What is the median rent in San Mateo, CA?

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

The median gross rent in San Mateo, CA is $3,077 (±$100) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 19,595 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In San Mateo, the median gross rent went from $2,475 in 2015–2019 to $3,077 in 2020–2024 (+24.3%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $3,077 (±$100)
Rented homes: 19,595 (±801)
$2,000 or more: 83.4%
Since 2015–2019: +24.3%

How much rent costs in San Mateo

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	San Mateo	San Mateo County	California	United States
Less than $500	1.8% (±0.6 points)	2.4%	3.6%	6.3%
$500 to $999	1.4% (±0.5 points)	2.0%	7.2%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	3.6% (±1.1 points)	3.7%	16.2%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	9.8% (±2.1 points)	9.7%	21.5%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	16.1% (±2.4 points)	17.8%	19.8%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	15.0% (±2.2 points)	17.1%	12.5%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	52.3% (±3.1 points)	47.3%	19.1%	6.8%

The most common range is $3,000 or more, paid by 52.3% of renting households.

83.4% of rented homes in San Mateo cost $2,000 or more a month.

San Mateo against San Mateo County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	San Mateo	San Mateo County	California	United States
Median gross rent	$3,077 (±$100)	$2,922 (±$40)	$2,036 (±$5)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	19,595 (±801)	106,795 (±1,875)	5,783,331 (±22,650)	42,849,984

In San Mateo, median gross rent is higher than in San Mateo County ($2,922).

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

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

In San Mateo County, San Mateo ranks 14 of 28 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 87 of 1,010.

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

How rent in San Mateo 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	$2,475 (±$69)	$3,077 (±$100)	+24.3%	No measurable change after inflation
Households that rent	45.6% (±1.4 points)	50.1% (±1.7 points)	+4.5 percentage points	Measurable increase
Rental vacancy rate	5.2% (±1.5 points)	6.4% (±1.6 points)	+1.2 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 San Mateo

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with San Mateo
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
San Mateo	—	$3,077 (±$100)	—
Hillsborough	2.6 mi	$3,500 or more	—
Baywood Park	2.7 mi	$3,500 or more	—
Foster City	3.3 mi	$3,500 or more	—
Belmont	3.3 mi	$2,875 (±$108)	Lower
Highlands	3.4 mi	$3,500 or more	—
Burlingame	3.5 mi	$2,785 (±$120)	Lower
San Carlos	4.8 mi	$2,854 (±$128)	Lower
Millbrae	5.7 mi	$3,272 (±$163)	Higher

Nearby places with a measurably lower figure: Belmont, CA ($2,875), Burlingame, CA ($2,785), San Carlos, CA ($2,854).

Nearby places with a measurably higher figure: Millbrae, CA ($3,272).

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

Median gross rent across San Mateo County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
1 (tie)	Emerald Lake Hills	$3,500 or more
1 (tie)	Highlands	$3,500 or more
10	West Menlo Park	$3,324 (±$593)
11	Millbrae	$3,272 (±$163)
12	Menlo Park	$3,239 (±$156)
13	Pacifica	$3,098 (±$184)
14	San Mateo	$3,077 (±$100)
15	Montara	$3,032 (±$1,300)
16	Redwood City	$2,968 (±$76)
17	Belmont	$2,875 (±$108)
18	San Carlos	$2,854 (±$128)
19	South San Francisco	$2,802 (±$140)
20	Burlingame	$2,785 (±$120)

Showing 13 of 28 places in San Mateo 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 San Mateo

What is the average rent in San Mateo, CA?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in San Mateo is $3,077 (±$100) 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 San Mateo?

In San Mateo, the median gross rent went from $2,475 in 2015–2019 to $3,077 in 2020–2024 (+24.3%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

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

83.4% of rented homes in San Mateo have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 1.8% cost less than $500.

Is rent in San Mateo higher than in San Mateo County?

In San Mateo, median gross rent is higher than in San Mateo County ($2,922).

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 San Mateo city, California (place:68252, 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.