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Mountain View vs Sunnyvale

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: jobs per worker (+55% in Mountain View).

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Mountain View, CAHomes around $1.93MCalifornia · 83,732 people
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Sunnyvale, CAHomes around $1.99MCalifornia · 154,236 people
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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.

Mountain ViewHomes around $1.93M
Housing$1.93M typical home153% above the CA typical home Schools#5 for schools in CAof 574 towns Work86,219 jobsbased in Mountain View, a regional job hub All about Mountain View →
SunnyvaleHomes around $1.99M
Housing$1.99M typical home161% above the CA typical home HealthHealthier than 98%of U.S. towns on CDC estimates Schools#262 for schools in CAof 574 towns All about Sunnyvale →
The biggest differences

Where they differ most

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

Jobs per worker+55%
Mountain View is more of a job hub
Mountain View 2.08Sunnyvale 1.34
★ What stands out · Report cards

Mountain View places higher on 13 of 26 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
C−Mountain ViewSafer than 20% of U.S. towns CSunnyvaleSafer than 32% of U.S. towns
Schools
A−Mountain ViewBetter than 76% of districts in the state A+SunnyvaleBetter than 97% of districts in the state
Health
A+Mountain ViewHealthier than 99% of U.S. towns A+SunnyvaleHealthier than 98% of U.S. towns
13Mountain View
11Sunnyvale

Lists won, of 26 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Highest graduation rateSchools · 720 towns #712#141 Best schoolsSchools · 574 towns #5#262 Most trailsOutdoors · 677 towns #261#464 SafestSafety · 411 towns #292#190 Most-used librariesLibraries · 117 towns #37#63 Most new homesHousing · 438 towns #46#92 Most library borrowingLibraries · 117 towns #14#25 Most activeHealth · 844 towns #88#161

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

Where they are

Mountain View and Sunnyvale share a border

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

Mountain ViewSunnyvaleMountain ViewSunnyvale
Mountain View ↔ Sunnyvale3.1 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
7,492 Sunnyvale residents work in Mountain View (9.7% of its workers)
3,820 Mountain View residents work in Sunnyvale (9.2% of its workers)
Work & commute in Sunnyvale →
Monthly cost

A typical home costs $350 more a month in Sunnyvale

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.

Mountain View$10,970/mo
Typical home $1.93M (Zillow) · tax rate 0.52%+ · or rent about $3,062/mo · Housing →
Sunnyvale$11,310/mo
Typical home $1.99M (Zillow) · tax rate 0.51% · or rent about $3,039/mo · Housing →

The difference: $350 a month, about $4,100 a year, between Sunnyvale and Mountain View.

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.

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
Mountain ViewSunnyvale
Snow a year0″0″
January low39°F39°F
July high79°F79°F
Growing season (days)310d310d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)88th88th
Outdoors & history
Mountain ViewSunnyvale
Trails17 mi16 mi
Conserved land9.4%12.3%
National Register places21
Archive photos1826
Famous people born here6024
Community
Mountain ViewSunnyvale
Library hours a week62 hrs—
Colleges in town—1
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.

Mountain ViewSunnyvale
People
Population 83,732Lowest 154,236Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +11.2% CA: +6.1% +11.2% CA: +6.1%
Median age 35.5±0.6Highest 6% below CA 35.2±0.6Lowest 7% below CA
Mountain View and Sunnyvale are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 19.9%±1.4Highest CA: 22% 19.5%±0.9Lowest CA: 22%
Mountain View and Sunnyvale are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 12%±0.9Lowest CA: 15.7% 13%±0.6Highest CA: 15.7%
Sunnyvale and Mountain View are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 75%Highest CA: 37.1% 69.3%Lowest CA: 37.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 5.8%±0.7Lowest CA: 7.6% 6.2%±0.6Highest CA: 7.6%
Sunnyvale and Mountain View are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $189,917±$10kHighest 92% above CA $186,170±$5kLowest 88% above CA
Mountain View and Sunnyvale are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $1,927,000±$92kHighest 162% above CA $1,801,800±$63kLowest 145% above CA
Mountain View and Sunnyvale are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $3,062±$93Highest 50% above CA $3,039±$59Lowest 49% above CA
Mountain View and Sunnyvale are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $10,000+Highest at least 95% above CA $9,220Lowest 80% above CA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 38.4%±3.6Highest CA: 55.3% 34.7%±2.7Lowest CA: 55.3%
Mountain View and Sunnyvale are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 6%Highest CA: 12% 5.8%Lowest CA: 12%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 38.6%Lowest CA: 55.9% 43.8%Highest CA: 55.9%
Typical home builtmedian year 1975Lowest 1 yr older than CA 1976Highest same as CA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 23 minHighest 19% below CA 23 minLowest 20% below CA
Work from home 30.6%±2.3Highest CA: 17.2% 29.2%±1.5Lowest CA: 17.2%
Mountain View and Sunnyvale are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 16.4%Highest 14%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 6.8 mi 6.8 mi
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 2.08Highest 1.34Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town San Jose (10%)San Jose (14%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 9% work in Sunnyvale10% work in Mountain View
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 9.4%Lowest 12.3%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 17.2 miHighest 16.3 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 1.4 miHighest 0.7 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 33Highest 31Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 107Highest 96.0Lowest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #5 of 574 in CA#262 of 574 in CA
School district Los Altos Elementary · Mountain View WhismanCupertino Union · Fremont Union High
High school in town Mountain View HighFremont High
Students per teacherat that high school 18.5Lowest 21.2Highest
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.

Mountain View neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Mountain View’s Town Square.

Sunnyvale neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Sunnyvale’s Town Square.

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Bordering Mountain View

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Palo Alto67,237 people · $2M homes
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Los Altos30,698 people · $2M homes

Towns like Mountain View

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Santa Clara130,256 people · $1.58M homes
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Berkeley120,257 people · $1.41M homes
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Santa Monica91,169 people · $1.76M homes
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Redondo Beach69,291 people · $1.28M 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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