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 52,184 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.

Of important note, Novato is also a city of artists. Novato has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Novato’s character.

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.

One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 17.09% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. 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.

Novato is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Quite often, nautical areas such as these attract visitors and locals who come to enjoy the scenery and various 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. 48.41% 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 $62,407, which is wealthy relative to California and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $249,628 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 22.29% of the city’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Novato include English, Irish, German, Italian, and Scottish.

Foreign born people are also an important part of Novato's cultural character, accounting for 21.16% of the city’s population.

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