CaliforniaCounty index2026 rates

California earthquake insurance by county

Twenty-five county pages and two fault corridor pages, each written around the specific faults, soils and housing stock of that place — because county risk tier on its own tells a homeowner almost nothing.

How to use these pages

County tier is the starting point, not the answer

Every county page here carries a risk tier and a rate factor, and those numbers are real inputs to the pricing indication. But two homes in the same county routinely price very differently. A 2005 slab tract home in Rancho Cucamonga and a 1930s post-and-pier cabin above Lake Arrowhead sit inside the same San Bernardino County factor and receive completely different terms.

So each page below covers the same four things: the specific faults that govern the area, the soils and slopes underneath it, the building stock actually standing on it, and what a buyer in that county should do before submitting an application.

Fault corridors

Two faults that cross county lines

Some risk does not respect county boundaries. These two corridors run through many of the counties below and are worth reading alongside them.

  • San Andreas Fault — four distinct segments from Humboldt to the Salton Sea, each with different housing stock and a different underwriting profile.
  • Hayward Fault — the East Bay corridor, where cripple walls and soft story dominate every submission.
Southern California

Southern California county pages

The Los Angeles Basin, the Orange and San Diego coasts, and the Ventura and Imperial corridors — blind thrusts, the Newport-Inglewood zone, coastal liquefaction and the highest aggregate replacement costs in the state.

  • Los Angeles County — Very high tier, 1.45x factor. Los Angeles, Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank, Santa Monica.
  • Orange County — High tier, 1.32x factor. Anaheim, Irvine, Santa Ana, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach.
  • San Diego County — High tier, 1.22x factor. San Diego, La Jolla, Chula Vista, Carlsbad, Escondido.
  • Ventura County — High tier, 1.30x factor. Ventura, Oxnard, Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley, Camarillo.
  • Imperial County — Very high tier, 1.34x factor. El Centro, Calexico, Brawley, Imperial, Holtville.
Inland Empire

Inland Empire county pages

Riverside and San Bernardino, where the San Andreas and San Jacinto systems meet a housing stock that runs from 1920s raised foundations to mountain cabins to desert manufactured homes.

  • Riverside County — Very high tier, 1.36x factor. Riverside, Palm Springs, Temecula, Murrieta, Corona.
  • San Bernardino County — Very high tier, 1.42x factor. San Bernardino, Rancho Cucamonga, Fontana, Ontario, Redlands.
Central Coast

Central Coast county pages

Santa Barbara through San Luis Obispo, Monterey and Santa Cruz — coastal thrusts, the creeping San Andreas, and a great deal of unbolted pre-1940 housing at high replacement cost.

  • Santa Barbara County — High tier, 1.24x factor. Santa Barbara, Goleta, Montecito, Carpinteria, Santa Maria.
  • San Luis Obispo County — Moderate high tier, 1.16x factor. San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles, Atascadero, Arroyo Grande, Pismo Beach.
  • Santa Cruz County — High tier, 1.28x factor. Santa Cruz, Watsonville, Scotts Valley, Capitola, Aptos.
  • Monterey County — Moderate high tier, 1.12x factor. Salinas, Monterey, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Pacific Grove, Seaside.
Bay Area

Bay Area county pages

The Hayward, San Andreas and Calaveras systems under the oldest dense wood-frame housing in the West, plus Bay Mud, fill and soft-story exposure.

  • San Francisco — Very high tier, 1.44x factor. Marina, Sunset, Richmond, Noe Valley, Bernal Heights.
  • San Mateo County — High tier, 1.34x factor. San Mateo, Redwood City, Daly City, Burlingame, Foster City.
  • Santa Clara County — Very high tier, 1.36x factor. San Jose, Palo Alto, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, Mountain View.
  • Alameda County — Very high tier, 1.38x factor. Oakland, Berkeley, Fremont, Hayward, Alameda.
  • Contra Costa County — High tier, 1.30x factor. Concord, Walnut Creek, Richmond, Antioch, Danville.
  • Marin County — Moderate high tier, 1.18x factor. San Rafael, Novato, Mill Valley, Sausalito, Tiburon.
North Bay

North Bay county pages

Sonoma, Napa and Solano — the Rodgers Creek and West Napa faults, a 2014 earthquake with a real local loss record, and a housing stock split between pre-1930 and brand new.

  • Sonoma County — Moderate high tier, 1.20x factor. Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Rohnert Park, Windsor, Healdsburg.
  • Napa County — High tier, 1.26x factor. Napa, American Canyon, St Helena, Calistoga, Yountville.
  • Solano County — Moderate high tier, 1.18x factor. Vallejo, Fairfield, Vacaville, Benicia, Suisun City.
North Coast

North Coast county pages

Humboldt, where the Cascadia subduction zone meets the San Andreas at the Mendocino Triple Junction and the housing is largely pre-1920 redwood frame.

  • Humboldt County — Very high tier, 1.50x factor. Eureka, Arcata, Fortuna, McKinleyville, Ferndale.
Central Valley

Central Valley county pages

Sacramento, San Joaquin, Fresno and Kern — lower modeled hazard on the valley floor, but Delta peat, levees, and a real earthquake history along the western margin and in the Tehachapis.

  • Kern County — High tier, 1.25x factor. Bakersfield, Ridgecrest, Tehachapi, Delano, Taft.
  • Sacramento County — Moderate tier, 1.00x factor. Sacramento, Elk Grove, Citrus Heights, Folsom, Rancho Cordova.
  • San Joaquin County — Moderate tier, 1.00x factor. Stockton, Tracy, Lodi, Manteca, Lathrop.
  • Fresno County — Moderate tier, 1.00x factor. Fresno, Clovis, Sanger, Reedley, Selma.
Next steps

Coverage and underwriting guides

Pricing and policy basics:
California earthquake insurance guide · Cost · Deductibles · Coverage types · Deductible calculator · Earthquake vs homeowners · CEA vs private market

Coverage parts:
Personal property · Loss of use · Building code upgrade · Loss assessment

By property type:
Condo · Townhome · Renters · Rental property · Mobile and manufactured · High-value homes · Older homes

Retrofit and mitigation:
Retrofit discounts · Earthquake Brace + Bolt · Foundation bolting · Cripple wall bracing · Water heater bracing

Applying:
Application checklist · Underwriting questions · Quote and application · Carrier markets

FAQ

Questions about these county pages

Why does this site publish 25 county pages instead of all 58?

Because a page that only differs from the next one by a proper noun is not useful to a homeowner or to a search engine. These 25 counties are the ones with a genuine residential earthquake market — meaningful seismic hazard, meaningful population, and enough local detail to say something specific. The remaining counties redirect to their nearest published neighbour, and a broker will still quote any California address.

Can I still get earthquake insurance in a county without a page?

Yes. Coverage availability has nothing to do with which pages this site publishes. The pricing indication works for every California county, and a licensed broker reviews the application regardless of where the property sits.

How is the county rate factor used?

It is a multiplier applied to a CDI-anchored base rate, reflecting regional seismic hazard. It is one input among several — dwelling limit, deductible, construction type, foundation type, year built, retrofit status and loss history all apply on top of it, and the property answers frequently matter more than the county.

Which fault corridor pages does the site publish?

Two: the San Andreas Fault and the Hayward Fault. Both cross multiple counties and tell a story no single county page can. Other fault and regional pages were consolidated into the county pages they duplicated.