These 4 California suburbs listed among safest in U.S., and they're all in the Bay Area

PALO ALTO, Calif. - A new study named four Bay Area cities among the safest suburbs in the U.S. 

The analysis by personal finance company SmartAsset ranked 360 suburbs of major U.S. cities, noting, "Safety is a key factor when choosing a neighborhood to buy a home."

Only four California suburbs made the top 20, and they were all in the Bay Area: Palo Alto, Mountain View, Pacifica, and Livermore.

The study measured a community's safety level by comparing rates of reported violent crime, property crime, motor vehicle deaths, drug overdose deaths, and excessive drinking. 

"To help measure the value for the local cost of living, housing affordability in the safest neighborhoods was also considered," researchers added. 

SEE ALSO: These California cities rank as the most expensive cities to live in the world in 2024

Among the Bay Area suburbs that made the list, Palo Alto ranked the highest, coming in 11th place. 

Here's a look at the findings among the Bay Area cities recognized: 

11. Palo Alto

• Violent crime per capita: 0.00539
• Property crime per capita: 0.03772
• Motor vehicle crash deaths per 100,000 residents: 6.92
• Drug overdose deaths per 100,000 residents: 14.67
• Percent of adults participating in excessive drinking: 14.92
• Median monthly housing cost: $3,278
• Median household income: $214,118
• Percent of annual income going to housing: 18.4%

14. Mountain View 

• Violent crime per capita: 0.00810
• Property crime per capita: 0.03771
• Motor vehicle crash deaths per 100,000 residents: 6.92
• Drug overdose deaths per 100,000 residents: 14.67
• Percent of adults participating in excessive drinking: 14.92
• Median monthly housing cost: $2,948
• Median household income: $174,156
• Percent of annual income going to housing: 20.3%

15. Pacifica

• Violent crime per capita: 0.00234
• Property crime per capita: 0.01419
• Motor vehicle crash deaths per 100,000 residents: 5.38
• Drug overdose deaths per 100,000 residents: 15.87
• Percent of adults participating in excessive drinking: 16.65
• Median monthly housing cost: $2,894
• Median household income: $151,849
• Percent of annual income going to housing: 22.9%

19.  Livermore, CA

• Violent crime per capita: 0.00232
• Property crime per capita: 0.01937
• Motor vehicle crash deaths per 100,000 residents: 6.52
• Drug overdose deaths per 100,000 residents: 18.10
• Percent of adults participating in excessive drinking: 15.85
• Median monthly housing cost: $2,856
• Median household income: $152,590
• Percent of annual income going to housing: 22.5%

The study identified a suburb as being a 15 to 45 minute drive from the 100 largest U.S. cities.

San Jose, San Francisco, and Oakland all fall under the list of 100 largest cities based on population, according to Data Commons.

The suburb ranked as the safest in America was Lehi, Utah, a suburb of Salt Lake City.

Here is SmartAsset's full list of the top 20 safest suburbs in America:

1. Lehi, UT
2. Bethesda, MD
3. Layton, UT
4. Rockville, MD
5. Great Falls, VA
6. Dacula, GA
7. Buford, GA
8. Elmhurst, IL
9. Oak Brook, IL
10. Edgewater, NJ
11. Palo Alto, CA
12. 12. Noblesville, IN
13. Naperville, IL
14. Mountain View, CA
15. Pacifica, CA
16. 16. Fishers, IN
17. Fort Lee, NJ
18. Carmel, IN
19. Livermore, CA
20. Massapequa, NY