The 10 Dumbest Places In California For 2024


The dumbest places in California are Huron and Mendota for 2024 based on Saturday Night Science.

The unfortunate fact of the matter is that some places in the Golden State have a larger percent of their population that never graduated from high school.

While the emphasis on going to college might be overblown, the fact is that not graduating from high school puts you at a significant disadvantage on average. Educational attainment might not be the best way to measure one person’s intelligence, but it does shine a light on the state.

We will use Saturday Night Science to determine what places in California have the highest percentage of adults without a high school degree.

A recent study we published found that California is the 45th smartest state in the United States, with an average IQ of 97.

But that doesn’t mean that a few cities in California are a bit slower than others due to a lack of basic education.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


Dumbest Cities In California Map

Don’t freak out.

Some places are just smarter than others, but that says nothing about the character of the people living there. It’s another data point a real estate agent would never tell you.

For this ranking, we only looked at cities with populations greater than 5,000, leaving us 411 cities in California to rank. You can take a look at the data below.

For more California reading, check out:

The 10 Dumbest Places In California For 2024

Huron, CA

Source: Wikipedia User David Jordan at English Wikipedia | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

3
/10
Population: 6,260
% Adult High School Dropout: 64.0%
% Highly Educated: 3.0%
More on Huron: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Mendota, CA

Source: Wikipedia User David Jordan at English Wikipedia | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10
Population: 12,603
% Adult High School Dropout: 63.0%
% Highly Educated: 4.0%
More on Mendota: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Firebaugh, CA

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10
Population: 8,139
% Adult High School Dropout: 56.0%
% Highly Educated: 4.0%
More on Firebaugh: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Arvin, CA

Source: Flickr User Cesar_San1 | CC BY-ND 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10
Population: 19,613
% Adult High School Dropout: 54.0%
% Highly Educated: 4.0%
More on Arvin: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Farmersville, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Raymondcmacareno | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10
Population: 10,393
% Adult High School Dropout: 46.0%
% Highly Educated: 4.0%
More on Farmersville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Parlier, CA

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10
Population: 14,625
% Adult High School Dropout: 47.0%
% Highly Educated: 5.0%
More on Parlier: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Cudahy, CA

Source: Flickr User [email protected] | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10
Population: 22,657
% Adult High School Dropout: 47.0%
% Highly Educated: 5.0%
More on Cudahy: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Avenal, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Armona | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

3
/10
Population: 13,423
% Adult High School Dropout: 50.0%
% Highly Educated: 6.0%
More on Avenal: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10
Population: 13,971
% Adult High School Dropout: 43.0%
% Highly Educated: 4.0%
More on Mcfarland: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Orange Cove, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Bobak Ha’Eri | CC BY 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

4
/10
Population: 9,635
% Adult High School Dropout: 55.0%
% Highly Educated: 7.0%
More on Orange Cove: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Methodology: How we determined the dumbest cities in the Golden State

We realize that formal education is only part of it when it comes to being intelligent, but on the other hand, knowing the difference between they’re, their, and there is always going to make you look pretty stupid.

So, we used Saturday Night Science to narrow down our criteria to focus on a city’s educational opportunities and what percentage of the population takes advantage of those opportunities.

In short, we came up with these criteria to determine the dumbest cities in California:

  • % of the city’s population with less than a high school education (Age 25+)
  • % of city’s population with a college degree (Age 25+)

We got the data from the U.S. Census 2018-2022 American Community Survey.

Then, our algorithm generates a rank for each place in these categories. After crunching all the numbers, a ranking of the cities in California from dumbest to brightest.

For this ranking, we used every California city with at least 5,000 residents. We updated this article for 2024, and it’s our tenth time ranking the dumbest cities in California.

There You Have It – Now That You’re Asleep

If you’re measuring the locations in California where there are a high number of dropouts and adults who never received a formal education, this is an accurate ranking.

The dumbest cities in California are Huron, Mendota, Firebaugh, Arvin, Farmersville, Parlier, Cudahy, Avenal, McFarland, and Orange Cove.

If you’re also curious enough, here are the smartest places in California, according to science:

  1. Los Altos Hills
  2. Atherton
  3. Piedmont

For more California reading, check out:

Dumbest Cities In California For 2024

Rank City Population % Adult High School Dropout % Highly Educated
1 Huron, CA 6,260 64.0% 3.0%
2 Mendota, CA 12,603 63.0% 4.0%
3 Firebaugh, CA 8,139 56.0% 4.0%
4 Arvin, CA 19,613 54.0% 4.0%
5 Farmersville, CA 10,393 46.0% 4.0%
6 Parlier, CA 14,625 47.0% 5.0%
7 Cudahy, CA 22,657 47.0% 5.0%
8 Avenal, CA 13,423 50.0% 6.0%
9 Mcfarland, CA 13,971 43.0% 4.0%
10 Orange Cove, CA 9,635 55.0% 7.0%
11 Bell Gardens, CA 39,263 48.0% 6.0%
12 Soledad, CA 24,781 44.0% 5.0%
13 Calipatria, CA 6,579 39.0% 1.0%
14 Huntington Park, CA 54,547 47.0% 7.0%
15 Corcoran, CA 22,808 41.0% 4.0%
16 Lindsay, CA 12,581 42.0% 5.0%
17 Coachella, CA 42,279 41.0% 5.0%
18 Maywood, CA 25,009 49.0% 9.0%
19 Lynwood, CA 66,346 44.0% 8.0%
20 Wasco, CA 26,317 37.0% 5.0%
21 South El Monte, CA 19,694 44.0% 9.0%
22 Bell, CA 33,377 42.0% 9.0%
23 Guadalupe, CA 8,272 42.0% 9.0%
24 Gonzales, CA 8,581 38.0% 8.0%
25 Delano, CA 50,498 38.0% 8.0%
26 Woodlake, CA 7,495 45.0% 11.0%
27 Waterford, CA 9,165 31.0% 5.0%
28 South Gate, CA 92,381 42.0% 11.0%
29 Dos Palos, CA 5,755 36.0% 10.0%
30 Compton, CA 94,822 36.0% 10.0%
31 Madera, CA 66,784 40.0% 11.0%
32 Blythe, CA 17,949 31.0% 8.0%
33 Williams, CA 5,539 41.0% 12.0%
34 Susanville, CA 15,737 29.0% 7.0%
35 Livingston, CA 14,344 40.0% 12.0%
36 Shafter, CA 20,162 33.0% 10.0%
37 Adelanto, CA 37,960 28.0% 7.0%
38 Perris, CA 78,881 31.0% 9.0%
39 Kerman, CA 15,980 42.0% 13.0%
40 La Puente, CA 37,835 34.0% 11.0%
41 Orland, CA 8,221 29.0% 10.0%
42 Newman, CA 12,275 27.0% 8.0%
43 Watsonville, CA 52,457 34.0% 12.0%
44 Commerce, CA 12,253 36.0% 12.0%
45 Holtville, CA 5,620 34.0% 12.0%
46 San Fernando, CA 23,958 38.0% 14.0%
47 Coalinga, CA 17,488 30.0% 12.0%
48 Selma, CA 24,576 28.0% 11.0%
49 Santa Maria, CA 109,543 37.0% 14.0%
50 El Monte, CA 108,682 36.0% 14.0%
51 Santa Paula, CA 30,788 36.0% 14.0%
52 Los Banos, CA 45,560 29.0% 12.0%
53 Porterville, CA 62,491 32.0% 13.0%
54 Salinas, CA 162,783 38.0% 15.0%
55 Tulare, CA 69,261 25.0% 10.0%
56 Dinuba, CA 24,713 29.0% 12.0%
57 Baldwin Park, CA 71,692 33.0% 14.0%
58 Corning, CA 8,196 23.0% 9.0%
59 Ceres, CA 49,183 25.0% 11.0%
60 Paramount, CA 53,255 32.0% 14.0%
61 Sanger, CA 26,553 27.0% 12.0%
62 Rialto, CA 103,873 26.0% 12.0%
63 Jurupa Valley, CA 105,672 29.0% 14.0%
64 Reedley, CA 25,248 33.0% 16.0%
65 San Bernardino, CA 221,041 27.0% 13.0%
66 Clearlake, CA 16,612 21.0% 8.0%
67 Gustine, CA 6,122 23.0% 11.0%
68 Hawaiian Gardens, CA 14,011 35.0% 17.0%
69 Chowchilla, CA 18,772 26.0% 13.0%
70 San Jacinto, CA 54,077 23.0% 12.0%
71 Santa Ana, CA 311,379 35.0% 18.0%
72 Hesperia, CA 99,878 22.0% 11.0%
73 Atwater, CA 31,841 28.0% 15.0%
74 Pico Rivera, CA 61,561 28.0% 15.0%
75 Victorville, CA 134,417 22.0% 12.0%
76 Lompoc, CA 44,086 25.0% 14.0%
77 San Pablo, CA 31,907 26.0% 15.0%
78 Calexico, CA 38,599 36.0% 20.0%
79 El Centro, CA 44,184 27.0% 17.0%
80 Brawley, CA 26,509 24.0% 16.0%
81 Palmdale, CA 166,895 24.0% 16.0%
82 Oxnard, CA 202,279 30.0% 20.0%
83 Pomona, CA 149,831 27.0% 19.0%
84 Barstow, CA 25,235 17.0% 10.0%
85 Patterson, CA 23,678 23.0% 15.0%
86 Hemet, CA 89,651 20.0% 13.0%
87 Taft, CA 7,414 17.0% 10.0%
88 Merced, CA 87,686 23.0% 17.0%
89 Colton, CA 53,959 24.0% 18.0%
90 Ontario, CA 176,326 24.0% 19.0%
91 Rosemead, CA 51,043 32.0% 23.0%
92 Stanton, CA 38,271 28.0% 21.0%
93 Montclair, CA 37,842 26.0% 20.0%
94 Gridley, CA 7,444 17.0% 11.0%
95 Tehachapi, CA 12,855 20.0% 14.0%
96 Willows, CA 6,201 22.0% 17.0%
97 Lawndale, CA 31,553 27.0% 21.0%
98 Indio, CA 89,616 23.0% 19.0%
99 Stockton, CA 320,030 22.0% 18.0%
100 Fillmore, CA 16,455 21.0% 17.0%
About Nick Johnson

Nick Johnson earned his masters in Business Administration from the Drucker School At Claremont Graduate University. He has written for 39 publications across the country and ran the media relations department at Movoto, a real estate portal based in San Francisco. He has been featured in over 500 publications as an expert in real estate and as an authority on real estate trends.

Nick's the creator of the HomeSnacks YouTube channel that now has over 260,000 subscribers and is an excellent source to learn about different parts of the country.

9 thoughts on “The 10 Dumbest Places In California For 2024

  1. Is the grammatical errors in this article did on purpose?
    (In case you’re wondering the question I typed was done on purpose, in the style of the author of this article.)

  2. If the author would stop being snarky long enough to take a look around the cities in the Central Valley, he would see the underprivileged. Migrant farmers trying to make a better life for their children. It’s not their shame that the cities are under-educated; it’s ours.

    1. Great comment. Being uneducated isn’t the same as dumb. i question the real motives of those who made this study.

  3. Drop out rates grabbed my attention to this article through Walnut Creek (CA) Patch.
    I find it rather churlish to speak about towns and people this way. To stick to the facts: drop out rate, graduation rate, etc would be more helpful ( motivation-wise.) But to call people stupid is down right mean. You don’t know them… people are smart in different ways. So they don’t know the square root of x, how many times have you used THAT since graduation? They may be even better people to others than the “brilliant” CEOs of the world. I’d rather hang out with good people than some of the candidates we have running for President (2016). Diplomas are not a prerequisite for honesty and goodness.
    I don’t see any high school graduates lining up to pick our lettuce… and when they do… be ready to pay triple the price.)

  4. Your study is as stupid as you are. I worked in LA, Orange, San Bernadino, Kern, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties and by far the cities in LA are head and shoulders above any others you listed. You could put a 20 mile radius, with the center being Huntington Park and you would find they all top the list. I moved from LA county to get away from these idiots once I retired.

    1. Stats outweight personal experiences. You might be as stupid as the folks in those cities in the list if you think otherwise

  5. First of all, just because you don’t have a high school diploma does not make you dumb. That should’ve been worded differently.

    Second, before mentioning where certain cities are at you should double check like that YOU don’t make yourself look dumb especially since you must have at least a high school diploma. Bell is not in South Central Los Angeles. South East would be more accurate.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *