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Palermo vs Oroville

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: trails (10.2× in Oroville) and jobs per worker (8× in Oroville).

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Palermo, CAHomes around $243KCalifornia · 5,266 people
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Oroville, CAHomes around $308KCalifornia · 19,752 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.

PalermoHomes around $243K
Housing$243K typical home68% below the CA typical home Health89% of U.S. towns are healthieron CDC estimates All about Palermo →
OrovilleHomes around $308K
Housing$308K typical home60% below the CA typical home Work11,067 jobsbased in Oroville, a regional job hub SafetySafer than 2%of U.S. towns we grade All about Oroville →
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.

Trails10.2×
Oroville has more miles of trail
Oroville 10.2 miPalermo 1.0 mi
Jobs per worker8×
Oroville is more of a job hub
Oroville 1.76Palermo 0.22
Street grid5.5×
Oroville has the more walkable street grid
Oroville 48.8Palermo 8.8
Growth since 2010+25.7 pts
Oroville has grown faster since 2010
Oroville +28.9%Palermo +3.2%
Work in town+27.6 pts
More of Oroville’s workers stay in town
Oroville 31.8%Palermo 4.2%
Median age11.2 yrs
Palermo skews older
Palermo 47Oroville 35.8
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $420 more a month in Oroville

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.

Palermo$1,410/mo
Typical home $243K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.65% · or rent about $1,135/mo · Housing →
Oroville$1,820/mo
Typical home $308K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.81% · or rent about $1,093/mo · Housing →

The difference: $420 a month, about $5,000 a year, between Oroville and Palermo.

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.

Report cards

Oroville places higher on 13 of 19 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
–PalermoNot graded D−OrovilleSafer than 2% of U.S. towns
Schools
B−PalermoBetter than 46% of districts in the state C−OrovilleBetter than 21% of districts in the state
Health
DPalermoHealthier than 11% of U.S. towns C−OrovilleHealthier than 20% of U.S. towns
5Palermo
13Oroville

Lists won, of 19 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Fastest growingGrowth · 816 towns #485#37 Shortest commuteGetting around · 843 towns #469#81 Most trailsOutdoors · 677 towns #677#460 Most walkableOutdoors · 841 towns #820#562 Most conserved landOutdoors · 777 towns #564#423 Most activeHealth · 844 towns #697#603 Most remote workersWork · 801 towns #509#598 Lowest property taxCost of living · 835 towns #72#152

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

Where they are

Palermo and Oroville share a border

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

PalermoOrovillePalermoOroville
Palermo ↔ Oroville4.9 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
409 Palermo residents work in Oroville (25.7% of its workers)
Work & commute in Palermo →
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
PalermoOroville
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)86th65th
Outdoors & history
PalermoOroville
Trails1 mi10 mi
Conserved land1.9%3.8%
National Register places15
Archive photos522
Famous people born here118
Community
PalermoOroville
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined01

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.

PalermoOroville
People
Population 5,266Lowest 19,752Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +3.2%Lowest CA: +6.1% +28.9%Highest CA: +6.1%
Median age 47±6.9Highest 24% above CA 35.8±1.8Lowest 6% below CA
Kids under 18 20%±3.7Lowest CA: 22% 23.7%±2.9Highest CA: 22%
Oroville and Palermo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 23.1%±2.9Highest CA: 15.7% 14.8%±2Lowest CA: 15.7%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 12.2% CA: 37.1% 12.2% CA: 37.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3.2%±1.9Lowest CA: 7.6% 3.5%±1.3Highest CA: 7.6%
Oroville and Palermo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $50,588±$13kLowest 49% below CA $52,270±$6kHighest 47% below CA
Oroville and Palermo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $283,000±$47kLowest 61% below CA $311,600±$15kHighest 58% below CA
Oroville and Palermo are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,135±$122Highest 44% below CA $1,093±$60Lowest 46% below CA
Palermo and Oroville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $1,853Lowest 64% below CA $2,521Highest 51% below CA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 61.7%±14.1Highest CA: 55.3% 56%±9.6Lowest CA: 55.3%
Palermo and Oroville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 20.1%Lowest CA: 12% 21.4%Highest CA: 12%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 68.7%Highest CA: 55.9% 53%Lowest CA: 55.9%
Typical home builtmedian year 1979Highest 3 yrs newer than CA 1967Lowest 9 yrs older than CA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 29 minHighest about the CA average 20 minLowest 31% below CA
Work from home 9.9%±5.7Highest CA: 17.2% 7.5%±2.9Lowest CA: 17.2%
Palermo and Oroville are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 4.2%Lowest 31.8%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 21.8 miHighest 18.8 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.22Lowest 1.76Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Oroville (26%)Chico (13%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 26% work in OrovilleFew work in Palermo
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 1.9%Lowest 3.8%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 1.0 miLowest 10.2 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 miLowest 0.7 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 1Lowest 13Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 8.8Lowest 48.8Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading —#328 of 574 in CA
School district Palermo Union ElementaryOroville City Elementary · Oroville Union High
High school in town None in townOroville High
Students per teacherat that high school — 19.6
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.

Palermo neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Palermo’s Town Square.

Oroville neighborsTown Square →

1 neighbor in Oroville can answer.

Add a town

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Bordering Palermo

O
+ Compare
Oroville East7,504 people · $405K homes
S
+ Compare
South Oroville2,846 people · $262K homes
+ Compare
Bangor597 people · $378K homes

Towns like Palermo

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Shasta Lake10,311 people · $294K homes
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Lakeport5,113 people · $334K homes
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Gustine6,133 people · $442K homes
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Jackson5,048 people · $443K 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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