Oakland Hills is an informal term used to indicate the city neighborhoods lying within the eastern portion of
Oakland
Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...
,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
. The northernmost neighborhoods were devastated by the
Oakland firestorm of 1991
:
The Oakland firestorm of 1991, also known as the Tunnel Fire was a large suburban wildland–urban interface conflagration that occurred on the Oakland Hills, Oakland, California, hillsides of northern Oakland, California, and southeastern B ...
.
Geography
Geologic features
"Oakland Hills" is most commonly an informal name for that section of the
Berkeley Hills
The Berkeley Hills are a range of the Pacific Coast Ranges, and overlook the northeast side of the valley that encompasses San Francisco Bay. They were previously called the "Contra Costa Range/Hills" (from the original Spanish ''Sierra de la Co ...
range that extends along the eastern side of
Oakland, California
Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...
. In recent decades, it has become the more common popular term although it remains "officially" incorrect among geographers and gazetteers. Before the establishment of the
University of California
The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...
in Berkeley, the range was called the Contra Costa Hills.
The common usage often includes another officially unnamed ridge which runs in front (west) of the Berkeley/"Oakland" Hills, as well as the linear valley enclosed between the two ridges in the
Montclair District along
State Route 13. This other ridge, a
shutter ridge created by the
Hayward Fault, lends its informal name, "
Rockridge", only to the district of Oakland at its northwest end, although it extends southeast to the junction of Highway 13 and
I-580 in East Oakland and includes most of the small residential community of
Piedmont, California. Plant communities are diverse, ranging from oak-grassland savanna and chaparral on sunny exposed slopes, to woods of oak, madrone, bay laurel, pine and redwoods in shady canyons.
Neighborhoods
The Oakland Hills neighborhoods comprise the highest elevations within the city's land area, following the alignment of the hills and the central section of the
Hayward Fault Zone. The area includes all of Oakland lying east of
State Route 13 and east of
I-580 south of its junction with Route 13. The area includes Upper Rockridge, Oakmore,
Montclair and
Mountain View Cemetery. The Oakland Hills touch the eastern border of
Piedmont, California and include a section of the
Claremont neighborhood, the northern part of which lies within the city of
Berkeley. The Oakland Hills also include the northern section of
Lake Chabot Regional Park and borders
Robert Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve
Robert Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve is located in the Oakland Hills of the East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area), East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, California. The park is part of the East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD), covers ...
,
Huckleberry Botanic Regional Preserve,
Redwood Regional Park and
Anthony Chabot Regional Park; all part of the
East Bay Regional Park District
The East Bay Regional Park District (EBRPD) is a Special-purpose district, special district operating in Alameda County, California, Alameda County and Contra Costa County, California, within the East Bay (California), East Bay area of the San Fra ...
.
Politics
The hills are generally regarded as home to "Oakland’s whitest, wealthiest and most economically conservative enclaves" and is less dense and populous as the rest of the city. The area is known for high voter turnout and fundraising, having an outsized influence on local elections that favors moderate to conservative policies and politicians. The hills are mostly contained within District 4 of the
Oakland City Council
The Oakland City Council is an elected governing body representing the City of Oakland, California.
Since 1998, Oakland has had a mayor-council government. The mayor is elected for a four-year term. The Oakland City Council has eight council me ...
, which had the highest turnout rate at 47% in the
2025 Oakland mayoral special election and largely backed
Loren Taylor.
Neighborhoods
Northeast Hills
*
Claremont (southern portion)
* Forestland
* Glen Highlands
* Hiller Highlands
*
Joaquin Miller Park
*
Lake Temescal
* Merriwood
*
Montclair
* Montclair Business District
*
Mountain View Cemetery
*
Oakmore
*
Panoramic Hill
*
Piedmont Pines
* Shepherd Canyon
* Upper Rockridge
Southeast Hills
*
Chabot Park
* Crestmont
*
Grass Valley, Oakland, California
*
Sequoyah Heights
* Sheffield Village
* Skyline-Hillcrest Estates
* Caballo Hills
* Leona Heights
*
Laurel
*
Redwood Heights
* Woodminster
Culture
Several popular cultural sites and events are located in the Oakland hills:
*
Chabot Space and Science Center
Woodminster Summer MusicalsMontclair Jazz & Wine Festival*
Joseph Knowland State Arboretum and Park
*
Oakland Zoo
The Oakland Zoo is located in the Grass Valley, Oakland, California, Grass Valley neighborhood of Oakland, California, United States. Established on June 6, 1922, it is managed by the Conservation Society of California, a 501(c)(3) organization ...
References
{{Oakland, California neighborhoods
Neighborhoods in Oakland, California
Berkeley Hills