Scores by category

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

Safety46#8,442/15,637
Economy27#11,353/15,631
Housing11#13,340/14,977
Health51#7,588/15,609
Healthcare56#6,811/15,650
Environment94#891/15,453
Education0#15,588/15,649
Infrastructure39#9,623/15,650
Community20#12,469/15,651
Leisure & amenities63#5,825/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where King City, California ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Monterey 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

Comfortable days · high46.7%
99/100California 34.8%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationMonterey County value
Drought exposure · low0%
98/100California 9%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAMonterey County value
Job growth · high3.7%
96/100California 0.9%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataMonterey County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low5.2 µg/m³
95/100California 9.4 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyMonterey County value
Grocery stores · high2.7 /10k
92/100California 2.0 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMonterey County value
Firearm deaths · low4.6 /100k
90/100California 6.7 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMonterey County value

Weaknesses

High school diploma or higher · low50.1%
1/100California 84.7%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Poor or fair health · high39.0%
1/100California 21.5%United States 19.9%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Food insecurity · high40.6%
2/100California 18.5%United States 15.6%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Lack of reliable transportation · high19.5%
3/100California 9.6%United States 8.3%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Math scores · low2.49
3/100California 2.79United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMonterey County value
Physical inactivity · high39.3%
3/100California 23.5%United States 26.5%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate

Trends

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

Broadband subscriptionsImproving
73.7% (2015-2019) → 92.8% (2020-2024)
+19 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
New homes permittedWorsening
10.3 /1k (2021) → 4.3 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−59%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
53.8% (2015-2019) → 64.3% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
High school diploma or higherImproving
41.9% (2015-2019) → 50.1% (2020-2024)
+8.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Child poverty rateWorsening
26.6% (2015-2019) → 34.6% (2020-2024)
+8 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Average commute timeWorsening
21.4 min (2015-2019) → 29.4 min (2020-2024)
+37%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min

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.

Over about five years, King City, California improved on 4 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 3. 7 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved4

Uninsured−6.5 points17.2% → 10.7%
Broadband+19 points73.7% → 92.8%
Bachelor's++7.3 points4.1% → 11.4%
Household income+35%$49,375 → $66,761

Declined3

Commute+8.0 min21.4 min → 29.4 min
Price / income+1.6×5.1× → 6.7×
Rent / income+6 points31.6% → 37.6%

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of King City, California between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	21.4 min2015-2019	29.4 min2020-2024	+8.0 min	Declined	4%
Bachelor's degree or higher	4.1%2015-2019	11.4%2020-2024	+7.3 points	Improved	81%
Broadband subscriptions	73.7%2015-2019	92.8%2020-2024	+19 points	Improved	89%
Child poverty rate	26.6%2015-2019	34.6%2020-2024	+8 points	Within the margin of error	15%
Effective property tax rate	0.73%2015-2019	0.76%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	13%
High school diploma or higher	41.9%2015-2019	50.1%2020-2024	+8.2 points	Within the margin of error	92%
Home price to income ratio	5.1×2015-2019	6.7×2020-2024	+1.6×	Declined	7%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4002015-2019	0.3702020-2024	−0.030	Within the margin of error	74%
Median household income	$49,3752015-2019	$66,7612020-2024	+35%	Improved	66%
Poverty rate	18.6%2015-2019	23.0%2020-2024	+4.3 points	Within the margin of error	15%
Rent as share of income	31.6%2015-2019	37.6%2020-2024	+6 points	Declined	18%
Rent-burdened households	53.8%2015-2019	64.3%2020-2024	+11 points	Within the margin of error	22%
Unemployment rate	2.9%2015-2019	5.4%2020-2024	+2.5 points	Within the margin of error	12%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	17.2%2015-2019	10.7%2020-2024	−6.5 points	Improved	91%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like King City, California five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of King City, 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.

For comparison, King City, California itself moved −2.9 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

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

13,604 residents (±30)

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

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 20–29 men (−4.4 points).

† 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

13,604 residents (±30)

King City, California
California share

White6.9%†940
Black0.1%†16
Hispanic or Latino88%12,017

Education

7,506 residents (±412)

King City, California
California share

No high school diploma50%3,746
High school or GED23%1,692
Some college10%755

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

3,242 households (±265)

King City, California
California share

Under $25k9.9%†320
$25k–50k22%703
$50k–75k23%†739
$75k–100k17%†552
$100k–150k18%†571
$150k–200k7.9%†255
$200k or more3.1%†102

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $25k–50k (−13.7 points).

† 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

3,242 households (±265)

King City, California
California share

Own42%1,365
Rent58%1,877

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

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

Rent paid

1,822 households (±304)

King City, California
California share

Under $7502.6%†48
$750–1,0008.1%†148
$1,000–1,50037%682

Home values

1,365 homes (±267)

King City, California
California share

Under $150k5.9%†80
$150k–250k7.7%†105
$250k–400k17%†234

Age of homes

3,473 homes (±298)

King City, California
California share

2010 or later18%614
2000–200911%†371
1980–199931%†1,063

Size of homes

3,473 homes (±298)

King City, California
California share

Studio8.7%†302
1 bedroom9.1%†316
2 bedrooms33%1,163

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

4,633 workers (±449)

King City, California
California share

Drive alone69%3,213
Carpool11%†507
Public transit1.2%†55
Walk1.9%†86
Bike0.0%†1
Work from home3.9%†182
Other13%†589

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Drive alone (+10.4 points).

† 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

4,451 workers (±426)

King City, California
California share

Under 15 min20%889
15–29 min42%1,884
30–44 min18%†784

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 Salinas, 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 Monterey County, the county holding most of King City's residents.

Monterey County has 9,212 employer establishments, 212 for every 10,000 residents (0.85× the US rate of 248; 0.81× California's), with 116,784 paid employees at an average annual pay of $60,396. The Census Bureau also counts 28,349 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 9,212; 28,349 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 212; US 248 · California 263
Paid employees: 116,784
Average annual pay: $60,396; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	818	18.8	1.03×About typical	14,568	$29,732	163
Ambulatory health care services	766	17.6	0.85×About typical	6,481	$78,295	1,260
Specialty trade contractors	681	15.7	1.01×About typical	4,057	$70,112	1,209
Lessors of real estate	456	10.5	0.85×About typical	1,481	$59,182	2,805
Construction of buildings	405	9.3	1.23×About typical	2,064	$69,577	940
Full-service restaurants	380	8.8	1.14×About typical	7,385	$34,088	53
Services to buildings and dwellings	319	7.3	1.09×About typical	1,942	$41,626	2,153
Limited-service restaurants	305	7	0.88×About typical	5,469	$24,822	51
Building equipment contractors	268	6.2	1.03×About typical	1,532	$72,736	296
Offices of physicians	267	6.2	0.95×About typical	1,788	$112,636	314
Truck transportation	247	5.7	1.13×About typical	1,132	$67,152	468
Building finishing contractors	241	5.6	1.46×More than typical	1,303	$59,276	402

Rank places for an industry Open Monterey County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 434,107 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 $34.2K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in King City, California: $2.51 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $34.2K; −71% vs FY2025
Per resident: $2.51; US $1,995
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; 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

Forest Service$22.4K66%
Department of the Army$11.8K34%

Top recipients

RGZ FORESTRY LLC$22.2K65%
MCKENZIE CONSTRUCTION & SITE DEVELOPMENT LLC$11.8K34%
RELIANCE CONTRACTORS INC$1910.6%

Spending by fiscal year

29.6KFY2017
12.3KFY2018
12KFY2019
6.8KFY2020
1.9KFY2021
10.7KFY2022
4.5KFY2023
5.1KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Support activities for forestry · 1153$22.2K65%
Building equipment contractors · 2382$11.8K34%
Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$1910.6%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 6, 2026, loaded Oct 6, 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 King City, California, so they do not add up across cities.

King City, California's figures are part of those of Monterey County, CA ($571.5M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: King City is mostly in Monterey County.

See federal money in Monterey 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.

King City, California is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

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.

Monterey County59100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Salinas, CA61

Other cities and towns in Monterey 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
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
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/0638520

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends