Mountain View, California

Mountain View is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States, and is part of the San Francisco Bay Area. It is named for its beautiful views of the Santa Cruz Mountains. In the year 2020, the city had a population of 82,376 people.

The city played an important role in the early days of Silicon Valley. Many big technology companies have their main offices in Mountain View. In 1956, William Shockley started Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory there, which was the first company to make silicon semiconductor devices in Silicon Valley. Today, the city is home to headquarters for famous companies like Google and Alphabet Inc., as well as other important businesses such as Intuit, NASA Ames Research Center, Symantec, 23andMe, LinkedIn, Samsung, Quora, and Synopsys.

History

For a chronological guide, see Timeline of Mountain View, California.

The fertile land between the Santa Cruz Mountains and the shores of the southern San Francisco Bay once supported many villages of the indigenous Ohlone people. Spanish missionaries used the land for raising sheep.

The Mexican land grant of Rancho Pastoria de las Borregas was given in 1842 by Alta California governor Juan Alvarado to Francisco Estrada. This land grant was later passed on to Mariano Castro, who sold half of it to Martin Murphy Jr. Eventually, this land became the cities of Mountain View and Sunnyvale.

The southwest shore of San Francisco Bay was settled by European-Americans in 1852 as a stagecoach station, after the United States acquired California. By the early 1900s, it became a place to ship fruit and grain, and also a center for publishing religious books.

The U.S. Navy built the large Moffett Field Complex after 1931, which brought many workers and economic opportunities. After World War II, the population grew quickly with the development of aerospace and electronics industries. Between 1950 and 1960, the population grew from 6,563 to 30,889.

Today, technology is the main part of the local economy. In 2016, the city's voters approved a rent control ordinance.

Geography

Mountain View is a city in California, part of the San Francisco Bay Area. It has a total area of about 12 square miles, with most of it being land and a small part being water.

The city has several neighborhoods. Blossom Valley includes smaller areas such as Springer Meadows and Varsity Park, and it has homes built in the 1960s. The Cuernavaca neighborhood has Spanish-style houses with red roofs. Monta Loma is known for its California-style mid-century modern homes.

Economy

Mountain View is a key city in Silicon Valley, home to many important tech companies. As of 2026, big names like Google and Intuit have their main offices there.

In 2015, the city decided to raise the minimum wage step by step. By 2018, the minimum wage reached $15 per hour. Each year after that, it went up based on prices in the area. In 2019, the wage went to $15.65, but smaller companies got a bit more time to catch up. By January 2026, the minimum wage had grown to $19.70 per hour.

Top employers

According to the city's 2025 annual comprehensive financial report, the largest employers in the city are:

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition

2020 census

In the 2020 census, Mountain View had 82,376 people living there. The middle age of people in the city was 35.3 years. About 19.3% of the people were younger than 18, and 11.8% were older than 65. For every 100 girls and women, there were 107.7 boys and men, and for every 100 girls and women who were 18 or older, there were 108.5 boys and men who were 18 or older. The population density was 6,888.8 people per square mile (2,659.8/km²).

All of the people in Mountain View lived in urban areas.

In the city, 28.2% of homes had children younger than 18 living in them. About 45.7% of homes were made up of married couples, 24.7% had a man living alone without a wife, and 22.6% had a woman living alone without a husband. Around 30.1% of homes were made up of just one person, and 8.2% of homes had someone living alone who was 65 or older. There were 37,295 places to live, and 7.7% of them were empty. The rate of empty homes that people could buy was 1.1%, and the rate of empty homes that people could rent was 6.4%.

Labor force and poverty

In August 2013, Mountain View had a jobless rate of 5.0%. In 2022, 5.4 percent of people in Mountain View did not have enough money for their needs. Of people who were 16 or older, 72.9 percent had jobs, and 27.1 percent did not.

2010 census

In the 2010 census, there were 74,066 people living in Mountain View. The population density was 6,174.6 people per square mile (2,384.0/km²). There were 31,957 places to live.

Out of all the homes, 27.3% had children younger than 18 living in them, 43.2% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a woman living alone without a husband, and 3.9% had a man living alone without a wife. There were 6.0% of homes with couples who were not married and lived together, and 0.9% of homes with couples of the same sex married or living together. About 34.3% of homes were made up of just one person, and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average number of people per home was 2.31. There were 17,515 families (which were 54.8% of all homes); the average number of people in a family was 3.01. The ages of people in the city were spread out, with 19.7% younger than 18, 7.3% between 18 and 24, 38.6% between 25 and 44, 23.8% between 45 and 64, and 10.6% were 65 or older. The middle age was 35.9 years. For every 100 girls and women, there were 103.6 boys and men. For every 100 girls and women who were 18 or older, there were 103.5 boys and men. There were 33,881 places to live at an average of 2,760.6 per square mile (1,065.9 units/km²), of which 41.7% were homes people owned, and 58.3% were homes people rented. The rate of empty homes that people could buy was 1.3%; the rate of empty homes that people could rent was 4.4%. 43.2% of all people lived in homes they owned, and 56.4% lived in homes they rented.

In December 2017, Google was allowed to build nearly 10,000 new homes near its future campus in the city.

2000 census

In the 2000 census, there were 70,708 people living in Mountain View. The population density was 2,263.7/km² (5,863/mi²). There were 32,432 places to live at an average density of 1,038.3/km² (2,689/mi²). The people in the city were 63.77% White, 20.67% Asian, 18.26% Hispanic or Latino (of any race), 2.53% African American, 0.39% Native American, 0.26% Pacific Islander, 8.32% from other races, and 4.07% from two or more races.

In the city, 23.3% of homes had children younger than 18 living with them, 40.0% were married couples living together, 7.3% had a woman living alone without a husband, and 49.1% were homes that were not families. 35.6% of all homes were made up of just one person, and 7.0% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average number of people per home was 2.25 and the average number of people in a family was 2.97.

In the city, the ages of people were spread out, with 18.0% younger than 18, 8.3% between 18 and 24, 43.4% between 25 and 44, 19.8% between 45 and 64, and 10.5% were 65 or older. The middle age was 35 years. For every 100 girls and women, there were 106.8 boys and men. For every 100 girls and women who were 18 or older, there were 106.9 boys and men.

The average money a home made in the city was $69,362, and the average money a family made was $80,379. Men made an average of $64,585, while women made an average of $44,358. The per capita income for the city was $39,693. About 3.6% of families and 6.8% of all people did not have enough money for their needs, including 7.2% of those younger than 18 and 5.9% of those 65 or older.

Arts and culture

Points of interest

Downtown

Mountain View has a friendly downtown area on Castro Street. This area has shops, restaurants, and cafes. You can take trains and buses from the Downtown Mountain View Station, which is in the north part of downtown.

In the middle of downtown is a plaza where people meet for events. Important buildings like City Hall and the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts are there. This area has public art and is a nice place for the community.

Seminary

St. Joseph Parish started in 1905 and built a church in 1929 after an earlier one burned down.

Library

Mountain View has a main public library with books, music, videos, and Internet access. The library has a special room with history about the city, including a picture of Crisanto Castro, the person Castro Street is named after. Outside the library, there is a piece of the Berlin Wall on display.

Parks and recreation

Mountain View has many beautiful parks for fun and nature. The biggest park is Shoreline Park, built on old land that was cleaned up. It runs along the Bay north of U.S. Route 101 and has a big open space for shows, a golf course, and Rengstorff House, which is very old and important.

Other parks in the city include:

• Eagle Park, which has a public swimming pool, a place for dogs, and a memorial for people who served their country
• Cuesta Park, a large park with tennis courts, places to cook outdoors, and playgrounds, close to a hospital and a place for healthy activities
• Rengstorff Park, which has a public swimming pool, a place for the community to gather, a skate park, a fenced area for dogs, and many playgrounds and picnic spots
• Charleston Park, a five-acre park near the Googleplex. It was designed by a group that won an award in 1999 for their work.

Government

Mountain View uses a council-manager government system. A city manager handles many city departments, while the city council makes laws and rules. The council also works with boards and committees to help guide the city.

The city has seven council members who are elected by everyone in the city. Each year, one of these members is chosen to be the mayor. The council also has advisory groups that give advice on topics like building and land use.

Education

Mountain View has many public schools run by different school districts. Some elementary schools include Bubb, Castro, and Imai, while middle schools are Crittenden and Graham. High schools such as Mountain View High School and Los Altos High School serve students from both Mountain View and nearby Los Altos.

The city also has several private schools. These include Khan Lab School, which is linked to Khan Academy, Saint Francis High School, a Roman Catholic school, and international schools like the German International School of Silicon Valley and Yew Chung International School of Silicon Valley.

Media

The Mountain View Voice is a local newspaper. It started publishing in 1993.

Infrastructure

Major roads in Mountain View include SR-237, SR-85, US-101, County Route G6, and El Camino Real (SR 82).

The Downtown Mountain View Station is a busy transit center connecting different types of public transport. The city has Caltrain commuter rail service running from San Francisco to Gilroy, with two stations in Mountain View. There is also a light rail system operated by the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority that links Mountain View to other places in Santa Clara County.

The city has free shuttle services and several bus routes to help people get around. Large companies like Google and Microsoft also provide shuttles for their employees.

Power in Mountain View is provided by Pacific Gas and Electric Company. The city uses a lot of recycled water, especially for parks and company grounds. Google also provided free wireless internet for the city for many years.

The city has a fire department with five stations and a police department that handles patrols, traffic, and other safety services.

Sister cities

Mountain View has special friendships with cities in other countries. These friendships began in 1974. The cities Mountain View is friends with are:

• Iwata, Shizuoka, Japan
• Hasselt, Belgium

A beautiful rock garden in Pioneer Park was a gift from Iwata to celebrate when Mountain View's City Hall was finished. You can find this garden near the Mountain View Public Library.

Notable people

See also: Category:People from Mountain View, California

Business

• Steve Jobs, a technology leader who helped start Apple, grew up in Mountain View.
• Salman Khan, who runs an online school, lives in Mountain View.
• Jan Koum, who started WhatsApp, grew up in Mountain View.

Entertainment

• Tony Sly, a singer and songwriter.
• Alex Brightman, an actor and singer.
• Carroll Clark, an artist who was nominated for important awards.
• Laura Chavez, a musician who plays blues, soul, and rhythm and blues.
• Assaf Cohen, an actor known for TV shows like Heroes and Entourage.
• Kurt Kuenne, a filmmaker and composer famous for a movie called Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father.
• Sarah Kinsley, a singer-songwriter born in Mountain View.

Media

• Dave Finocchio, who helped start Bleacher Report.
• Doris Gates, an author and librarian.
• Edward Michael Keating (1925–2003), a publisher, journalist, and lawyer who started a magazine called Ramparts and was part of the New Left movement.
• Jose Antonio Vargas, a journalist and filmmaker who works on immigration rights; a school in Mountain View is named after him.
• Andy Weir, a writer who created the book The Martian while living in Mountain View.

Politicians

• Hugh Fate, a dentist and a representative in Alaska.

Sports

• Jabri Abdur-Rahim, a college basketball player.
• Mark Baena, a soccer player.
• Tully Banta-Cain, who won two big football championships called the Super Bowl.
• Josh Cohen, a soccer player.
• Brandon Crawford, a baseball player who played for the San Francisco Giants.
• Paula Creamer, a professional golfer who was once ranked very high in the world.
• Dan Green, a strongman who set world records in lifting heavy weights.
• Mark Keil, a tennis player who won several doubles championships.
• Mark Leonard, a baseball player who played for the San Francisco Giants and the Baltimore Orioles.
• Adam Peters, a football scout and executive.
• Kenny Roberts Jr., who won the 2000 world championship in motorcycle racing.
• Bianca Sierra, a player for the Mexico women's national football team.