Atherton, CA: Local News, Events & Neighbors

Atherton ( ATH-ər-tən) is an incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, United States. A Silicon Valley bedroom community, Its population was 6,823 as of July 2023 estimates. The town has historically been known for its concentration of high income earners. Atherton had the highest per capita income among American towns (populations between 2,500 and 9,999) in both 1990 and 2019. It regularly ranks as having the highest cost of living in the United States. The town's zip code, 94027, had the highest median home prices in America from 2017 to 2024, in 2023 it was at $7.95 million. Median home price in the area climbed to $9.93 million in 2026.

Official town website ↗

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)

How Atherton ranks

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#8Highest income in CA #13Most remote workers in CA #16Most educated in CA All CA rankings →

Town numbers

ZIP code94027

Area code650

Living in Atherton

Housing in Atherton

$8.52M▲ 15.7% in a year Typical home value · Zillow

The typical Atherton home is worth about $8,521,000, up 15.7% in a year, 1015% above the California typical home.

A strong seller's market

Buyer’sBalancedSeller’s

Days on market34

Sale-to-list101.2%

Sold in May11

Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data CenterHousing market →

Safety in Atherton

B

Safety Grade B

Atherton reports less crime per resident than 60% of the U.S. towns and cities we grade.

Violent crime per 1,000

Atherton 0.7

California 4.3

U.S. 3.3

Property crime per 1,000

Atherton 7.9

California 18.2

U.S. 15.5

FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to policeCrime & safety →

Schools in Atherton

All Atherton schools →

A⁻

School Grade A-

The public schools Atherton’s kids attend, from kindergarten through graduation, outperform 80% of California’s districts on state tests and graduation. Among towns with similar incomes, they sit near the middle.

#239Best public schoolsof 574 in CA

DistrictSequoia Union HighSchools7

Laurel ElementaryElementary · Grades K–5 · 658 students Encinal Elementary D-Elementary · Grades K–5 · 604 students Adelante Selby Spanish ImmersionElementary · Grades K–5 · 582 students Las Lomitas Elementary A+Elementary · Grades K–3 · 522 students Menlo-Atherton HighHigh · Grades 9–12 · 2,158 students MENLO SCHOOL

School data from the U.S. Department of Education (NCES, EDFacts). The School Grade is our own summary of state test results and graduation rates, graded within CA. Ratings are from neighbors.