10.1%	+25.5%	24.3%	↑13 from #58
46	IrvineCA Pop. 312KCompare →	$3,604/mo	+2.0%	+17.0%	31.6%	↓9 from #37
47	PacificaCA Pop. 37KCompare →	$3,594/mo	+9.9%	+24.8%	26.9%	↑13 from #60
48	San JoseCA Pop. 990KCompare →	$3,582/mo	+7.7%	+25.0%	29.4%	↑5 from #53
49	Ladera RanchCA Pop. 24KCompare →	$3,550/mo	+1.7%	--	23.1%	↓9 from #40
50	Hacienda HeightsCA Pop. 54KCompare →	$3,538/mo	-0.1%	+30.6%	38.9%	↓14 from #36