City safety & data profile

Live OakCA

Live Oak, CA is a 17K-resident city in Santa Cruz County with a median household income of $103,674.

Santa Cruz County, California. Federal health, economic, and safety indicators for Live Oak, drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, CDC PLACES, and CMS Hospital Compare. Live Oak has a population larger than 35% of the 4,640 U.S. cities Areazine tracks, and a median home value of $1,015,200.

Data updated 2026-07-20

17K
Population
Top 65%
By size
$103,674
Median income
$1,015,200
Median home
12.9%
Poverty rate

The read on Live Oak

Live Oak posts a median household income higher than 72% of U.S. cities Areazine tracks.

Top 28%
by median income, US cities

Where Live Oak income ranks nationally

Median household income vs. every place Areazine profiles (place-level ACS)

$103,674 Top 28% higher than 72% of 3,889 places Areazine profiles

$0–$20,000: 0 places Areazine profiles (0%). Below this entry. $20,000–$40,000: 71 places Areazine profiles (2%). Below this entry. $40,000–$60,000: 788 places Areazine profiles (20%). Below this entry. $60,000–$80,000: 1,055 places Areazine profiles (27%). Below this entry. $80,000–$100,000: 768 places Areazine profiles (20%). Below this entry. $100,000–$120,000: 515 places Areazine profiles (13%). This entry sits in this band. $120,000–$140,000: 308 places Areazine profiles (8%). Above this entry. $140,000–$160,000: 171 places Areazine profiles (4%). Above this entry. $160,000–$180,000: 92 places Areazine profiles (2%). Above this entry. $180,000–$200,000: 47 places Areazine profiles (1%). Above this entry. $200,000–$220,000: 28 places Areazine profiles (1%). Above this entry. $220,000–$240,000: 18 places Areazine profiles (0%). Above this entry. $240,000–$260,000: 28 places Areazine profiles (1%). Above this entry. CA $0 $260,000 every profiled place, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $20K-wide band; taller bars hold more places Areazine profiles. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (place-level) · 2024 ACS 5-year

The quick read

Reading Live Oak, CA beyond the headline numbers

Live Oak sits inside Santa Cruz County, California, at roughly 36.98°N, -121.98°W. Population 17,158, $103,674 median household income. Median home value $1,015,200, median rent $2,421. Poverty rate 12.9%, read against that income figure since two cities on the same median can differ underneath it.

CDC PLACES: Live Oak's highest-prevalence health measure is high blood pressure at 32.4%, then short sleep duration at 32.3%.

Sources: U.S. Census ACS, CDC PLACES, CMS Hospital Compare, plus live alerts for Live Oak from FEMA, NOAA, FDA, and CPSC. Comparison bars benchmark each metric against the national reference.

Population
17,158
Live Oak
Median Income
$103,674
+53% vs avg
Median Home Value
$1,015,200
+346% vs avg
Median Age
41.8
years

10-Year Trends 2013–2024

County-level trend (Santa Cruz County) - Live Oak's own historical series isn't separately published by the Census Bureau, so these year-over-year figures track the surrounding county, not the city alone.

20132024
Population
265K+0%
Median Income
$111,093+67%
Median Home Value
$1,027,500+84%
Poverty Rate
11.6%-21%
Unemployment
6.1%-34%

Economics

Economics indicators for Live Oak, CA
IndicatorValue
Median Rent
$2,421/mo
Poverty Rate
12.9% -9% vs avg
Unemployment 4.1%
Bachelor's Degree+ 40.8%
Work From Home 15.6%
Public Transit 2%

Population

White 58.5%
African American 1.2%
Asian 5.1%
Two or More Ethnicities 2.3%

Health Profile 15 measures

Health Indicators

High Blood Pressure
32.4%
Short Sleep Duration
32.3%
Obesity
26.9%
Physical Inactivity
21.1%
Binge Drinking
17%
Frequent Mental Distress
16.5%
Frequent Physical Distress
13.7%
Current Smoking
10.9%
Diabetes
10.8%
Current Asthma
10%

Preventive Care

Dental Visit 66.4%
Annual Checkup 72.4%

Other Measures

Lack of Health Insurance
8.2%
Coronary Heart Disease
6.3%
Stroke
3.3%

Frequently Asked Questions 5

What is the population of Live Oak, CA? ▼
Live Oak, CA has a population of 17,158 people, located in Santa Cruz County, California.
What is the median household income in Live Oak? ▼
The median household income in Live Oak, CA is $103,674 per year, per the U.S. Census ACS. The poverty rate is 12.9%.
What is the median home value in Live Oak? ▼
The median home value in Live Oak, CA is $1,015,200. Median rent is $2,421/month.
What are the top health concerns in Live Oak? ▼
The top health indicators in Live Oak include High Blood Pressure (32.4%), Short Sleep Duration (32.3%), Obesity (26.9%). Data from CDC PLACES.
What is the median age in Live Oak? ▼
The median age in Live Oak, CA is 41.8 years. 40.8% of residents have a bachelor's degree or higher.

Safety Context

Live Oak, CA is located in Santa Cruz County, California. With a population of 17K and a $103,674 median household income, the community faces health challenges including high blood pressure and short sleep duration. Safety alerts for the Live Oak area are monitored from federal and state agencies including FEMA, NOAA, FDA, and CPSC.

Safety Guides

How Product Recalls Work

CPSC, FDA & NHTSA recall process explained

Understanding Weather Alerts

Watch vs warning vs advisory explained

Earthquake Magnitude Explained

What the numbers mean & when to act
All safety guides →

Primary source data

EPA Outdoor Air Quality Data

Federal monitoring network, every measurement we report

AirNow - California

Real-time AQI for every monitored California location

National Weather Service

NOAA active watches, warnings, advisories

CDC Air Quality & Health

Health-impact reference for every AQI category

EPA NAAQS standards

National Ambient Air Quality Standards, the regulatory thresholds

Nearby Cities 8

Capitola, CA 10K Santa Cruz, CA 64K Scotts Valley, CA 12K Watsonville, CA 54K Los Gatos, CA 31K Saratoga, CA 31K Campbell, CA 41K Communications Hill, CA 11K
All cities in California → Compare Live Oak vs Capitola → All comparisons → Browse all cities

Using Live Oak's profile

Use this as a starting research checklist, not a verdict on whether to live here.

  • Check live recalls, weather and hazard alerts scoped to the Live Oak area before relying on national headlines. Check your area
  • Read the poverty rate alongside the income figure, two places with the same median can have very different realities.
  • Compare Live Oak against California peers on any ranking lens. Explore California

Population and economics (income, home value, poverty, education) are place-level U.S. Census ACS; health is CDC PLACES; hospital counts reflect facilities in and around the city.

Data Sources

All data on this page comes from official U.S. government sources. Population and economic data from the Census Bureau American Community Survey (2024 5-year estimates, place geography). Health data from the CDC PLACES program (2023). Hospital ratings from CMS Hospital Compare (2024). Climate data from NOAA. Education data from NCES. Cost of living from Bureau of Economic Analysis. Crime statistics, where referenced on Areazine, originate from the FBI Crime Data Explorer. Housing market figures referenced on Areazine come from HUD Fair Market Rents. Census economics and population are at place geography; some health and hospital indicators are reported at the county level (Santa Cruz County) where that is the smallest published unit.

Every figure on Areazine is published directly from official U.S. government sources, no number is typed in by an editor. City demographic and health figures are compiled directly from U.S. Census, CDC, and CMS releases, updated quarterly within 30 days of upstream release. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026.