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Compare towns

Rosedale vs Hercules

249 miles apart. The biggest differences: rent (+83% in Hercules) and growth since 2010 (+24.5 pts in Rosedale).

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Rosedale, CAOne of the healthiest townsCalifornia · 18,877 people
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Hercules, CAOne of the healthiest townsCalifornia · 26,302 people
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.

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.

★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $790 more a month in Hercules

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.

Rosedale$3,680/mo
Typical home $609K (Census) · tax rate 0.95% · or rent about $1,637/mo · Housing →
Hercules$4,470/mo
Typical home $737K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.99% · or rent about $2,991/mo · Housing →

The difference: $790 a month, about $9,500 a year, between Hercules and Rosedale.

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

Hercules places higher on 10 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.

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
RosedaleHercules
Snow a year0″0″
January low41°F43°F
July high98°F74°F
Growing season (days)334d365d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)70th83rd
Outdoors & history
RosedaleHercules
Trails20 mi9 mi
Conserved land0.3%4.7%
Settled18911900
National Register places—1
Archive photos—18
Famous people born here1—
Community
RosedaleHercules
Library hours a week—46 hrs
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.

Where they are

249 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

Rosedale ↔ Hercules249 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.

RosedaleHercules
People
Population 18,877Lowest 26,302Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +32.6%Highest CA: +6.1% +8.1%Lowest CA: +6.1%
Median age 37.6±2.9Lowest about the CA average 43.9±1.8Highest 16% above CA
Kids under 18 26.7%±2.6Highest CA: 22% 18.3%±2.2Lowest CA: 22%
Age 65+ 13.4%±2Lowest CA: 15.7% 20.1%±2.1Highest CA: 15.7%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 41.2%Lowest CA: 37.1% 46%Highest CA: 37.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 5.9%±1.3Lowest CA: 7.6% 7.4%±1.4Highest CA: 7.6%
Hercules and Rosedale are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $135,966±$16kHighest 37% above CA $129,397±$8kLowest 31% above CA
Rosedale and Hercules are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $608,900±$21kLowest 17% below CA $769,400±$27kHighest 5% above CA
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,637±$907Lowest 20% below CA $2,991±$414Highest 47% above CA
Property taxmedian, yearly $5,803Lowest 13% above CA $7,580Highest 48% above CA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 64.5%±60.5Highest CA: 55.3% 59.6%±9.7Lowest CA: 55.3%
Rosedale and Hercules are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 6.4%Highest CA: 12% 5.6%Lowest CA: 12%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 85.7%Highest CA: 55.9% 79.2%Lowest CA: 55.9%
Typical home builtmedian year 2001Highest 25 yrs newer than CA 1988Lowest 12 yrs newer than CA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 28 minLowest about the CA average 38 minHighest 31% above CA
Work from home 9.2%±2.4Lowest CA: 17.2% 19%±2.2Highest CA: 17.2%
Work in townworking residents 6.3%Highest 4.6%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 8.8 miLowest 15.8 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.63Highest 0.35Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town Bakersfield (44%)San Francisco (18%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in HerculesFew work in Rosedale
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 0.3%Lowest 4.7%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 19.9 miHighest 9.3 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.7 miHighest 0.5 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 2Lowest 12Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 21.4Lowest 39.5Highest
Schools
School district Rosedale Union ElementaryWest Contra Costa Unified
High school in town None in townHercules High
Students per teacherat that high school — 23.7
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.

Rosedale neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Rosedale’s Town Square.

Hercules neighborsTown Square →
T Weaver · 1w

Hercules History and Changes

1 neighbor in Hercules can answer.

Add a town

Set another town beside Rosedale and Hercules

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

Bordering Rosedale

Towns like Rosedale

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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