California City, CA
California City wildfire risk explained
California City sits at the 40th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 5,442 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, California City's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 47th percentile nationally.
California City's building exposure, zone by zone
Direct exposure dominates in California City: 47.1% of its 5,442 buildings, versus 25.1% Indirect and 27.8% Minimal. Clearing space around a structure changes the outcome here more than any single building-material swap. At 5,442 buildings, this is a substantial built environment, so the shares below describe a real population of structures, not a handful of edge cases.
California City against the rest of the country
California City ranks lower within California (6th percentile statewide) than its 40th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, California City ranks 18,803 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 3,172 by building count (1 is largest). Within California alone, it ranks 1,476 of 1,570 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for California on its state page.
California City and the insurance market
California City's 40th-percentile score lands in California, the only two states requiring a wildfire disclosure at sale. California's surplus-lines homeowners market passed 300,000 policies for the first time in 2025, driven by carriers pulling back from wildfire-exposed areas statewide. The disclosure-law guide covers what it requires.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
With 47.1% of California City in Direct exposure, defensible-space clearing and ember-resistant construction (vents, Class-A roofing) address the exposure this page's own numbers describe, not a generic checklist. See the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
Every one of the two percentiles behind California City's 18,803-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond California City, see the exposure-zones guide.