Blog > Sunnyvale vs. San Jose: Home Prices, Sizes and the City Line (2026)
Sunnyvale and San Jose sit about 9 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 $2.63M in Sunnyvale and $1.65M in San Jose, so a typical Sunnyvale house cost 59% more than one in San Jose.
- Per square foot: $1,536 in Sunnyvale and $971 in San Jose; the median house was 1,640 sq ft in Sunnyvale and 1,682 sq ft in San Jose, on a 6,272-sq-ft lot versus a 6,222-sq-ft lot.
- Competition: 76% of Sunnyvale houses sold over asking, against 60% in San Jose.
- Condos and townhomes: a median of $1.35M in Sunnyvale (373 sales) and $775K in San Jose (1,532 sales).
- At the city line: they differ on trains (Sunnyvale has Caltrain and VTA light rail; San Jose has Caltrain, BART and VTA light rail), electricity (Silicon Valley Clean Energy in Sunnyvale, San Jose Clean Energy in San Jose) and transfer tax ($2,200 versus $8,800 on a $2 million sale).
See it live
- Open Sunnyvale vs. San Jose 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.
| Sunnyvale | San Jose | |
|---|---|---|
| Sales | 501 | 3,765 |
| Median price | $2.63M | $1.65M |
| Median per sq ft | $1,536 | $971 |
| Median size | 1,640 sq ft | 1,682 sq ft |
| Median lot | 6,272 sq ft | 6,222 sq ft |
| Median bedrooms | 4 | 4 |
| Sold over asking | 76% | 60% |
| Median sale vs. asking | 7.1% over | 1.5% over |
| Sold for $2 million or less | 24% | 71% |
| Listing says single-story | 14% | 16% |
| Listing mentions a pool | 8% | 11% |
| Listing mentions an ADU or in-law unit | 6% | 8% |
Condos and townhomes, side by side
Condos and townhomes sold in the same 12 months.
| Sunnyvale | San Jose | |
|---|---|---|
| Sales | 373 | 1,532 |
| Median price | $1.35M | $775K |
| Median per sq ft | $875 | $634 |
| Median size | 1,468 sq ft | 1,226 sq ft |
| Sold over asking | 51% | 39% |
At the city line
Some costs and services follow the city, not the mailing address.
| Sunnyvale | San Jose | |
|---|---|---|
| County | Santa Clara County | Santa Clara County |
| Caltrain | Sunnyvale and Lawrence | San Jose Diridon and Tamien; College Park (a few trains a day); Capitol and Blossom Hill (weekday commute hours only) |
| BART | none | Berryessa/North San Jose |
| VTA light rail | yes | yes |
| Electricity | Silicon Valley Clean Energy, delivered by PG&E | San Jose Clean Energy, delivered by PG&E |
| Transfer tax on a $2 million sale | $2,200 | $8,800 |
| Eichler tracts | 10 tracts on our Eichler index | 5 tracts 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. See San Jose’s transfer tax.
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
- Sunnyvale: Sunnyvale city guide, Sunnyvale neighborhoods compared, Sunnyvale home types by the numbers and the Sunnyvale housing market by the numbers.
- San Jose: San Jose city guide, San Jose neighborhoods compared, San Jose home types by the numbers and the San Jose housing market by the numbers.
- More comparisons: Cupertino vs. Sunnyvale, Los Altos vs. Sunnyvale, Mountain View vs. Sunnyvale, Palo Alto vs. Sunnyvale, San Jose vs. Santa Clara, Santa Clara vs. Sunnyvale, Campbell vs. San Jose, Cupertino vs. San Jose, Los Gatos vs. San Jose, Milpitas vs. San Jose, Morgan Hill vs. San Jose 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.