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Sunnyvale vs Mountain View

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

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

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

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

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

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

Where they are

Sunnyvale and Mountain View share a border

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

SunnyvaleMountain ViewSunnyvaleMountain View
Sunnyvale ↔ Mountain View3.1 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.

Sunnyvale$11,310/mo
Typical home $1.99M (Zillow) · tax rate 0.51% · or rent about $3,039/mo · Housing →
Mountain View$10,970/mo
Typical home $1.93M (Zillow) · tax rate 0.52%+ · or rent about $3,062/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
SunnyvaleMountain View
Snow a year0″0″
January low39°F39°F
July high79°F79°F
Growing season (days)310d310d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)88th88th
Outdoors & history
SunnyvaleMountain View
Trails16 mi17 mi
Conserved land12.3%9.4%
National Register places12
Archive photos2618
Famous people born here2460
Community
SunnyvaleMountain View
Library hours a week—62 hrs
Colleges in town1—
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.

SunnyvaleMountain View
People
Population 154,236Highest 83,732Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +11.2% CA: +6.1% +11.2% CA: +6.1%
Median age 35.2±0.6Lowest 7% below CA 35.5±0.6Highest 6% 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 19.5%±0.9Lowest CA: 22% 19.9%±1.4Highest 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+ 13%±0.6Highest CA: 15.7% 12%±0.9Lowest 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+ 69.3%Lowest CA: 37.1% 75%Highest CA: 37.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 6.2%±0.6Highest CA: 7.6% 5.8%±0.7Lowest 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 $186,170±$5kLowest 88% above CA $189,917±$10kHighest 92% 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 $1,801,800±$63kLowest 145% above CA $1,927,000±$92kHighest 162% 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 $3,039±$59Lowest 49% above CA $3,062±$93Highest 50% 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 $9,220Lowest 80% above CA $10,000+Highest at least 95% above CA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 34.7%±2.7Lowest CA: 55.3% 38.4%±3.6Highest 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 5.8%Lowest CA: 12% 6%Highest CA: 12%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 43.8%Highest CA: 55.9% 38.6%Lowest CA: 55.9%
Typical home builtmedian year 1976Highest same as CA 1975Lowest 1 yr older than CA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 23 minLowest 20% below CA 23 minHighest 19% below CA
Work from home 29.2%±1.5Lowest CA: 17.2% 30.6%±2.3Highest 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 14%Lowest 16.4%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 6.8 mi 6.8 mi
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 1.34Lowest 2.08Highest
Top workplaceoutside town San Jose (14%)San Jose (10%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 10% work in Mountain View9% work in Sunnyvale
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 12.3%Highest 9.4%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 16.3 miLowest 17.2 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.7 miLowest 1.4 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 31Lowest 33Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 96.0Lowest 107Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #262 of 574 in CA#5 of 574 in CA
School district Cupertino Union · Fremont Union HighLos Altos Elementary · Mountain View Whisman
High school in town Fremont HighMountain View High
Students per teacherat that high school 21.2Highest 18.5Lowest
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.

Sunnyvale neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Sunnyvale’s Town Square.

Mountain View neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Mountain View’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Bordering Sunnyvale

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Cupertino58,566 people · $2M homes
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Santa Clara130,256 people · $1.58M homes
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Los Altos30,698 people · $2M homes
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San Jose990,138 people · $1.23M homes

Towns like Sunnyvale

+ Compare
Berkeley120,257 people · $1.41M homes
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Irvine311,690 people · $1.19M homes
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San Mateo103,105 people · $1.62M homes
R
+ Compare
Redwood City82,447 people · $1.8M 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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