Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every California ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Safety

B−FortunaSafer than 47% of U.S. towns C−TehachapiSafer than 17% of U.S. towns

Schools

C−FortunaBetter than 24% of districts in the state B−TehachapiBetter than 48% of districts in the state

Health

C+FortunaHealthier than 41% of U.S. towns C+TehachapiHealthier than 37% of U.S. towns

16Fortuna

6Tehachapi

Lists won, of 23 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Closest to a top hospitalHealth · 844 towns #17#787 SafestSafety · 411 towns #108#316 Fastest growingGrowth · 816 towns #393#790 Lowest depressionHealth · 844 towns #802#420 Most trailsOutdoors · 677 towns #550#252 Most walkableOutdoors · 841 towns #391#653 Highest graduation rateSchools · 720 towns #52#272 Fewest uninsuredHealth · 844 towns #397#602

Left end = #1 in California. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Fortuna’s rankings →

Monthly cost

A typical home costs about the same each month

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

Fortuna$2,460/mo

Typical home $418K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.77% · or rent about $1,168/mo · Housing →

Tehachapi$2,530/mo

Typical home $424K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.86% · or rent about $1,295/mo · Housing →

The difference: $70 a month, about $800 a year, between Tehachapi and Fortuna.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

FortunaTehachapi

Snow a year1″—

January low38°F —

July high73°F —

Growing season (days)264d —

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)95th 90th

Outdoors & history

FortunaTehachapi

Trails2 mi 15 mi

Conserved land2.9%1.8%

Settled1906 1876

National Register places1 2

Archive photos8 18

Famous people born here6 4

Community

FortunaTehachapi

Library hours a week35 hrs 32 hrs

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined1 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

488 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

FortunaCA TehachapiCA

Fortuna ↔ Tehachapi488 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs California average

FortunaTehachapi

People

Population 12,326Highest 11,946Lowest

Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +4.9%Highest CA: +6.1% -10.2%Lowest CA: +6.1%

Median age 37.4±4.3Lowest about the CA average 39.1±2.7Highest 3% above CA

Tehachapi and Fortuna are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 20.7%±3.1Highest CA: 22% 19.8%±3.6Lowest CA: 22%

Fortuna and Tehachapi are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 17.3%±2.3Highest CA: 15.7% 13.4%±2.8Lowest CA: 15.7%

Fortuna and Tehachapi are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 24.8%Highest CA: 37.1% 15.5%Lowest CA: 37.1%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 6.2%±1.9Highest CA: 7.6% 5.2%±1.5Lowest CA: 7.6%

Fortuna and Tehachapi are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $62,289±$5kLowest 37% below CA $72,957±$13kHighest 26% below CA

Tehachapi and Fortuna are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $379,700±$22kHighest 48% below CA $355,500±$13kLowest 52% below CA

Fortuna and Tehachapi are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,168±$118Lowest 43% below CA $1,295±$129Highest 36% below CA

Tehachapi and Fortuna are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Property taxmedian, yearly $2,939Lowest 43% below CA $3,074Highest 40% below CA

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 51.3%±10.7Highest CA: 55.3% 46.8%±9.7Lowest CA: 55.3%

Fortuna and Tehachapi are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Below poverty line 18.2%Highest CA: 12% 13.9%Lowest CA: 12%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 56.1%Lowest CA: 55.9% 58.5%Highest CA: 55.9%

Typical home builtmedian year 1978Lowest 2 yrs newer than CA 1982Highest 6 yrs newer than CA

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 25 minLowest 14% below CA 27 minHighest 6% below CA

Work from home 11.1%±4.2Highest CA: 17.2% 7.2%±3.5Lowest CA: 17.2%

Fortuna and Tehachapi are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 23.8%Highest 21.8%Lowest

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 13.8 miLowest 37.8 miHighest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.65Lowest 1.36Highest

Top workplaceoutside town Eureka (26%)Bakersfield (9%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in TehachapiFew work in Fortuna

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 2.9%Highest 1.8%Lowest

Trailsmapped miles 2.4 miLowest 15.1 miHighest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.5 miLowest 1.5 miHighest

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 2Lowest 5Highest

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 75.1Highest 35.2Lowest

Schools

Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #376 of 574 in CA #252 of 574 in CA

School district Fortuna Elementary · Fortuna Union HighEPIC de Cesar Chavez District · Tehachapi Unified

High school in town Fortuna Union HighTehachapi High

Students per teacherat that high school 20.6Lowest 22.5Highest

California average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Fortuna neighborsTown Square →

T Weaver · 6d

Ordinary Days in Fortuna

1 neighbor in Fortuna can answer.

Tehachapi neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Tehachapi’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Towns like Fortuna

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Yreka7,820 people · $263K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Fortuna vs Tehachapi

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they differ most

Fortuna places higher on 16 of 23 CA lists

A typical home costs about the same each month

What daily life feels like in each

488 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Ordinary Days in Fortuna

Set another town beside Fortuna and Tehachapi

Towns like Fortuna

Post to Fortuna

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