Blog > Milpitas vs. Santa Clara: Home Prices, Sizes and the City Line (2026)
Milpitas and Santa Clara sit about 6 miles apart, center to center, both in Santa Clara County. Here’s how they compare on what houses, condos and townhomes sold for in the 12 months to October 27, 2026, and on the things that change at the city line: trains, electricity and transfer tax.
The short answer
- Houses: the median sale was $1.62M in Milpitas and $1.92M in Santa Clara, so a typical Santa Clara house cost 19% more than one in Milpitas.
- Per square foot: $1,005 in Milpitas and $1,324 in Santa Clara; the median house was 1,684 sq ft in Milpitas and 1,535 sq ft in Santa Clara, on a 5,995-sq-ft lot versus a 5,988-sq-ft lot.
- Competition: 66% of Milpitas houses sold over asking, against 70% in Santa Clara.
- Condos and townhomes: a median of $1.1M in Milpitas (190 sales) and $900K in Santa Clara (256 sales).
- At the city line: they differ on trains (Milpitas has BART and VTA light rail; Santa Clara has Caltrain and VTA light rail) and electricity (Silicon Valley Clean Energy in Milpitas, Silicon Valley Power in Santa Clara).
See it live
- Open Milpitas vs. Santa Clara in the City Match-Up: homes for sale now and the last 90 days of sales, side by side.
- Talk to a Property Nerd about the streets that fit in either city.
Houses, side by side
Houses (MLS property type “single family home”) sold in the 12 months to October 27, 2026. The last three rows count listings whose description says so, so they undercount.
| Milpitas | Santa Clara | |
|---|---|---|
| Sales | 175 | 418 |
| Median price | $1.62M | $1.92M |
| Median per sq ft | $1,005 | $1,324 |
| Median size | 1,684 sq ft | 1,535 sq ft |
| Median lot | 5,995 sq ft | 5,988 sq ft |
| Median bedrooms | 4 | 3 |
| Sold over asking | 66% | 70% |
| Median sale vs. asking | 2.6% over | 4.7% over |
| Sold for $2 million or less | 77% | 53% |
| Listing says single-story | 9% | 14% |
| Listing mentions a pool | 5% | 5% |
| Listing mentions an ADU or in-law unit | 3% | 9% |
Condos and townhomes, side by side
Condos and townhomes sold in the same 12 months.
| Milpitas | Santa Clara | |
|---|---|---|
| Sales | 190 | 256 |
| Median price | $1.1M | $900K |
| Median per sq ft | $716 | $733 |
| Median size | 1,454 sq ft | 1,297 sq ft |
| Sold over asking | 47% | 49% |
At the city line
Some costs and services follow the city, not the mailing address.
| Milpitas | Santa Clara | |
|---|---|---|
| County | Santa Clara County | Santa Clara County |
| Caltrain | none | Santa Clara |
| BART | Milpitas | none |
| VTA light rail | yes | yes |
| Electricity | Silicon Valley Clean Energy, delivered by PG&E | Silicon Valley Power (city-owned) |
| Transfer tax on a $2 million sale | $2,200 | $2,200 |
| Eichler tracts | none on our index | 1 tract on our Eichler index |
Electricity is the default provider for most homes; some addresses differ. Transfer tax is the county tax plus any city tax, by the rates on our calculators page; who pays it is set in the contract. School district lines don’t follow city lines, so check the district’s own boundary lookup for any address.
How we counted
Closed sales reported to the MLS and read through the IDX feeds that power our home search, with repeat records removed (same MLS number and sale date). A sale is placed by the city in its MLS address, so a few homes in unincorporated pockets count under the nearby city. Medians follow the mix of homes, and cities are averages: blocks within each can differ a lot. Past sales aren’t a forecast or the value of any one home.
Go deeper
- Milpitas: Milpitas guide page, Milpitas neighborhoods compared, Milpitas home types by the numbers and the Milpitas housing market by the numbers.
- Santa Clara: Santa Clara city guide, Santa Clara neighborhoods compared, Santa Clara home types by the numbers and the Santa Clara housing market by the numbers.
- More comparisons: San Jose vs. Santa Clara, Santa Clara vs. Sunnyvale, Cupertino vs. Santa Clara, Milpitas vs. San Jose, Mountain View vs. Santa Clara and Sunnyvale vs. Milpitas.
Weighing the two?
We’ll compare the homes and streets you’re actually considering, on both sides of the line, and set up a search that catches new listings the day they hit. Call (408) 373-1660 or (650) 383-8606, or book a strategy call. Commissions are negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what’s included.