San Rafael
What’s happening
Weather
Forecast →Upcoming events
Put the next local happening — a market, a meeting, a concert — on the map.
Local news
Headlines via Google News · Articles belong to their publishers.
The San Rafael album
Outdoors in San Rafael
Parks & trails →Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
About San Rafael
City in California, United StatesSan Rafael ( SAN rə-FEL; Spanish for "St. Raphael", Spanish pronunciation: [san rafaˈel]) is a city in and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. As of the 2020 census, San Rafael had a population of 61,271. San Rafael was founded by the Spanish in 1817, when Vicente Francisco de Sarría established Mission San Rafael Arcángel, initially as an asistencia (sub-mission). San Rafael Arcángel was upgraded to full mission status in 1822, a month before Alta California declared independence from Spain as part of Mexico. Following the American Conquest of California, the community of San Rafael incorpora…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
How San Rafael ranks
All →Town numbers
Housing in San Rafael
The typical San Rafael home is worth about $1,298,000, up 2.5% in a year, 70% above the California typical home.
A strong seller's market
Safety in San Rafael
Safety Grade D
San Rafael reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 86% report less.
Schools in San Rafael
All San Rafael schools →School Grade C+
The public schools San Rafael’s kids attend, from kindergarten through graduation, trail 62% of California’s districts on state tests and graduation. Among towns with similar incomes, they rank near the bottom.
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.
Where San Rafael is
Explore map →
Location map