Silicon Valley
County
Fifteen communities, from the Bay to the Pacific, in a county built around how this place actually lives and works.
Who's in
Thirteen cities and towns, the Stanford campus, Lexington Hills, and the unincorporated hills and coast between them. Choose a community to see its numbers.
From Santa Clara County
From San Mateo County
Unincorporated land inside the boundary, including Ladera, Emerald Lake Hills, La Honda, San Gregorio and Pescadero, joins too.
By the numbers
Computed from Census, BEA, LEHD and county assessor data for the boundary shown above. Property is taxed at 1 percent of assessed value, shared among the county, cities, schools and districts, so the county government receives only part of it. Sources are linked below.
Why a new county
Santa Clara County governs nearly two million people from San Jose. The northwest valley and the Peninsula hills have different needs, and a record that deserves a closer look.
How a county is made
California has a statutory path for forming a new county from existing ones. It runs through a petition, a state review commission and a vote.
It has been done before
Explore the maps
Turn the county in 3D, page through the statistics, or lay the boundary over Stamen's terrain and watercolor maps.
Terrain in 3D
The county as a landform, from the Bay flats over Skyline to the coast.
Statistics explorer
Population, density, land and assessed value for every community.
Street and terrain map
Pan and zoom the boundary over Stamen terrain, toner and watercolor tiles.
Political map
Every city, town and unincorporated area, color by color.
On the globe
Spin the Earth and fly in to where the county sits on the Pacific coast.