Oakdale, CA
Oakdale wildfire risk explained
Out of every US place USFS scores, Oakdale lands at the 90th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — a figure built from its 8,487 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Oakdale at the 91st percentile, close to its 90th-percentile risk score.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
8,487 buildings are counted in Oakdale, and 83.3% of them are Indirect exposure — ember-driven risk rather than the 5.7% in Direct exposure or the 11% rated Minimal. At 8,487 buildings, this is a substantial built environment, so the shares below describe a real population of structures, not a handful of edge cases.
Oakdale against the rest of the country
Oakdale ranks lower within California (61st percentile statewide) than its 90th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Oakdale ranks 3,237 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 1,959 by building count (1 is largest). Within California alone, it ranks 616 of 1,570 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for California on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Oakdale's 90th-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 ember exposure the dominant pattern in Oakdale (83.3% Indirect), vent screens and roofing material tend to matter more than lot clearing alone. The home-hardening guide covers both.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 8,487 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Oakdale. For more on what indirect exposure implies beyond Oakdale, see the exposure-zones guide.