City · Marin County, California

Mill Valley, California

Mill Valley is a city in Marin County, California, part of the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area. It has 14,012 residents. Mill Valley, California has a quality-of-life score of 98 out of 100 (very high), ranking #326 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within California it ranks #6 of 1,062 cities and towns. It ranks best on gyms and fitness centers (high), adult obesity (low) and mental health providers (high). It ranks worst on home price to income ratio (high), natural hazard risk (high) and income inequality (Gini index) (high).

98Very high

Quality-of-life score: #326 of 15,651 cities and towns
California: #6 of 1,062 in CA
Population: 14,012 (2020-2024)
Land area: 5 mi²
Density: 2,928.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 0647710

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 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.

Safety82#2,820/15,637
Economy81#3,016/15,631
Housing36#9,644/14,977
Health96#655/15,609
Healthcare100#44/15,650
Environment90#1,472/15,453
Education74#4,076/15,649
Infrastructure93#1,086/15,650
Community93#1,071/15,651
Leisure & amenities99#189/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Mill Valley, California ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Marin 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

Gyms and fitness centers · high3.6 /10k
100/100California 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMarin County value
Adult obesity · low19.3%
100/100California 30.4%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Mental health providers · high980 /100k
99/100California 487 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarin County value
Life expectancy · high84.3 yrs
99/100California 79.7 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarin County value
Primary care physicians · high147 /100k
99/100California 83 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarin County value
Comfortable days · high47.7%
99/100California 34.8%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationMarin County value

Weaknesses

Home price to income ratio · high9.7×
1/100California 7.4×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Natural hazard risk · high95.7
4/100California 87.32025Federal Emergency Management AgencyMarin County value
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.499
7/100California 0.489United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Students per teacher · high19.1×
10/100California 21.7×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsMarin County value
Unemployment rate · high8.8%
13/100California 5.5%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025
High school diploma or higher · low98.7%
17/100California 84.7%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003

Trends

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

New homes permittedWorsening
3.3 /1k (2021) → 1.2 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−63%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Public transit commutersWorsening
10.3% (2015-2019) → 1.6% (2020-2024)
−8.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B08301US 5.0% → 3.2%
Unemployment rateWorsening
2.3% (2015-2019) → 8.8% (2020-2024)
+6.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Average commute timeImproving
33.8 min (2015-2019) → 24.8 min (2020-2024)
−27%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
Median household incomeImproving
$163,614 (2015-2019) → $206,212 (2020-2024)
+26%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
1.0% (2015-2019) → 4.8% (2020-2024)
+3.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

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, Mill Valley, California improved on 2 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 8 moved within the margin of error and 1 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.

Improved2

Commute−9.0 min33.8 min → 24.8 min
Household income+26%$163,614 → $206,212

Declined2

Unemployment+6.5 points2.3% → 8.8%
Transit use−8.7 points10.3% → 1.6%

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Mill Valley, California between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	33.8 min2015-2019	24.8 min2020-2024	−9.0 min	Improved	98%
Bachelor's degree or higher	76.5%2015-2019	75.8%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Broadband subscriptions	94.3%2015-2019	96.6%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	16%
Effective property tax rate	0.70%2015-2019	0.72%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	14%
High school diploma or higher	98.6%2015-2019	98.7%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	34%
Home price to income ratio	9.8×2015-2019	9.7×2020-2024	−0.1×	Little change	82%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5242015-2019	0.4992020-2024	−0.025	Within the margin of error	71%
Median household income	$163,6142015-2019	$206,2122020-2024	+26%	Improved	46%
Poverty rate	5.6%2015-2019	5.9%2020-2024	+0.3 points	Within the margin of error	40%
Public transit commuters	10.3%2015-2019	1.6%2020-2024	−8.7 points	Declined	3%
Rent as share of income	26.8%2015-2019	27.4%2020-2024	+0.6 points	Within the margin of error	50%
Rent-burdened households	39.6%2015-2019	39.3%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	57%
Unemployment rate	2.3%2015-2019	8.8%2020-2024	+6.5 points	Declined	2%

“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 Mill Valley, California five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Mill 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.

For comparison, Mill Valley, California itself moved +2.3 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

14,012 residents (±26)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79
60–69

Income

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

Household income

5,688 households (±289)

Mill Valley, California
California share

Under $25k7.6%†434
$25k–50k5.8%†331
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

5,688 households (±289)

Mill Valley, California
California share

Own66%3,767
Rent34%1,921

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

6,498 workers (±383)

Mill Valley, California
California share

Drive alone49%3,162
Carpool3.6%†237
Public transit1.6%†104

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 San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, 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 Marin County, the county holding most of Mill Valley's residents.

Marin County has 10,049 employer establishments, 393 for every 10,000 residents (1.58× the US rate of 248; 1.50× California's), with 106,249 paid employees at an average annual pay of $86,768. The Census Bureau also counts 35,051 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 10,049; 35,051 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 393; US 248 · California 263
Paid employees: 106,249
Average annual pay: $86,768; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	892	34.9	1.68×More than typical	7,579	$103,438	2,486
Lessors of real estate	668	26.2	2.12×More than typical	2,336	$87,367	4,327
Restaurants and other eating places	574	22.5	1.22×About typical	10,251	$33,261	59
Construction of buildings	543	21.3	2.81×More than typical	3,122	$87,857	873
Management, scientific and technical consulting	541	21.2	3.16×More than typical	2,049	$124,760	2,865
Specialty trade contractors	514	20.1	1.30×More than typical	4,694	$78,596	944
Offices of other health practitioners	289	11.3	1.86×More than typical	833	$61,283	1,596
Offices of physicians	282	11	1.70×More than typical	1,986	$128,955	547
Full-service restaurants	280	11	1.43×More than typical	5,940	$35,938	36
Services to buildings and dwellings	260	10.2	1.51×More than typical	2,934	$48,122	1,600
Real estate agents and brokers	239	9.4	1.92×More than typical	487	$109,692	1,041
Legal services	238	9.3	1.73×More than typical	995	$121,921	874

Rank places for an industry Open Marin County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 255,443 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 $364.4K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Mill Valley, California: $26.01 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $364.4K; −72% vs FY2025
Per resident: $26.01; US $1,994
Sole-source: 3.2%; US 30%
Single offer: 35%; 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

Federal Aviation Administration$143.3K39%
National Park Service$143.3K39%
Department of the Army$39.2K11%
Defense Logistics Agency$19.4K5.3%
Social Security Administration$7,6142.1%
Federal Trade Commission$6,3311.7%
U.S. Secret Service$2,7460.8%
Drug Enforcement Administration$2,5480.7%

Top recipients

RMS NICKLAUS JV II LLC$136.5K37%
M3 INTEGRATED SERVICES, INC.$112.8K31%
KEMRON ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES, INC.$39.2K11%
W&K CONTAINER, INC.$19.4K5.3%
AMA DIVERSIFIED CONSTRUCTION GROUP$18.3K5.0%

Spending by fiscal year

1.1MFY2017
1MFY2018
3.4MFY2019
3.6MFY2020
1.3MFY2021
713.6KFY2022
1.4MFY2023
1.9M

Top industries (NAICS)

Remediation and other waste management services · 5629$188K52%
Other heavy and civil engineering construction · 2379$112.8K31%
Boiler, tank, and shipping container manufacturing · 3324$19.4K5.3%
Nonresidential building construction · 2362$18.3K5.0%
Offices of physicians · 6211$7,6142.1%
Foundation, structure, and building exterior contractors · 2381

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 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 Mill Valley, California, so they do not add up across cities.

Mill Valley, California's figures are part of those of Marin County, CA ($25.4M in FY2026), never added to them: 1.4% of that total.

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

See federal money in Marin 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.

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

House

Jared HuffmanD-CA-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 100%Missed 2.5%

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.

Marin County95100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA83

Other cities and towns in Marin 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/0647710

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends