Census-designated place · Shasta County, California

Happy Valley, California

Happy Valley is a census-designated place in Shasta County, California, part of the Redding, CA metro area. It has 5,944 residents. Happy Valley, California has a quality-of-life score of 20 out of 100 (low), ranking #12,475 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within California it ranks #716 of 1,062 cities and towns. It ranks best on drought exposure (low), job growth (high) and mental health providers (high). It ranks worst on rent as share of income (high), natural hazard risk (high) and high school diploma or higher (low).

20Low

Quality-of-life score: #12,475 of 15,651 cities and towns
California: #716 of 1,062 in CA
Population: 5,944 (2020-2024)
Land area: 17 mi²
Density: 351.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 0632036

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 75 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety19#12,676/15,637
Economy55#7,056/15,631
Housing7#13,915/14,977
Health29#11,010/15,609
Healthcare55#6,994/15,650
Environment41#9,173/15,453
Education3#15,225/15,649
Infrastructure45#8,629/15,650
Community16#13,209/15,651
Leisure & amenities64#5,701/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Happy Valley, California ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Shasta County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Drought exposure · low0%
96/100California 9%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAShasta County value
Job growth · high3.4%
95/100California 0.9%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataShasta County value
Mental health providers · high568 /100k
92/100California 487 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteShasta County value
Public EV charging ports · high13.3 /10k
88/100California 17.4 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyShasta County value
Adult obesity · low28.2%
85/100California 30.4%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Grocery stores · high2.3 /10k
82/100California 2.0 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsShasta County value

Weaknesses

Rent as share of income · high51.0%
2/100California 32.8%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Natural hazard risk · high97.4
3/100California 87.32025Federal Emergency Management AgencyShasta County value
High school diploma or higher · low84.8%
5/100California 84.7%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Distance to an airport · high126 mi
5/100California 22 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauShasta County value
Rent-burdened households · high80.3%
7/100California 55.3%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Violent crime rate · high558 /100k
7/100California 433 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationShasta County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
5,652 (2016-2020) → 5,944 (2020-2024)
+5.2%4 yearsCensus table B01003US 331,578,104 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
47.0% (2016-2020) → 80.3% (2020-2024)
+33 pts4 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.1% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
18.4% (2016-2020) → 51.0% (2020-2024)
+33 pts4 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.6% → 30.6%
Median household incomeImproving
$57,479 (2016-2020) → $92,222 (2020-2024)
+60%4 yearsCensus table B19013US $67,340 → $81,604
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
83.1% (2016-2020) → 93.9% (2020-2024)
+11 pts4 yearsCensus table B28002US 85.2% → 91.0%
High school diploma or higherWorsening
92.9% (2016-2020) → 84.8% (2020-2024)
−8.1 pts4 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.5% → 89.6%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

There is not enough history to compare Happy Valley, California over five years.

Cities and towns like Happy Valley, California five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Happy Valley, California in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

No place that looked like Happy Valley, California five years ago has more measures that improved than declined, with a higher standing among its peers today.

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

5,944 residents (±1,132)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

5,944 residents (±1,132)

Happy Valley, California
California share

White59%3,510
Black0.0%0
Hispanic or Latino17%†1,010

Education

4,421 residents (±929)

Happy Valley, California
California share

No high school diploma15%†673
High school or GED33%†1,470
Some college29%1,279

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

2,026 households (±343)

Happy Valley, California
California share

Under $25k9.6%†194
$25k–50k17%†352
$50k–75k16%†320
$75k–100k14%†288
$100k–150k22%†440
$150k–200k8.2%†166
$200k or more13%†266

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

2,026 households (±343)

Happy Valley, California
California share

Own87%1,769
Rent13%†257

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

213 households (±120)

Happy Valley, California
California share

Under $75017%†37
$750–1,00030%†64
$1,000–1,50020%†43

Home values

1,769 homes (±312)

Happy Valley, California
California share

Under $150k10%†179
$150k–250k27%†474
$250k–400k27%†480

Age of homes

2,193 homes (±344)

Happy Valley, California
California share

2010 or later4.9%†107
2000–200913%†281
1980–199927%†589

Size of homes

2,193 homes (±344)

Happy Valley, California
California share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom10%†222
2 bedrooms21%†465

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

2,166 workers (±533)

Happy Valley, California
California share

Drive alone89%1,918
Carpool6.4%†138
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.5%†11
Bike0.0%0
Work from home3.8%†82
Other0.8%†17

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

2,084 workers (±551)

Happy Valley, California
California share

Under 15 min10%†210
15–29 min66%†1,372
30–44 min17%†356

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Redding, CA

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Shasta County, the county holding most of Happy Valley's residents.

Shasta County has 4,508 employer establishments, 249 for every 10,000 residents (1.00× the US rate of 248; 0.95× California's), with 53,944 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,899. The Census Bureau also counts 12,664 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 4,508; 12,664 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 249; US 248 · California 263
Paid employees: 53,944
Average annual pay: $53,899; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Shasta County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	436	24.1	1.16×About typical	4,685	$66,092	597
Specialty trade contractors	357	19.8	1.28×More than typical	2,171	$69,919	728
Restaurants and other eating places	319	17.7	0.96×About typical	5,392	$24,389	70
Lessors of real estate	201	11.1	0.90×About typical	554	$41,439	1,056
Construction of buildings	150	8.3	1.10×About typical	474	$61,823	504
Offices of physicians	142	7.9	1.21×About typical	1,182	$85,345	131
Full-service restaurants	139	7.7	1.00×About typical	2,259	$26,317	32
Building equipment contractors	136	7.5	1.25×More than typical	868	$66,302	125
Limited-service restaurants	130	7.2	0.90×About typical	2,502	$22,691	26
Automotive repair and maintenance	129	7.1	1.42×More than typical	758	$52,926	172
Offices of other health practitioners	127	7	1.16×About typical	713	$45,888	319
Services to buildings and dwellings	125	6.9	1.03×About typical	929	$46,968	837

Rank places for an industry Open Shasta County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 180,695 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $177.2K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Happy Valley, California: $29.82 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $177.2K; +54% vs FY2025
Per resident: $29.82; US $1,995
Sole-source: 65%; US 30%
Single offer: 28%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service$157.6K89%
National Park Service$8,7785.0%
Indian Health Service$8,0644.5%
Department of Energy$2,7491.6%

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

333.5KFY2017
189.1KFY2018
392.7KFY2019
149.8KFY2020
61.6KFY2021
117.1KFY2022
389.6KFY2023
594.5K

Top industries (NAICS)

Animal food manufacturing · 3111$65.3K37%
Other miscellaneous manufacturing · 3399$39.3K22%
Animal slaughtering and processing · 3116$19.3K11%
Petroleum and coal products manufacturing · 3241$10.3K5.8%
Household and institutional furniture and kitchen cabinet manufacturing · 3371$8,7785.0%
Utility system construction · 2371$8,064

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 7, 2026, loaded Oct 7, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Happy Valley, California, so they do not add up across cities.

Happy Valley, California's figures are part of those of Shasta County, CA ($98.5M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.2% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Happy Valley is mostly in Shasta County.

See federal money in Shasta County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Happy Valley, California is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

James GallagherR-CA-1 · 100% of residentsWith party 93%Missed 6.1%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Shasta County44100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Redding, CA48

Other cities and towns in Shasta County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/0632036

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends

What changed in five years

Cities and towns like Happy Valley, California five years ago that improved