Cost of living in Novato, California

Novato, California has about 52,546 people. That count is a 2020–2024 Census average, not a headcount from one day.

A typical home is worth about $1,032,500.

HUD's fair-market rent for a 2-bedroom in Marin County is $3,697 a month. That is the county number, not an apartment listing in Novato. It runs from October 2026 through September 2027.

In the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area, prices sit at 115.6 when the U.S. average is 100. That is a 2024 BEA index.

California taxes wages. A typical combined sales tax is 9.0% as of January 1, 2026. That mix is statewide, not Novato's exact store tax.

In July 2026, a typical California home paid 33.61¢ per kilowatt-hour. That is a state average from EIA, not Novato's bill.

For the week of October 12, 2026, EIA's all-grades gasoline price in California was $6.216 a gallon. At 12,000 miles a year and 25 mpg, the index counts that as $2,983.68 a year. Those miles are our standard, not a Census figure, and every town in California shares this price.

Among 982 places we list in California with a rent figure, 195 have higher typical rent than Novato.