Blog > What $2 Million Buys on the Peninsula: Nine Cities Compared (2026)
What does $2 million buy on the Peninsula? It depends on the city more than you’d think. We took every house that sold for $1.75M to $2.25M in the last 24 months in nine San Mateo County cities. In Daly City, that budget bought a median 2,460 square feet; in Burlingame, 1,250. All nine cities had at least 19 sales in the range, so every city gets a real answer.
The short answer
- Daly City: 2,460 sq ft, 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, a 3,600 sq ft lot (19 sales).
- South San Francisco: 2,250 sq ft, 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, a 5,340 sq ft lot (35 sales).
- San Bruno: 2,100 sq ft, 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, a 5,250 sq ft lot (61 sales).
- San Mateo: 1,580 sq ft, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a 5,450 sq ft lot (234 sales).
- Belmont: 1,550 sq ft, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a 5,630 sq ft lot (92 sales).
- Redwood City: 1,520 sq ft, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a 6,240 sq ft lot (216 sales).
- San Carlos: 1,480 sq ft, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a 5,640 sq ft lot (90 sales).
- Menlo Park: 1,300 sq ft, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a 5,490 sq ft lot (61 sales).
- Burlingame: 1,250 sq ft, 2 bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms, a 5,100 sq ft lot (35 sales).
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Why the same budget buys so differently
The price of a square foot differs. At $1.75M to $2.25M, the median house sold for $1,619 a foot in Burlingame and $737 in Daly City. Lots differ too: the median lot in the range ran from 3,600 square feet in Daly City to 6,240 in Redwood City. And $2 million sits in a different place in each market: it is above the median house price of the last 12 months in Daly City, South San Francisco and San Bruno, and below it in San Mateo, Redwood City, Menlo Park, San Carlos, Burlingame and Belmont.
$1.5 million ($1.25M–$1.75M)
| City | Sales | Living area | Beds | Baths | Lot | Per sq ft | Typical sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Mateo | 245 | 1,260 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 5,100 sq ft | $1,214 | 5.3% over asking |
| Redwood City | 160 | 1,170 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 5,780 sq ft | $1,239 | 3.8% over asking |
| Daly City | 293 | 1,760 sq ft | 3 | 2.5 | 3,400 sq ft | $809 | 10.8% over asking |
| Menlo Park | 41 | 1,140 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 5,750 sq ft | $1,293 | 7.2% over asking |
| San Carlos | 27 | 1,090 sq ft | 2 | 1 | 5,300 sq ft | $1,512 | 0.3% over asking |
| South San Francisco | 218 | 1,580 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 4,720 sq ft | $887 | 9.5% over asking |
| San Bruno | 202 | 1,440 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 5,190 sq ft | $1,034 | 8.1% over asking |
| Burlingame | 8 | too few sales | |||||
| Belmont | 30 | 1,220 sq ft | 3 | 1 | 5,260 sq ft | $1,277 | 2.2% over asking |
$2 million ($1.75M–$2.25M)
| City | Sales | Living area | Beds | Baths | Lot | Per sq ft | Typical sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Mateo | 234 | 1,580 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 5,450 sq ft | $1,227 | 8% over asking |
| Redwood City | 216 | 1,520 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 6,240 sq ft | $1,296 | 3.2% over asking |
| Daly City | 19 | 2,460 sq ft | 5 | 3 | 3,600 sq ft | $737 | 9.1% over asking |
| Menlo Park | 61 | 1,300 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 5,490 sq ft | $1,529 | 5% over asking |
| San Carlos | 90 | 1,480 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 5,640 sq ft | $1,343 | at asking |
| South San Francisco | 35 | 2,250 sq ft | 4 | 3 | 5,340 sq ft | $826 | 10.5% over asking |
| San Bruno | 61 | 2,100 sq ft | 4 | 3 | 5,250 sq ft | $868 | 6.1% over asking |
| Burlingame | 35 | 1,250 sq ft | 2 | 1.5 | 5,100 sq ft | $1,619 | 3.8% over asking |
| Belmont | 92 | 1,550 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 5,630 sq ft | $1,263 | 2.4% over asking |
$2.5 million ($2.25M–$2.75M)
| City | Sales | Living area | Beds | Baths | Lot | Per sq ft | Typical sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Mateo | 212 | 1,860 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 6,200 sq ft | $1,316 | 7.6% over asking |
| Redwood City | 213 | 1,890 sq ft | 3 | 2.5 | 7,020 sq ft | $1,324 | 5.7% over asking |
| Daly City | 0 | too few sales | |||||
| Menlo Park | 55 | 1,580 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 5,400 sq ft | $1,633 | 4.1% over asking |
| San Carlos | 122 | 1,780 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 6,110 sq ft | $1,440 | 5.8% over asking |
| South San Francisco | 3 | too few sales | |||||
| San Bruno | 7 | too few sales | |||||
| Burlingame | 58 | 1,540 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 6,000 sq ft | $1,618 | 5% over asking |
| Belmont | 101 | 2,030 sq ft | 3 | 2.5 | 6,640 sq ft | $1,215 | 4.5% over asking |
$3 million ($2.75M–$3.25M)
| City | Sales | Living area | Beds | Baths | Lot | Per sq ft | Typical sale |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Mateo | 116 | 2,360 sq ft | 4 | 3 | 7,610 sq ft | $1,252 | 4.9% over asking |
| Redwood City | 102 | 2,440 sq ft | 4 | 3 | 7,540 sq ft | $1,227 | 4.2% over asking |
| Daly City | 0 | too few sales | |||||
| Menlo Park | 61 | 1,840 sq ft | 3 | 2.5 | 6,000 sq ft | $1,595 | 1.8% over asking |
| San Carlos | 92 | 2,180 sq ft | 4 | 3 | 7,230 sq ft | $1,363 | 3.7% over asking |
| South San Francisco | 0 | too few sales | |||||
| San Bruno | 0 | too few sales | |||||
| Burlingame | 89 | 2,020 sq ft | 3 | 2 | 6,250 sq ft | $1,432 | 4.2% over asking |
| Belmont | 53 | 2,270 sq ft | 4 | 3 | 8,320 sq ft | $1,298 | 6.7% over asking |
Condos and townhomes, city by city
Medians, the last 12 months (October 28, 2025 to October 27, 2026). Burlingame and Belmont are left out: fewer than 50 condo and townhome sales in at least one of the last two years.
| City | Median condo or townhome | Living area | Per sq ft | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Bruno | $450K | 680 sq ft | $690 | 58 |
| Daly City | $615K | 1,060 sq ft | $597 | 77 |
| South San Francisco | $780K | 1,040 sq ft | $755 | 65 |
| San Mateo | $870K | 1,220 sq ft | $773 | 270 |
| Redwood City | $1.13M | 1,400 sq ft | $792 | 98 |
| San Carlos | $1.26M | 1,240 sq ft | $889 | 67 |
| Menlo Park | $1.77M | 1,710 sq ft | $987 | 77 |
Each city in detail
- What your budget buys in San Mateo
- What your budget buys in Redwood City
- What your budget buys in Daly City
- What your budget buys in Menlo Park
- What your budget buys in San Carlos
- What your budget buys in South San Francisco
- What your budget buys in San Bruno
- What your budget buys in Burlingame
- What your budget buys in Belmont
Go deeper
Where houses under a budget sold, neighborhood by neighborhood: San Mateo under $2 million, Redwood City under $2 million, Daly City under $1.2 million, Menlo Park under $2 million, San Carlos under $2 million, South San Francisco under $1.2 million, Belmont under $2 million. Or see what $1 million buys.
Questions we get
Where does $2 million buy the most house on the Peninsula?
Of these nine cities, Daly City: a median 2,460 square feet with 5 bedrooms, from 19 sales between $1.75M and $2.25M in the last 24 months. Then South San Francisco (2,250 sq ft) and San Bruno (2,100).
Where does $2 million buy the least?
Burlingame: a median 1,250 square feet and 2 bedrooms, at $1,619 a foot.
What does $3 million buy?
From 1,840 square feet in Menlo Park to 2,440 in Redwood City, at the median, for houses sold between $2.75M and $3.25M. Daly City, South San Francisco and San Bruno had fewer than 10 house sales in that range.
How we counted
Medians of closed sales reported to the MLS and read through the IDX feeds that power our home search, one record per sale with a usable living area and map position, the same rules as our city price posts. Houses are MLS property type “single family home”; condos include townhomes. The budget tables use the last 24 months (October 28, 2024 to October 27, 2026); each budget is a $500,000 range centered on the round number, and ranges with fewer than 10 sales are left out. Condo medians and the city median house use the last 12 months (October 28, 2025 to October 27, 2026). Past sales aren’t a forecast or the value of any one home, and nothing here is financial, tax or legal advice.
Talk to a Property Nerd
We’re the Property Nerds at Compass, recognized as NextGenAgents by a national real estate portal. We’ll pull the sales that matter for your home and your plans, and walk you through what they mean. 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.