What is the median rent in Petaluma, CA?

Name: Median rent in Petaluma, CA, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median gross rent in Petaluma, CA is $2,440 (±$134) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 8,403 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Petaluma, the median gross rent went from $1,830 in 2015–2019 to $2,440 in 2020–2024 (+33.3%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years, so it rose faster than prices: a measurable increase after inflation.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $2,440 (±$134)
Rented homes: 8,403 (±634)
$2,000 or more: 66.0%
Since 2015–2019: +33.3%

How much rent costs in Petaluma

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Petaluma	Sonoma County	California	United States
Less than $500	5.0% (±3.6 points)	4.1%	3.6%	6.3%
$500 to $999	6.0% (±1.7 points)	6.7%	7.2%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	10.9% (±2.8 points)	12.3%	16.2%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	12.1% (±3.9 points)	19.9%	21.5%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	18.2% (±3.8 points)	22.0%	19.8%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	17.7% (±3.9 points)	15.7%	12.5%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	30.1% (±4.9 points)	19.3%	19.1%	6.8%

The most common range is $3,000 or more, paid by 30.1% of renting households.

66.0% of rented homes in Petaluma cost $2,000 or more a month.

Petaluma against Sonoma County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Petaluma	Sonoma County	California	United States
Median gross rent	$2,440 (±$134)	$2,158 (±$30)	$2,036 (±$5)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	8,403 (±634)	68,220 (±1,806)	5,783,331 (±22,650)	42,849,984

In Petaluma, median gross rent is higher than in Sonoma County ($2,158).

It is also higher than in California ($2,036).

It is higher than the national figure ($1,413).

In Sonoma County, Petaluma ranks 3 of 22 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 221 of 1,010.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How rent in Petaluma has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median gross rent	$1,830 (±$76)	$2,440 (±$134)	+33.3%	Up after inflation
Households that rent	34.1% (±1.8 points)	35.5% (±2.4 points)	+1.4 percentage points	Not a measurable change
Rental vacancy rate	1.6% (±1.0 points)	1.9% (±1.8 points)	+0.3 percentage points	Not a measurable change

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median gross rent in places near Petaluma

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Petaluma
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Petaluma	—	$2,440 (±$134)	—
Penngrove	4.6 mi	$2,130 (±$302)	Not measurably different
Temelec	7.2 mi	$3,030 (±$769)	Not measurably different
Cotati	7.4 mi	$2,056 (±$266)	Lower
Rohnert Park	8.3 mi	$2,279 (±$72)	Lower
El Verano	8.4 mi	$2,372 (±$213)	Not measurably different
Boyes Hot Springs	9.0 mi	$1,876 (±$396)	Lower
Glen Ellen	9.1 mi	$1,582 (±$759)	Lower
Eldridge	9.2 mi	$1,968 (±$590)	Not measurably different

Nearby places with a measurably lower figure: Cotati, CA ($2,056), Rohnert Park, CA ($2,279), Boyes Hot Springs, CA ($1,876).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Median gross rent across Sonoma County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
1	Temelec	$3,030 (±$769)
2	Graton	$2,826 (±$195)
3	Petaluma	$2,440 (±$134)
4	Windsor	$2,433 (±$670)
5	El Verano	$2,372 (±$213)
6	Rohnert Park	$2,279 (±$72)
7	Sonoma	$2,226 (±$204)
8	Healdsburg	$2,158 (±$271)
9	Santa Rosa	$2,152 (±$51)

Showing 9 of 22 places in Sonoma County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

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Questions about Petaluma

What is the average rent in Petaluma, CA?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Petaluma is $2,440 (±$134) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.

How much has rent gone up in Petaluma?

In Petaluma, the median gross rent went from $1,830 in 2015–2019 to $2,440 in 2020–2024 (+33.3%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years, so it rose faster than prices: a measurable increase after inflation.

How many rentals in Petaluma cost more than $2,000 a month?

66.0% of rented homes in Petaluma have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 5.0% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Petaluma higher than in Sonoma County?

In Petaluma, median gross rent is higher than in Sonoma County ($2,158).

It is also higher than in California ($2,036).

It is higher than the national figure ($1,413).

Is this the rent for an apartment listed today?

No: these are rents households reported paying across 2020–2024, not asking rents for vacant homes, which usually run higher.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Petaluma city, California (place:56784, in state:06).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25064_001E, B25064_001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0005E, DP04_0005M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP04_0126E, DP04_0126M, DP04_0127PE, DP04_0127PM, DP04_0128PE, DP04_0128PM, DP04_0129PE, DP04_0129PM, DP04_0130PE, DP04_0130PM, DP04_0131PE, DP04_0131PM, DP04_0132PE, DP04_0132PM, DP04_0133PE, DP04_0133PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.