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Woodside vs Highlands

8 miles apart. The biggest differences: trails (13.4× in Woodside) and jobs per worker (4× in Woodside).

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Woodside, CAHomes around $3.94MCalifornia · 5,126 people
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Highlands, CAOne of the healthiest townsCalifornia · 2,450 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 $10,980 more a month in Woodside

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.

Woodside$22,300/mo
Typical home $3.94M (Zillow) · tax rate 0.50%+ · or rent about $3,501/mo · Housing →
Highlands$11,320/mo
Typical home $2M (Census) · tax rate 0.50%+ · or rent about $3,501/mo · Housing →

The difference: $10,980 a month, about $131,700 a year, between Woodside and Highlands.

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.

Report cards

Grades and rankings, side by side

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
WoodsideHighlands
Snow a year0″0″
January low41°F41°F
July high81°F81°F
Growing season (days)333d333d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)90th84th
Outdoors & history
WoodsideHighlands
Trails28 mi2 mi
Conserved land12.2%35.8%
National Register places41
Archive photos221
Famous people born here6—
Community
WoodsideHighlands
Library hours a week57 hrs—
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined10

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

8 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

WoodsideHighlandsWoodsideHighlands
Woodside ↔ Highlands8.3 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.

WoodsideHighlands
People
Population 5,126Highest 2,450Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +0.4% CA: +6.1% —
Median age 46.4±3.8Highest 22% above CA 46.3±3.3Lowest 22% above CA
Woodside and Highlands are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 22.1%±4Highest CA: 22% 21.6%±4.9Lowest CA: 22%
Woodside and Highlands are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 23.6%±3.3Highest CA: 15.7% 20.4%±1.2Lowest CA: 15.7%
Woodside and Highlands are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 76.2%Lowest CA: 37.1% 79.6%Highest CA: 37.1%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3.4%±1.3Lowest CA: 7.6% 8.9%±5.3Highest CA: 7.6%
Highlands and Woodside are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $250,001 152% above CA $250,001 152% above CA
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $2,000,001 172% above CA $2,000,001 172% above CA
Rentmedian gross, monthly $3,501 72% above CA $3,501 72% above CA
Property taxmedian, yearly $10,000+ at least 95% above CA $10,000+ at least 95% above CA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 68.4%±21.3Highest CA: 55.3% 33.6%±25.4Lowest CA: 55.3%
Woodside and Highlands are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 4.5%Highest CA: 12% 3.9%Lowest CA: 12%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 87.4%Highest CA: 55.9% 84.7%Lowest CA: 55.9%
Typical home builtmedian year 1965Highest 11 yrs older than CA 1959Lowest 17 yrs older than CA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 29 minHighest about the CA average 24 minLowest 16% below CA
Work from home 30.5%±7.6Lowest CA: 17.2% 35.8%±4.4Highest CA: 17.2%
Highlands and Woodside are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 4.2%Highest 2.2%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 13.8 miLowest 17.3 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.91Highest 0.23Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town San Francisco (10%)San Francisco (19%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in HighlandsFew work in Woodside
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 12.2%Lowest 35.8%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 28.1 miHighest 2.1 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 2.5 miHighest 1.6 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 8Highest 2Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 25.2Lowest 47.9Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #10 of 574 in CA—
School district Woodside ElementarySan Mateo-Foster City · San Mateo County Office of Education
High school in town None in townHillcrest at Youth Services Center
Students per teacherat that high school — 4.1
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.

Woodside neighborsTown Square →
T Weaver · 1w

Woodside Coffee Favorites

1 neighbor in Woodside can answer.

Highlands neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Highlands’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Woodside and Highlands

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

Bordering Woodside

Towns like Woodside

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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