Fremont is the fourth-largest city in California’s Bay Area. It has a population of 225,000 and is known for its strip malls, a Tesla plant, and a small neighborhood known as “Little Kabul.” It is also the best place in the United States to raise a family according to WalletHub’s 2024 Best Cities For Families ranking.
WalletHub compared more than 180 cities in the United States based on metrics such as the cost of housing, the quality of local schools and health care systems, and recreation opportunities. Fremont was ranked number one, mostly due to “economic factors.”
Median Income
Fremont has a median family income of close to $122,000, one of the country’s highest. It also has the fourth-lowest share of families living in poverty and the third-lowest share of families receiving food stamps. 50.5 percent of Fremont families have children under the age of 18, which is one of the highest rates in the United States.
Education
Fremont is especially impressive when it comes to public education, with 67.4 percent of its public schools rated at least a 7 out of 10. It also has many summer camp opportunities per capita. The city also has a high health index. Only 1.4 percent of children lack health insurance, and only 1.1 percent of its population lacks access to healthy food.
Quality of Life
Fremont also has the fifth-most parkland acres per capita, providing plenty of opportunities for outdoor exercise and activity. Lake Elizabeth in particular is very popular among Fremont residents, and people come from all over the Bay Area to hike Fremont’s Mission Peak. With bike lanes and greenways as well as mountain biking trails. Fremont offers a lot for cycling enthusiasts too. Unfortunately, like many cities in California, Fremont has seen its share of accidents, including 53 bicycle accidents in 2023. Always use designated bike lanes and obey all traffic laws when cycling in the city.
Overall, WalletHub gave Fremont a total score of 73.55 based on 45 key metrics. In second place was Overland Park, Kansas with a total score of 70.11. It ranked number one in education and childcare, number one in socioeconomics, and number three in health and safety. It has also been named America’s least stressed city by WalletHub as well as the ninth “greenest” city in the country. These are all trends that have continued since 2023 when Fremont received similar rankings.
As far as how other cities ranked, Irvine, California came in third, Plano, Texas came in fourth, and Seattle, Washington in fifth place. Of the major cities in California, San Jose came in seventh and lost points due to a higher cost of living, while San Francisco was 12th. Oakland ranked in the lower half of the list at number 121.