Metro area · California
Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro area
Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA is a metropolitan area of 1 county in California, home to 486,444 residents. Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro area has a quality-of-life score of 93 out of 100 (very high), ranking #70 of 925 US metro and micro areas. Among metro and micro areas based in California it ranks #1 of 34. It ranks best on median Air Quality Index (low), comfortable days (high) and drought exposure (low). It ranks worst on home price to income ratio (high), cost of buying a home today (high) and severe housing problems (high).
- Quality-of-life score
- #70 of 925 metro and micro areas
- California
- #1 of 34 in CA
- Population
- 486,444 (2025)
- Land area
- 1,575 mi²
- Density
- 308.8 /mi²
- CBSA code
- 42220
Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 69 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.
Scores by category
Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US metro and micro areas.
- Safety80#186/924
- Economy92#76/925
- Housing4#886/925
- Health94#54/925
- Healthcare95#48/923
- Environment98#16/917
- Education70#281/925
- Infrastructure87#119/925
- Community74#242/925
- Leisure & amenities96#34/925
Strengths · Weaknesses
Indicators where Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro area ranks highest and lowest among US metro and micro areas (score = percentile, 100 = best).
Strengths
- Median Air Quality Index · low9
- Comfortable days · high49.6%100/100California 34.8%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationAggregated from counties
- Drought exposure · low0%99/100California 9%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAAggregated from counties
- Broadband subscriptions · high94.4%
- Median household income · high$104,674
- Adult obesity · low26.1%97/100California 30.4%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAggregated from counties
Weaknesses
- Home price to income ratio · high7.8×
- Cost of buying a home today · high52.6%
- Severe housing problems · high22.0%4/100California 25.8%United States 16.8%2017-2021University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAggregated from counties
- Rent-burdened households · high54.8%
- Rent as share of income · high32.3%
- Public libraries · low0.3 /10k19/100California 0.3 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesAggregated from counties
Trends
The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.
- Drought exposureImproving
100% (2021) → 0% (Oct 2025–Sep 2026)
−100 pts5 yearsUS 40% → 43%
- Median Air Quality IndexImproving
36 (2020) → 9 (2025)
−75%5 years
- Drug overdose deathsImproving
30.5 /100k (2021) → 16.2 /100k (Mar 2025–Feb 2026)
−47%5 yearsUS 30.8 /100k → 18.4 /100k
- Violent crime rateImproving
451 /100k (2020) → 248 /100k (2025)
−45%5 yearsUS 389 /100k → 328 /100k
- Cost of buying a home todayWorsening
44.4% (Dec 2021) → 52.6% (Aug 2026)
+8.3 pts5 yearsUS 26.4% → 34.1%
- Income adjusted for local pricesImproving
$59,140 (2019) → $82,417 (2024)
+39%5 yearsUS $55,567 → $73,204
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.
Metro and micro areas like Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro area five years ago that improved
The places whose measures looked most like those of Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro area 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.
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).
Income
How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.
Homes
Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.
Getting to work
How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.
Jobs and pay
What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.
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.
Federal contract spending
Federal grants & assistance
Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.
Counties in Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA
Whole counties, as the U.S. Office of Management and Budget delineates the area. Federal spending below is the exact sum of these counties.
Principal cities
The cities the area is named for.
Largest cities and towns
By population, for places with most of their residents in the area.
- Santa Rosa177,090
- Petaluma59,247
- Rohnert Park44,575
- Windsor26,081
- Healdsburg11,243
- Sonoma10,670
- Cloverdale8,886
- Larkfield-Wikiup8,765
- Cotati7,489
- Sebastopol7,445
- Boyes Hot Springs7,247
- Guerneville4,100
- Forestville3,717
- El Verano3,443
- Fetters Hot Springs-Agua Caliente3,347
- Sonoma State University2,210
- Penngrove2,119
- Graton1,806
- Temelec1,628
- Eldridge1,379
- Sea Ranch1,287
- Occidental1,225
- Bodega Bay1,139
- Glen Ellen1,078
Other metro and micro areas in California
Areas based in California, best score first.
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA56
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA27
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA83
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA73
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA65
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA87
- Fresno, CA17
- Bakersfield-Delano, CA5
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA77
- Stockton-Lodi, CA28
- Modesto, CA27
- Visalia, CA11
- Vallejo, CA61
- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA76
- Salinas, CA61
- Merced, CA4
- San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA85
- Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA89
- Chico, CA44
- Yuba City, CA21
- Redding, CA48
- El Centro, CA12
- Hanford-Corcoran, CA10
- Napa, CA87
Neighboring metro and micro areas
Places that share a border, best score first.
Similar metro and micro areas
Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).
- Napa, CA87Alike on Price / income, Rent, Grocery stores
- Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA89Alike on Broadband, Price level, Smoking
- San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA85Alike on Home value, Price level, Life expectancy
- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA77Alike on Comfortable days, Home value, Broadband
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA83Alike on Broadband, Comfortable days, July high
Data and sources
Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.
- Mapping Injury, Overdose, and ViolenceCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2026-10-01
- PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
- Daily county PM2.5 and ozone (EPA downscaler model)Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2022
- Care Compare: Hospital General Information and Timely and Effective CareCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services · release 2026-07-22
- Distance to airports and intercity railFederal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau · release 2025+amtrak-2026-04-23
- Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Return A master filesFederal Bureau of Investigation · release 2025
- Public Libraries SurveyInstitute of Museum and Library Services · release FY2024
- U.S. Drought Monitor county statisticsNational Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA · release 2026-09-29
- Fatality Analysis Reporting SystemNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration · release 2024
- nClimGrid-Daily county averagesNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · release 2025
- Regional Economic AccountsU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis · release 2024
- Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
- Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2026 Q1
- American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
- Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
- Business Formation StatisticsU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-10-01
- 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
- Alternative Fuels Data Center station locatorU.S. Department of Energy · release 2026-10
- Election Administration and Voting SurveyU.S. Election Assistance Commission · release 2024
- Air Quality Index Annual Summary by CountyU.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2025
- County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement
- Zillow Home Value Index, Observed Rent Index and affordabilityZillow Research · release 2026-08