What it's like to live in Woodland
Woodland is a smaller city in California with household incomes running above the national average and crime rates well below the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Woodland deals with home prices well above the national average, unemployment above the national average, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, and larger class sizes than the national average.
The good
- Higher-than-average incomes
- Low crime rates
The not so good
- High home prices
- Above-average unemployment
- Air quality concerns
- High student-teacher ratio
- Hot summers
- Car-dependent — few commuters use transit
How Woodland compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Woodland
Based on Woodland's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$3,166
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $63,320 a year
- 50% of Woodland renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$109,640
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $54,820
- Homes cost 6.1× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▲ 12% above US
$1,583/mo median rent
Rent is pretty middle of the road, at $1,583 a month median. Not a bargain, not a budget-buster. About typical for a city this size. Home prices are steep, with a median around $548,200. Renting first to get a feel for the city before buying is often the more practical route.
Median home value $548,200 · 50% of renters cost-burdened
Job market▲ 58% above US
6.8% unemployment
Unemployment here is 6.8%, well above the national average of 4.3%. Moving with a job already lined up matters more here.
City-level (BLS)
Safety▼ 45% below US
181 violent crimes per 100k
Pretty safe, all things considered. Violent crime sits below the national average, nothing alarming, just ordinary city-life awareness.
Property crime 1082/100k · Woodland Police Department · 2025 data
Getting aroundNear US average
25 min average commute
Commutes run about average, at 24.5 minutes. Fine day to day, but it adds up over a year, and where someone lives relative to where they work starts to matter. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 13% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are hot and humid, with highs regularly hitting 93°F, and winters are chilly but manageable, with lows around 39°F.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
1 hospital
There's one Medicare-certified hospital inside city limits, rated 5.0 out of 5 by Medicare. Hospitals in neighboring towns aren't counted here.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforce▼ 16% below US
30% bachelor's degree or higher
Education levels run about average, with 30% college-educated. It's a mix of white-collar and blue-collar work, which can be an asset or a limitation depending on the field.
Schools
18 public schools inside the boundary
There are 18 public schools inside the boundary and 3 private schools. The student-to-teacher ratio is 22:1, above the national average of 16:1.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial (45 miles away). There are 8 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Woodland's strongest points are household incomes running above the national average and crime rates well below the national average; the main tradeoffs are home prices well above the national average and unemployment above the national average. A year of median rent ($1,583/mo) equals 21% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit anyone prioritizing low crime. It may be a harder fit for anyone moving without a job lined up and anyone who doesn't drive.
Other places near Woodland
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