Property Tax in Yolo County, California
The median real estate tax bill in Yolo County, California is $4,567 per year, and the median home is worth $593,800. Both figures are the US Census Bureau's survey medians for owner-occupied households (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What the Yolo County numbers mean
A median is the middle household: half of owner-occupied households in Yolo County pay more than $4,567, and half pay less. Your own bill is set by your home's assessed value, the exemptions you qualify for, and the local taxing districts your property sits in — so individual bills vary widely around the median.
Dividing the median tax by the median home value gives a derived effective rate of 0.77% for Yolo County. It is an estimate built from two survey medians, not the county's official rate, but it is a fair way to compare the local tax burden with other counties where home values are very different.
Yolo County by the numbers
| Measure | Yolo County | California | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median real estate taxes paid | $4,567 | $4,926 | $2,969 |
| Median home value | $593,800 | $695,400 | $303,400 |
| Derived effective rate* | 0.77% | 0.71% | 0.98% |
| Median tax per month | $381 | $410 | $247 |
*Estimate derived from Census medians (tax ÷ value), not an official rate.
Yolo County at a glance
- Median tax rank in California: #19 of 58 counties
- Median home value rank in California: #21 of 58
- Population rank in California: #27 of 58 (217,782 residents)
- Population density rank: #19 of 58 (215 people per square mile)
- Land area rank in California: #41 of 58 (1,012 sq mi, 0.6% of the combined county land area)
- Median tax as a monthly figure: $381; per $1,000 of home value: $0.77
How Yolo County compares
The median tax bill in Yolo County is about 7% lower than the state median ($4,926 for California) and about 54% higher than the US median ($2,969 nationally). By median taxes paid, the county ranks #19 out of 58 California counties with published Census data — 18 counties in the state have a higher median bill.
Comparisons cut both ways: a county can have a modest rate but high bills because homes are expensive, or a high rate but modest bills because homes are cheaper. Yolo County's derived rate of 0.77% sits below the derived US figure of 0.98%.
Some extra context for Yolo County: the median bill works out to about $381 a month, and the derived rate equals roughly $769 of tax per $100,000 of home value. The county is home to 217,782 people — the #27 most populous county in California, spread over 1,012 square miles, a density of about 215 people per square mile. Its median home value, $593,800, ranks #21 among the state's 58 counties with data.
Zooming out: of 3133 counties nationwide with published Census figures, only 156 record a higher median tax bill than Yolo County — it sits in the top 5% nationally. The county holds roughly 0.6% of California's people. Its homes are worth less than the state norm (median $593,800 versus $695,400), and a decade at the derived rate of 0.77% adds up to about 7.69% of the median home's value in tax. The cheapest county in the state, Modoc County, medians $1,445 — $3,122 less than Yolo County per year.
Counties nearest Yolo County in the California ranking
| County | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Barbara County, CA | $4,870 | $735,700 | 0.66% |
| Monterey County, CA | $4,782 | $723,100 | 0.66% |
| El Dorado County, CA | $4,510 | $640,500 | 0.70% |
| Nevada County, CA | $4,468 | $602,800 | 0.74% |
Yolo County and its population peers
Population is a useful lens on these figures, so the table below sets Yolo County beside the counties closest to it in population anywhere in the country — communities of a similar scale operating under different state and local tax systems. Ranked by median tax paid within this peer group of 9, Yolo County's $4,567 bill is #2 of 9.
| County | Population | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson County, OR | 222,563 | $3,032 | $400,200 | 0.76% |
| Hinds County, MS | 222,494 | $1,389 | $151,200 | 0.92% |
| Doña Ana County, NM | 221,665 | $1,404 | $205,400 | 0.68% |
| Delaware County, OH | 221,160 | $6,896 | $419,500 | 1.64% |
| Mohave County, AZ | 217,420 | $1,229 | $253,200 | 0.48% |
| Lackawanna County, PA | 215,834 | $2,910 | $189,900 | 1.53% |
| York County, ME | 214,731 | $3,691 | $357,200 | 1.03% |
| Okaloosa County, FL | 214,281 | $1,948 | $324,800 | 0.60% |
The closest population match is Mohave County, Arizona (217,420 residents), where the median real estate tax paid is $1,229 on a median home value of $253,200 — $3,338 more than Yolo County pays.
Yolo County's nearest population neighbours within California are Santa Cruz County (266,021 residents, median tax $6,305 on a median value of $1,015,200); Marin County (258,765 residents, median tax $10,001 on a median value of $1,390,000); Butte County (209,470 residents, median tax $2,819 on a median value of $408,700); El Dorado County (192,299 residents, median tax $4,510 on a median value of $640,500). Comparing them is a reminder that even inside one state's rules, the bill follows local home values and local district rates more than anything decided at the state level.
How the tax is worked out
Think of the final bill as three ingredients: the assessed value of the property, the exemptions subtracted from it, and the combined rate of every district the property sits in. Yolo County's medians imply a derived rate of 0.77%; applied illustratively, a $400,000 home would owe about $3,076 a year, or around $256 a month spread evenly. Individual properties depart from the illustration in both directions.
Illustrative bills in Yolo County at the derived rate
The derived rate of 0.77% is only an estimate built from medians, but applying it to different home values gives a sense of scale for Yolo County — and a quick way to compare with the state derived rate of 0.71% and the US figure of 0.98%:
| Home value | Illustrative tax / year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| $150,000 | $1,154 | $96 |
| $250,000 | $1,922 | $160 |
| $350,000 | $2,692 | $224 |
| $500,000 | $3,845 | $320 |
| $750,000 | $5,768 | $481 |
Illustration only: real bills are computed from the assessed value, exemptions, and the combined rates of the property's actual taxing districts.
Checking your assessment in Yolo County
Most successful appeals are won on facts, not arguments. Start with the property record card held by the Yolo County assessor: wrong square footage, an extra room, or a missing homestead exemption are common and fixable. Next, line your assessed value up against recent sales of genuinely similar homes nearby. Many disputes end at an informal conversation with the assessor's office; if yours does not, file the formal appeal with the review board named on your notice before its deadline, evidence attached, and keep paying the bill in the meantime so penalties do not build up.
More California counties
Frequently asked questions
What is the median property tax in Yolo County, California?
The median real estate tax paid in Yolo County, California is $4,567 per year, on a median home value of $593,800 (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What is the effective property tax rate in Yolo County, California?
Dividing Yolo County's median tax bill ($4,567) by its median home value ($593,800) gives a derived effective rate of 0.77%. This is an estimate computed from two Census survey medians — it is not the county's official tax rate.
How does Yolo County compare with the rest of California?
By median taxes paid, Yolo County stands at #19 among the 58 California counties the Census publishes figures for. Its $4,567 median bill is about 7% lower than the state median ($4,926), and 18 counties in the state record a higher median.
How are property taxes calculated in Yolo County, California?
The assessor estimates your property's market value; exemptions (such as a homestead exemption) reduce the taxable amount; and the result is multiplied by the combined rates of the local taxing districts — county, municipality, school district and any special districts. In Yolo County, the median outcome of that process is a bill of $4,567 on a median home value of $593,800.
Can I appeal my property tax assessment in Yolo County, California?
You can. Pull your property record card from the Yolo County assessor, verify its details, and compare the assessed value against similar homes that sold recently. If the value still seems too high, submit a formal appeal to the board named on your notice before the stated deadline — usually a 30-to-90-day window.