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Lafayette vs Saranap

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: trails (275× in Lafayette) and household income (+45% in Lafayette).

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Lafayette, CAHomes around $1.88MCalifornia · 25,285 people
S ×
Saranap, CAKnown for its schoolsCalifornia · 5,662 people
Swap order
Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

LafayetteHomes around $1.88M
Housing$1.88M typical home147% above the CA typical home Schools#22 for schools in CAof 574 towns HealthHealthier than 98%of U.S. towns on CDC estimates All about Lafayette →
SaranapKnown for its schools
SchoolsBetter than 97%of CA districts HealthHealthier than 98%of U.S. towns on CDC estimates All about Saranap →
The biggest differences

Where they part ways

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

Trails275×
Lafayette has more miles of trail
Lafayette 27.5 miSaranap 0.1 mi
Household income+45%
Households in Lafayette earn more
Lafayette $228,250Saranap $157,347
Street grid2.4×
Saranap has the more walkable street grid
Saranap 123Lafayette 51.2
Size4.5×
Lafayette is the bigger place
Lafayette 25,285Saranap 5,662
Home values+38%
Homes cost more in Lafayette
Lafayette $2,000,001Saranap $1,453,300
Jobs per worker2.5×
Lafayette is more of a job hub
Lafayette 0.92Saranap 0.37
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $2,210 more a month in Lafayette

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.

Lafayette$10,660/mo
Typical home $1.88M (Zillow) · tax rate 0.50%+ · or rent about $2,892/mo · Housing →
Saranap$8,450/mo
Typical home $1.45M (Census) · tax rate 0.69%+ · or rent about $2,540/mo · Housing →

The difference: $2,210 a month, about $26,500 a year, between Lafayette and Saranap.

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; “+” means the Census top-codes that town’s bill at $10,000, so its real rate is higher.

Where they are

Lafayette and Saranap share a border

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

LafayetteSaranapLafayetteSaranap
Lafayette ↔ Saranap2.4 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
108 Saranap residents work in Lafayette (4.5% of its workers)
Work & commute in Saranap →
Report cards

Lafayette places higher on 8 of 17 CA lists

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
BLafayetteSafer than 61% of U.S. towns –SaranapNot graded
Schools
A+LafayetteBetter than 97% of districts in the state A+SaranapBetter than 97% of districts in the state
Health
A+LafayetteHealthier than 98% of U.S. towns A+SaranapHealthier than 98% of U.S. towns
8Lafayette
6Saranap

Lists won, of 17 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Most walkableOutdoors · 841 towns #547#131 Fastest growingGrowth · 816 towns #332#147 Lowest depressionHealth · 844 towns #184#288 Highest incomeIncome · 843 towns #37#105 Cheapest rentCost of living · 830 towns #731#667 Fewest uninsuredHealth · 844 towns #1#53 Most affordableCost of living · 835 towns #801#751 Shortest commuteGetting around · 843 towns #506#456

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

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
LafayetteSaranap
Snow a year0″0″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)96th99th
Outdoors & history
LafayetteSaranap
Trails28 mi—
Conserved land16%—
Settled1848—
Archive photos18—
Famous people born here11—
Community
LafayetteSaranap
Library hours a week56 hrs—
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

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.

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.

LafayetteSaranap
People
Population 25,285Highest 5,662Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +6.3%Lowest CA: +6.1% +12.1%Highest CA: +6.1%
Median age 45.7±1.4Highest 21% above CA 41.5±5.6Lowest 9% above CA
Lafayette and Saranap are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 25.7%±2.6Highest CA: 22% 24.6%±3.9Lowest CA: 22%
Lafayette and Saranap are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 21.3%±2.2Highest CA: 15.7% 18.5%±2.8Lowest CA: 15.7%
Lafayette and Saranap are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 79%Highest CA: 37.1% 70.6%Lowest CA: 37.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3.8%±1.1Highest CA: 7.6% 3.6%±2Lowest CA: 7.6%
Lafayette and Saranap are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $228,250±$25kHighest 130% above CA $157,347±$7kLowest 59% above CA
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $2,000,001Highest 172% above CA $1,453,300±$122kLowest 98% above CA
Rentmedian gross, monthly $2,892±$302Highest 42% above CA $2,540±$368Lowest 25% above CA
Lafayette and Saranap are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $10,000+ at least 95% above CA $10,000+ at least 95% above CA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 35.5%±9.7Lowest CA: 55.3% 54.5%±17.2Highest CA: 55.3%
Saranap and Lafayette are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 2.9%Lowest CA: 12% 4.1%Highest CA: 12%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 77.1%Highest CA: 55.9% 65.4%Lowest CA: 55.9%
Typical home builtmedian year 1960Highest 16 yrs older than CA 1956Lowest 20 yrs older than CA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 29 minHighest about the CA average 29 minLowest about the CA average
Work from home 42.9%±4.8Highest CA: 17.2% 34%±8.4Lowest CA: 17.2%
Lafayette and Saranap are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 7.3%Highest 2.1%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 15.8 mi 15.8 mi
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.92Highest 0.37Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town San Francisco (19%)San Francisco (18%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Saranap4% work in Lafayette
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 16%Highest 0%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 27.5 miHighest 0.1 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 1.8 miHighest 0.1 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 9Highest 0Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 51.2Lowest 123Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #22 of 574 in CA—
School district Acalanes Union High · Lafayette ElementaryWalnut Creek Elementary
High school in town Acalanes HighNone in town
Students per teacherat that high school 19.5 —
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.

Lafayette neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Lafayette’s Town Square.

Saranap neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Saranap’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Lafayette and Saranap

One tap adds it. Up to 4 towns at once.

Bordering Lafayette

+ Compare
Moraga16,769 people · $1.66M homes
A
+ Compare
Acalanes Ridge1,006 people · $1.63M homes
R
+ Compare
Reliez Valley3,173 people · $1.74M homes
+ Compare
Orinda19,514 people · $1.86M homes

Towns like Lafayette

+ Compare
Los Altos30,698 people · $2M homes
+ Compare
La Cañada Flintridge19,935 people · $2M homes
+ Compare
San Marino12,216 people · $2M homes
+ Compare
Danville43,401 people · $1.68M homes
Not sure which town to add? Find your place ranks California towns on what matters to you.Find your place →

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.

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