San Miguel (Contra Costa), CA
How exposed is San Miguel (Contra Costa) to wildfire?
San Miguel (Contra Costa) sits at the 85th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 1,563 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks San Miguel (Contra Costa) at the 86th national percentile — 1 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Indirect exposure is dominant in San Miguel (Contra Costa) (72.7% of 1,563 buildings): far enough from burnable vegetation to avoid flame contact, close enough for wind-blown embers. Only 27.3% sit in the Direct zone.
Where San Miguel (Contra Costa) ranks
San Miguel (Contra Costa) ranks lower within California (50th percentile statewide) than its 85th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, San Miguel (Contra Costa) ranks 4,691 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 8,909 by building count (1 is largest). Within California alone, it ranks 784 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
San Miguel (Contra Costa) sits in California, one of two states that legally require a wildfire-risk disclosure at sale. California's FAIR Plan, the state's insurer of last resort, ended 2025 with 668,609 residential policies after adding 21,859 in Q4 alone — the kind of market shift a 85th-percentile score like San Miguel (Contra Costa)'s can end up mattering for. More on the disclosure law.
Hardening a home in San Miguel (Contra Costa)
San Miguel (Contra Costa)'s 72.7% Indirect-exposure share points at embers, not flame contact, as the main pathway — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing rank ahead of defensible space here. Detail in the home-hardening guide.
Where San Miguel (Contra Costa)'s figures come from
San Miguel (Contra Costa)'s 85th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what San Miguel (Contra Costa)'s dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.