San Mateo, CA— fire, flood & earthquake hazard information
San Mateo is a city in San Mateo County in the San Francisco Bay Area, covering about 12.1 square miles. This page summarizes what official government maps show for San Mateo: CAL FIRE fire hazard severity zones, FEMA flood zones, state seismic hazard zones, dam inundation areas, airport noise contours, and air-quality indicators. Figures are the share of San Mateo’s area that falls inside each mapped zone.
View San Mateo on the interactive map → to check any specific address, free.
Wildfire hazard severity zones
Per CAL FIRE's Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps, 3% of San Mateo is in a Very High fire hazard severity zone. The remainder of its area is outside currently designated zones.
| Very High severity zone | 3% |
FEMA flood zones
5% of San Mateo lies within a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area (1% annual chance, zones A/AE/AH/AO); 7% is in a coastal high hazard zone (V/VE); 3% is in the 0.2% annual chance (500-year) area. Federally backed mortgages in a Special Flood Hazard Area generally require flood insurance.
| Special Flood Hazard Area (100-yr) | 5% |
| Coastal high hazard (V/VE) | 7% |
| 0.2% annual chance (500-yr) | 3% |
Earthquake faults & seismic zones
The nearest mapped fault, the San Jose fault, is about 3.2 mi (5.2 km) from the center of San Mateo. 40% of its area is in a state-designated liquefaction zone of required investigation. 6% is in an earthquake-induced landslide zone.
| Nearest mapped fault | San Jose fault — 3.2 mi (5.2 km) |
| Liquefaction zone | 40% |
| Earthquake-induced landslide zone | 6% |
Dam inundation, aircraft noise & air quality
55% of San Mateo lies within a state-reviewed dam-failure inundation area; 9% is inside an airport noise contour of 65 dB CNEL or louder; annual average fine-particle (PM2.5) concentration across its census tracts is 8.5 μg/m³, and its composite pollution burden ranks around the 44th percentile statewide.
| Dam-failure inundation area | 55% |
| Airport noise ≥65 dB CNEL | 9% |
| Annual PM2.5 (tract average) | 8.5 μg/m³ |
| Pollution burden percentile (statewide) | ~44 |
Frequently asked questions
- Is San Mateo in a wildfire hazard severity zone?
- Per CAL FIRE's Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps, 3% of San Mateo is in a Very High fire hazard severity zone. The remainder of its area is outside currently designated zones.
- Is San Mateo in a FEMA flood zone?
- 5% of San Mateo lies within a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area (1% annual chance, zones A/AE/AH/AO); 7% is in a coastal high hazard zone (V/VE); 3% is in the 0.2% annual chance (500-year) area. Federally backed mortgages in a Special Flood Hazard Area generally require flood insurance.
- What earthquake faults and seismic zones affect San Mateo?
- The nearest mapped fault, the San Jose fault, is about 3.2 mi (5.2 km) from the center of San Mateo. 40% of its area is in a state-designated liquefaction zone of required investigation. 6% is in an earthquake-induced landslide zone.
- How do I check a specific address in San Mateo?
- Use the free sitelume interactive map at https://sitelume.com — search any San Mateo address to see which mapped zones it falls in, layer by layer.
Nearby in San Mateo County
Sources: CAL FIRE Fire Hazard Severity Zones; FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer; USGS Quaternary Faults; CGS Seismic Hazard Zones & Alquist-Priolo zones; Cal OES dam inundation maps; county ALUC noise contours; CalEnviroScreen 4.0. Area shares are computed against each place’s Census TIGER boundary (last computed 2026-07-24). Boundaries and zone designations change; always verify with the issuing agency.