Los Altos, California
Los Altos is a city of 30,698 people in Santa Clara County, California, founded in 1952.
Why visit Los Altos
Townapedia lists 18 museums and landmarks, 55 parks and trails, 271 places to eat, 18 places to stay and 8 attractions in and around town.
Highlights include Don Burnett Bicycle-Pedestrian Bridge, Shoreline Amphitheatre, Historic Adobe Building and Los Altos History Museum.
September is the warmest month, with average highs of 78°F; December lows average 42°F.
Weather in Los Altos
Forecast from the National Weather Service. Full forecast
About Los Altos
Los Altos ( ; Spanish for "The Heights") is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 31,625 according to the 2020 census.
From the Wikipedia article Los Altos, California (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Things to do8
Don Burnett Bicycle-Pedestrian Bridge
Bridge · 3.5 mi
Bridge in Cupertino, California
Shoreline Amphitheatre
Cinema and theater · 4.1 mi
Concert venue in Mountain View, California, United States of America
Museums and landmarks18
Historic Adobe Building
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 2.2 mi
Building in Santa Clara, California
Los Altos History Museum
Museum · 1.2 mi
Los Altos History Museum
51 South San Antonio Road, Los Altos
Paul Shoup House
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 1.3 mi
Historic house in California, United States
500 University Avenue, Los Altos
Greenmeadow
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 3.3 mi
Historic house in California, United States
Lantarnam Hall
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 1.6 mi
Historic house in California, United States
Le Petit Trianon
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 4.3 mi
Mansion on the grounds of De Anza College
Shenandoah Plaza National Historic District
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 3.7 mi
Part of Moffett Field
Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 3.9 mi
Wind tunnel at NASA Ames Research Center
Willard Griffin House and Carriage House
Monument and historic site · National Register of Historic Places · 1.6 mi
Carriage House in Los Altos, California, USA.
Moffett Field Historical Society Museum
Museum · 3.8 mi
Museum in Santa Clara County, California
NASA Ames Visitor Center
Museum · 3.3 mi
Visitor center in California, United States
6 more on the map.
Parks, trails and playgrounds55
Foothills Open Space Preserve
Park · 4.1 mi
Open space preserve in Palo Alto, California, United States
McClellan Ranch Preserve
Park · 4.2 mi
Park in California, United States of America, United States of America
Rancho San Antonio County Park
Park · 2.6 mi
County park in Santa Clara County, California, United States
Shoreline Park
Park · 4.1 mi
Park in Mountain View, California, United States
43 more on the map.
Restaurants and cafes271
Agave Mexican Bistro
Restaurant · Mexican · 2.0 mi
Mexican bistro
194 Castro Street, Mountain View
Mo-Th 11:00-14:00, 17:00-21:00; Fr 11:00-14:00, 17:00-22:00; Sa...
Epic Dumpling
Restaurant · Chinese · 2.4 mi
Dim sum
673 Grape Avenue, Sunnyvale
Mo-Fr 11:00-14:30,17:00-21:00; Sa-Su 11:00-15:00,17:00-21:00
Udon Mugizo
Restaurant · Udon, Japanese · 2.0 mi
186 Castro Street, Mountain View
Mo-Th 11:30-14:00,17:30-21:00; Fr-Su 11:30-22:00
Baskin-Robbins
Ice cream · Ice Cream · 1.4 mi
1249 West El Camino Real, Mountain View
Mo-Su 11:00-22:00
Baskin-Robbins
Ice cream · Ice Cream · 1.9 mi
703 East El Camino Real, Mountain View
Mo-Su 11:00-21:00
Bloomsgiving
Cafe · Coffee Shop · 1.9 mi
301 Castro Street, Mountain View
Mo-Fr 10:00-20:00; Sa 09:00-20:00; Su 09:00-17:00
Boba Bliss
Cafe · Bubble Tea · 2.5 mi
685 San Antonio Road, Mountain View
Mo-Th 11:00-21:00; Fr-Sa 11:30-21:30; Su 11:30-21:00
Cafe Nur
Restaurant · Mediterranean · 1.3 mi
280 Main Street, Los Altos
Su-Th 09:00-21:00; Fr,Sa 09:00-22:00
Casa Lupe
Restaurant · Mexican · 1.8 mi
459 Castro Street, Mountain View
Mo-Sa 11:00-21:00; Su 11:00-20:00
Caspian Grill Restaurant
Restaurant · Kebab, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean · 1.8 mi
1910 West El Camino Real, Mountain View
Mo-Sa 11:00-20:00; Su 11:00-14:00
259 more on the map.
History
The area was initially called the Fremont Judicial Township, which was formed in 1853. Fremont Judicial Township was later unofficially called "Banks and Braes". Paul Shoup, an executive of the Southern Pacific Railroad, and his colleagues formed the Altos Land Company in 1906 and started the development of Los Altos. The company acquired 140 acres (57 ha) of land from Sarah Winchester. Shoup wanted to link Palo Alto and Los Gatos by making Los Altos a commuter town. It continued a train-a-day operation to and from San Francisco.
On April 19, 1908, Southern Pacific Railroad began running steam train service through Los Altos on the new Mayfield Cutoff with five trains per day. Two freight cars served as a train depot. Also, the first commercial building, Eschenbruecher's Hardware, was built in downtown. In 1913, the craftsman-style Los Altos train station was built at 288 First Street.
By 1949, many residents were dissatisfied with the zoning policy of Santa Clara County, and there was a constant threat of annexation by neighboring Palo Alto and Mountain View, so they decided to incorporate. Los Altos became the eleventh city in Santa Clara County on December 1, 1952.
From the History section of Los Altos, California on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where to stay18
SureStay Plus by Best Western Mountain View
Motel and hotel · 2.1 mi
2300 West El Camino Real, Mountain View
Towneplace Suites by Marriott Sunnyvale Silicon Valley
Motel and hotel · 2.2 mi
606 South Bernardo Avenue, Sunnyvale
Residence Inn Palo Alto
Motel and hotel · 1.7 mi
1854 West El Camino Real, Mountain View
Extended Stay America San Jose Mountain View
Motel and hotel · 1.7 mi
190 East El Camino Real, Mountain View
Churches and places of worship51
First Church of Christ, Scientist, Los Altos
Church · Christ Scientist · 1.3 mi
401 University Avenue, Los Altos
Foothills Congregational Church
Church · United Church Of Christ · 1.2 mi
461 Orange Avenue, Los Altos
South Bay Chinese Seventh-day Adventist Church
Church · Seventh Day Adventist · 2.3 mi
1904 Silverwood Avenue
Antiochian Orthodox Church of the Redeemer
Church · Antiochian Orthodox · 1.2 mi
380 Magdalena Avenue, Los Altos
Congregational Church of Sunnyvale
Church · United Church Of Christ · 2.2 mi
1112 South Bernardo Avenue, Sunnyvale
Shopping54
Gas and EV charging23
Schools, colleges and libraries99
Mountain View Academy
School · Seventh Day Adventist · 1.9 mi
360 South Shoreline Boulevard, Mountain View
Healthcare33
Kaiser Permanente Mountain View Medical Offices
Clinic and pharmacy · 1.7 mi
555 Castro Street, Mountain View
Stanford Medicine Children's Health Specialty Services – Sunnyvale
Clinic and pharmacy · 2.2 mi
1195 West Fremont Avenue, Sunnyvale
Map of Los Altos
250 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Climate by month
Monthly table
| Month | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 59°F | 42°F | 2.5 in |
| Feb | 62°F | 44°F | 2.9 in |
| Mar | 65°F | 47°F | 2.0 in |
| Apr | 68°F | 49°F | 1.0 in |
| May | 72°F | 52°F | 0.4 in |
| Jun | 76°F | 56°F | 0.1 in |
| Jul | 77°F | 58°F | 0.0 in |
| Aug | 77°F | 59°F | 0.0 in |
| Sep | 78°F | 57°F | 0.1 in |
| Oct | 74°F | 53°F | 0.6 in |
| Nov | 66°F | 46°F | 1.4 in |
| Dec | 59°F | 42°F | 2.5 in |
U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 for Moffett Federal Airfield 74509 (4 mi away), NOAA NCEI.
People and cost of living
American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020-2024, U.S. Census Bureau. Estimates have margins of error, larger for small towns.
Disaster history
Santa Clara County has had 14 federal disaster declarations since 2000, most often for fires.
- 2023-04-03: Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides (Severe Storm)
- 2023-03-10: Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides (Flood)
- 2023-01-14: Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides (Flood)
- 2023-01-09: Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides (Flood)
- 2020-08-22: Wildfires (Fire)
- 2020-08-21: Scu Ligtning Complex Fire (Fire)
OpenFEMA disaster declarations summaries.
Getting there and nearby towns
Moffett Federal Airfield (NUQ) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 4 miles away.
- Mountain View 2 mi northeast, about 4 min by car
- Palo Alto 3 mi northwest, about 5 min by car
- Sunnyvale 4 mi east, about 7 min by car
- Cupertino 4 mi southeast, about 7 min by car
- Stanford 6 mi northwest, about 9 min by car
- Santa Clara 7 mi east, about 11 min by car
- East Palo Alto 7 mi north, about 11 min by car
- Saratoga 8 mi southeast, about 13 min by car
- Menlo Park 8 mi north, about 13 min by car
- Newark 10 mi north, about 16 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Local news
Headlines from INDB, the NEMICO news database.
Reviews, tips and questions
Loading what members have shared...
Sources and licences
- NCES EDGE (Public domain): public schools
- NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020 (Public domain): climate by month
- OpenFEMA (Public domain): disaster declarations
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- U.S. Census Bureau (Public domain): population, income, housing, education, commute
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- Los Altos History Museum, California 01, GualdimG, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 2009-0723-CA-MtnViewAdobe, Bobak Ha'Eri, CC BY 3.0
- BaskinRobbins-EElCaminoReal-MountainViewCA-2026-06-19, LatLongLens, CC0
Page built October 30, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us or suggest a place.