California · Home Values · 2024
California home prices 2024 — median, average and county breakdown
According to the US Census Bureau's American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (2020–2024), the median home value in California is $734,700. Across the 58 counties measured, home values range from $224,700 in Modoc, CA to $1,559,600 in San Mateo, CA.
California median home value, 2024
Most expensive counties in California
| County | Median home value |
|---|---|
| San Mateo, CA | $1,559,600 |
| Marin, CA | $1,507,300 |
| Santa Clara, CA | $1,490,600 |
| San Francisco, CA | $1,394,500 |
| Alameda, CA | $1,090,100 |
Most affordable counties in California
| County | Median home value |
|---|---|
| Modoc, CA | $224,700 |
| Lassen, CA | $265,300 |
| Siskiyou, CA | $309,500 |
| Imperial, CA | $309,600 |
| Lake, CA | $324,300 |
Average vs median home price — what's the difference?
The figure $734,700 is the median home value reported by the US Census Bureau — the middle value when every owner-occupied home in California is sorted by price. Median is the standard measure used in housing reporting because it is not skewed by a small number of very expensive properties. The "average" home price searched for online almost always refers to this median value; true arithmetic averages tend to be 10–30% higher than the median in markets with high-end outliers, but the Census does not publish that figure.
For California specifically, the Census also reports a median monthly rent of $2,036 and a price-to-income ratio of 7.4×. Both are sourced from the same 2020–2024 ACS 5-Year Estimates release.
Explore California on the map
The figures above are static snapshots. The full county-level breakdown — including rent burden, price-to-income ratio, owner cost burden, and population change — is available on the interactive map.
Open California on the USInsights map →Compare with other states
See the same home-price breakdown for any other US state, or compare California side-by-side with the national rankings: