The richest small city in America on our measure is Los Altos, California, where median household income is above $250,000. This list covers affluent US cities with under 80,000 residents, ranked by median household income from the latest Census Bureau figures we could source, with home values as a cross-check. Eight of the ten are in California, mostly around Silicon Valley.
| Rank | City | Median household income |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Altos, CA | Above $250,000 (2023) |
| 2 | Saratoga, CA | $241,348 (2023) |
| 3 | Darien, CT | $232,523 (2019) |
| 4 | Cupertino, CA | $231,139 (2023) |
| 5 | Palo Alto, CA | $220,408 (2023) |
| 6 | Menlo Park, CA | $206,588 (2023) |
| 7 | Los Gatos, CA | $198,117 |
| 8 | Manhattan Beach, CA | $193,904 (2023) |
| 9 | Lexington, MA | $191,350 (2018) |
| 10 | Foster City, CA | $161,000 (2020) |
1. Los Altos, California: above $250,000 median income
Los Altos sits in Silicon Valley’s Santa Clara County and had 31,625 residents at the 2020 census. The Census Bureau’s 2023 estimate put median household income above $250,000, with per capita income of $142,907.
How we valued it: median household income from the 2023 estimates, the highest on this list. The Census reports the figure as above $250,000 rather than a precise number.
2. Saratoga, California: $241,348 median income
Saratoga is a Silicon Valley city known for its wineries, with 31,051 people as of the 2020 census and an estimated 30,418 in July 2025. Per person, income was $123,743.
How we valued it: the 2023 estimate of $241,348.
3. Darien, Connecticut: $232,523 median income
Darien is a coastal town on Connecticut’s Gold Coast, a short commute from New York. Its median household income was $232,523 in 2019, with per capita income of $116,564.
Our basis: the 2019 figure is the latest one we could source for Darien, so it likely understates today’s level. It is the only East Coast town in our top three.
4. Cupertino, California: $231,139 median income
Cupertino is the home of Apple and had 60,381 inhabitants in 2020. Median household income was $231,139 in 2023, with per capita income of $106,821.
Ranking basis: the 2023 median household income. Adults here are highly educated, with 83.1 percent holding a bachelor’s degree.
5. Palo Alto, California: $220,408 median income
Palo Alto, the heart of Silicon Valley, had 68,572 residents in 2020, making it the largest city on this list. Per person, income was $121,565, one of the highest on the list.
Method: the 2023 median household income of $220,408.
6. Menlo Park, California: $206,588 median income
Menlo Park is on the San Francisco Peninsula and had about 32,000 residents in 2010. Its 2023 per capita income of $123,422 is among the highest of any city we checked.
Source figure: the 2023 median household income of $206,588.
7. Los Gatos, California: $198,117 median income
Los Gatos lies in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains and had 33,529 residents at the 2020 census. Family households there had a median income of $240,688.
How we valued it: the latest reported median household income of $198,117, and per capita income of $120,561.
8. Manhattan Beach, California: $193,904 median income
Manhattan Beach is a coastal city south of Los Angeles with 35,506 people as of the 2020 census. Its 2023 per capita income was $113,441.
Our basis: the 2023 estimate of $193,904.
9. Lexington, Massachusetts: $191,350 median income
Lexington is a historic town close to Boston. In 2018 the median house price was $1,050,821 and median household income was $191,350, with $218,890 for families.
Ranking basis: the 2018 income estimate. It is the oldest figure on the list, so the town probably ranks higher today.
10. Foster City, California: $161,000 median income
Foster City was planned on engineered landfill and had 33,805 inhabitants in 2020. In 2020 its median household income was $161,000, and the average home value reached $1,926,381 in 2024.
Method: the 2020 median income, with the 2024 home value as a cross-check on how expensive the city is.
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What is the richest small city in America?
Los Altos, California, where the Census Bureau’s 2023 estimate puts median household income above $250,000.
How do you define a small city?
A city with fewer than 80,000 residents, so places such as Palo Alto (68,572 in 2020) still count.
Why are so many of these cities in California?
Silicon Valley’s tech wages and home values lift incomes in nearby cities such as Los Altos, Saratoga, Cupertino and Palo Alto.
Why does the list differ from earlier versions?
We now rank by median household income rather than by counting luxury shops, which makes the ranking easy to verify.
Are these figures current?
They are the latest figures we could source: 2023 for most cities, but 2018 to 2020 for Lexington, Darien and Foster City.
How we put this list together
We ranked cities by median household income from the Census Bureau’s most recent estimates that we could source, and used home values and per capita income as cross-checks. Estimates come from different years, which we note for each city, so close positions can change with newer data.
Last updated: October 2026.
