The 10 Worst Oakland Suburbs


The worst Oakland suburbs are Richmond and Antioch based on Saturday Night Science. Find out where your town ranks.

More and more people would prefer to live in the cities and towns that surround Oakland to avoid all the hustle and bustle.

So the question arises: what suburbs of Oakland are the worst?

Today, we’ll use Saturday Night Science to determine which Oakland ‘burbs need a little tender loving care – the sore thumbs of the Oakland area if you will. Realistically, you can only expect some of the suburbs to live up to Oakland proper, although Los Altos certainly tries.

We examined the 68 biggest suburbs of Oakland to find out the worst places to live. And while you won’t necessarily find them on the worst places to live in California lists, these ten places are a little too far downwind of Oakland in terms of quality of life.


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


Now don’t freak out.

What’s the worst suburb of Oakland? Richmond ranks as the worst suburb of Oakland for 2024 based on the most recent Census and FBI data.

Or, if you’re thinking of moving to elsewhere in California check out the best places in California overall or the worst.

And remember, there are some good places to live around Oakland too.

The 10 Worst Oakland Suburbs To Live For 2024

Richmond, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Audiohifi | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 115,619
Median Income: $86,618 (3rd lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.9% (9th highest)
Median Home Value: $633,759 (6th lowest)
More on Richmond: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

We’ll get the ball rolling with Richmond, the absolute worst place to live around Oakland according to the data.

And in the world of worst rankings, Richmond beat the competition pretty handily thanks to scoring in the bottom 15% in three major categories. Income is the 3rd worst in the Oakland area, and to make matters worse, the city ranks 6th worst when it comes to home values.

But hey, at least it’s cheap to live there. But there’s a reason for that… it’s Richmond.

You won’t feel bad about not having a great income for the area. There aren’t a bunch of places to spend your money anyway.

Antioch, CA

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 115,016
Median Income: $90,709 (4th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.9% (5th highest)
Median Home Value: $607,514 (5th lowest)
More on Antioch: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Welcome to Antioch. Home to KMart, Big Lots, and a lot of gas stations.

This city is 27.4 miles to Oakland. Income levels here are the 4th lowest in the metro area, where families bring in about $90,709 a year, which only goes so far even on a shoestring budget.

But on the bright side, there are a lot of fast food joints in the area.

Pittsburg, CA

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

8
/10

Population: 76,419
Median Income: $98,408 (6th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.1% (7th highest)
Median Home Value: $575,383 (3rd lowest)
More on Pittsburg: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Back up the highway we go for the third worst Oakland suburb you can live in. You might have expected to see Pittsburg on here. While the cost of living is low, your entertainment and work options are limited. And that’s an understatement.

In terms of numbers, it’s in the worst 15% for insurance, and the adult high school dropout rate is poor compared to other Oakland suburbs.

But at least there are lovely parks to bring the kids during the day.

Vallejo, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Eugene Zelenko | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 125,132
Median Income: $86,112 (2nd lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.0% (8th highest)
Median Home Value: $537,019 (2nd lowest)
More on Vallejo: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

If you live in Vallejo, most likely you struggle to make ends meet every month. It ranks as the 2nd lowest Oakland suburb for median household incomes.

Not only that, but this is the 8th worst unemployed suburb you can live in if you choose to live near Oakland. Remember, we looked at 68 cities for this study.

Vallejo is about 23.4 miles to downtown.

San Pablo, CA

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 31,907
Median Income: $72,552 (lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.9% (4th highest)
Median Home Value: $586,874 (4th lowest)
More on San Pablo: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

San Pablo has the distinction of being a Oakland suburb. Which means that’s about all it has going for it.

All snarkiness aside, San Pablo has the 4th lowest home values in the metro Oakland area, where the median price is $586,874. The median income is $250,001.

San Pablo has an unemployment rate of 7.88% which ranks 4th worst.

Hayward, CA

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

8
/10

Population: 160,602
Median Income: $105,371 (9th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 5.7% (15th highest)
Median Home Value: $845,438 (15th lowest)
More on Hayward: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Hayward has 160,602 residents that probably know it’s a pretty crummy place to live when you look at the data. (Or, if you’ve ever been there, you don’t need to look at the data.)

Incomes are towards the bottom, and the poverty rate sits at 9.601434354825424%.

Novato, CA

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 53,055
Median Income: $110,948 (11th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.5% (11th highest)
Median Home Value: $1,071,686 (19th lowest)
More on Novato: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Ah, Novato. You rank as the 7th worst place to live around Oakland.

It’s the place with the 11th most out of work residents in the Oakland metro area (6.49%).

East Palo Alto, CA

Source: Wikipedia User David.Monniaux | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 29,520
Median Income: $103,248 (7th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 5.0% (26th highest)
Median Home Value: $942,015 (16th lowest)
More on East Palo Alto: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

East Palo Alto is a city about 21.5 miles from Oakland, but Oakland probably wishes it was further away. It ranks as the 8th worst burb for 2018.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a worse place to live. East Palo Alto has the 3rd most uninsured people, 7th worst incomes, and has the 26th highest unemployment rate (5.03%) in the entire Oakland metro area.

Homes only cost $942,015 for a reason. That’s cheap for Oakland standards.

Concord, CA

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 125,007
Median Income: $107,789 (10th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 4.9% (32nd highest)
Median Home Value: $754,708 (9th lowest)
More on Concord: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

If you absolutely have to live near Oakland, then Concord might be a place for you to consider as it’s only the 9th worst Oakland suburb.

About 4.9% of residents are out of work.

American Canyon, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Cullen328 Jim Heaphy | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 21,669
Median Income: $122,694 (17th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 5.0% (28th highest)
Median Home Value: $725,689 (7th lowest)
More on American Canyon: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living

Rounding out the ten worst Oakland suburbs to call home is American Canyon.

Located 28.1 miles outside the city, American Canyons is a real pit when you look at the data. Its residents have the 28th highest unemployment rate (5.01%), and poverty is far above the area average.

Methodology: Determining The Worst Suburbs Around Oakland for 2024

To figure out how bad a Oakland suburb is to live in, we used Saturday Night Science to identify the kinds of things people like and then decide what suburbs have the least amount of those things.

Using the most recent American Community Survey data from 2018-2022, this is the criteria we used:

  • High unemployment rate
  • Low median household incomes
  • Low population density (no things to do)
  • Low home values
  • A lot of high school dropouts
  • High poverty
  • High rate of uninsured families

We defined a suburb as any town within 30 miles of Oakland.

We also limited the analysis to places with over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 68 suburbs to evaluate around Oakland.

We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 68 in each category, where 1 was the “worst.”

Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality-of-life index.

And finally, we crowned the city with the worst quality of life index, the “Worst Suburb near Oakland.” We’re looking at you, Richmond.

We updated this article for 2024, which reflects our tenth time ranking the worst suburbs around Oakland.

Summary: The areas around Oakland where the dream is more of a nightmare for 2024

Well there you have it — the worst of the ‘burbs surrounding Oakland with Richmond casting itself ahead of the pack.

The worst suburbs of Oakland are .

As we mentioned earlier, the suburbs around Oakland aren’t all bad. Los Altos takes the cake as the best place to live around Oakland.

  • Los Altos
  • Los Altos Hills
  • Piedmont

For more California reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Worst Oakland Suburbs

Rank City Population Median Income Median Home Values
1 Richmond 115,619 $86,618 $633,759
2 Antioch 115,016 $90,709 $607,514
3 Pittsburg 76,419 $98,408 $575,383
4 Vallejo 125,132 $86,112 $537,019
5 San Pablo 31,907 $72,552 $586,874
6 Hayward 160,602 $105,371 $845,438
7 Novato 53,055 $110,948 $1,071,686
8 East Palo Alto 29,520 $103,248 $942,015
9 Concord 125,007 $107,789 $754,708
10 American Canyon 21,669 $122,694 $725,689
11 San Leandro 89,723 $97,141 $830,087
12 San Rafael 60,891 $113,839 $1,346,362
13 Brisbane 4,756 $137,583 $1,134,881
14 Pinole 18,946 $113,630 $742,842
15 Daly City 103,648 $114,910 $1,122,306
16 Emeryville 12,840 $114,345 $532,929
17 Brentwood 64,443 $134,689 $803,477
18 Fairfax 7,567 $126,034 $1,234,232
19 El Cerrito 25,869 $120,414 $1,162,177
20 Berkeley 121,385 $104,716 $1,400,497
21 Martinez 37,093 $124,669 $774,783
22 Alameda 77,565 $129,917 $1,192,032
23 Benicia 27,040 $124,375 $804,094
24 Newark 47,470 $159,465 $1,189,585
25 Hercules 26,041 $125,880 $800,088
26 San Bruno 43,218 $131,669 $1,253,713
27 Pleasant Hill 34,504 $137,685 $996,672
28 San Mateo 104,165 $149,152 $1,510,087
29 Half Moon Bay 11,633 $148,702 $1,510,034
30 Walnut Creek 69,809 $129,971 $1,086,764
31 South San Francisco 65,596 $127,062 $1,191,225
32 Pacifica 38,048 $151,849 $1,246,502
33 Fremont 228,795 $169,023 $1,413,076
34 Livermore 87,154 $152,590 $1,087,248
35 Milpitas 79,092 $166,769 $1,346,828
36 Larkspur 12,969 $147,772 $2,123,779
37 Millbrae 22,825 $146,649 $1,927,421
38 Albany 20,027 $124,469 $1,208,704
39 Sausalito 7,233 $163,170 $1,538,563
40 Moraga 16,859 $193,707 $1,737,291
41 Belmont 27,820 $185,944 $2,118,293
42 Clayton 11,070 $164,899 $1,066,247
43 Lafayette 25,310 $219,250 $1,924,093
44 Mill Valley 14,199 $202,986 $2,043,408
45 Sunnyvale 154,573 $174,506 $1,875,596
46 Pleasanton 78,691 $181,639 $1,582,884
47 Burlingame 30,995 $165,940 $2,516,360
48 Tiburon 9,115 $200,886 $2,963,608
49 Menlo Park 33,324 $198,273 $2,574,718
50 Mountain View 82,132 $174,156 $1,845,861
51 Mountain View 82,132 $174,156 $1,845,861
52 San Ramon 86,119 $190,829 $1,550,726
53 San Anselmo 12,761 $165,366 $1,659,899
54 Dublin 71,068 $191,039 $1,293,624
55 Woodside 5,256 $250,001 $3,633,237
56 Corte Madera 10,155 $210,560 $1,760,932
57 Palo Alto 67,901 $214,118 $3,220,174
58 Hillsborough 11,258 $250,001 $5,101,758
59 Danville 43,449 $209,518 $1,861,576
60 Orinda 19,477 $250,001 $2,000,722
61 Portola Valley 4,397 $250,001 $3,841,103
62 San Carlos 30,490 $219,413 $2,206,123
63 Ross 2,537 $250,001 $3,838,437
64 Atherton 7,124 $250,001 $7,732,900
65 Belvedere 2,327 $250,001 $4,544,020
66 Piedmont 11,161 $250,001 $2,521,288
67 Los Altos Hills 8,441 $250,001 $5,525,121
68 Los Altos 31,133 $250,001 $4,060,663
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.

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