Novato is a larger medium-sized coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of California. With a population of 51,722 people and 14 associated neighborhoods, Novato is the 172nd largest community in California.

Novato home prices are not only among the most expensive in California, but Novato real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.

Also of interest is that Novato has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

A relatively large number of people in Novato telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 17.67% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

One of the nice things about Novato is that it is nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Because of this, visitors and locals will often go to these areas to take in the scenery or to enjoy waterfront activities.

Although the majority of commuting trips in the city are by private automobile, Novato is somewhat unusual for a city of its size for having a substantial number of people who use public transportation. For a lot of people, the bus helps to get to and from their jobs every morning, which benefits everyone in the Novato area by reducing both traffic and air pollution.

Novato is one of the most well-educated cities in the nation. 47.45% of adults in Novato have at least a bachelor's degree. Compare that to the average community in America, which has just 21.84% with a bachelor's degree or higher.

The per capita income in Novato in 2022 was $64,439, which is wealthy relative to California and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $257,756 for a family of four. However, Novato contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

Novato is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Novato home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Novato residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Novato also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 27.05% of the city’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Novato include Irish, English, German, Italian, and Scottish.

Foreign born people are also an important part of Novato's cultural character, accounting for 22.86% of the city’s population.

The most common language spoken in Novato is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and German/Yiddish.