--- title: "Is Bakersfield, California walkable? Score 51/100" description: "Bakersfield, California scores 51/100 for walkability (Somewhat Walkable) across its central 5 km: how far it reaches and what's near the center." url: https://howwalkable.com/cities/united-states/bakersfield updated: 2026-10-22 license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ --- 1. [Cities](https://howwalkable.com/cities) 2. [United States](https://howwalkable.com/cities/united-states) 3. Bakersfield, California # How walkable is Bakersfield, California? By [Oscar Higson-Spence](https://howwalkable.com/about#author). Updated 22 October 2026 Bakersfield, California has a walkability score of 51 out of 100 across the 5 km around its center, which makes it somewhat walkable: some errands can be done on foot. It is the 55th most walkable of the 58 cities ranked in the United States. 51 out of 100: Somewhat Walkable Some errands can be accomplished on foot. * #55 of 58 in the United States * #582 of 690 tied, worldwide * 90 at the center [Open on the map](https://howwalkable.com/?lat=35.37718&lon=-119.01045&q=Bakersfield%2C%20California%2C%20United%20States) ## What's within walking distance of the center 639 shops, restaurants, parks and other everyday places are mapped within a 30 minute walk of central Bakersfield, California. The nearest grocery is about 11 minutes away on foot. It earns full or nearly full points for restaurants & bars, shopping, coffee, parks, books & libraries and culture & entertainment. ### Groceries 1.9 of 3 points * La Buena Carniceria & Liquor Store, 11 min * Fresh Harvest Market, 12 min * Vests Market, 13 min ### Restaurants & bars 3.0 of 3 points * Centro Cali Brewing | Bakersfield Craft Brewery & Restaurant, 1 min * Martin's Meats and Deli Market, 2 min * Mi Mexico Restaurant, 2 min ### Shopping 2.0 of 2 points * Mission Linen and Uniform Service, 1 min * Assistance League Bakersfield, 1 min * Bargain Box Thrift Shop, 1 min ### Coffee 2.0 of 2 points * Uncharted Adventures Cafe, 3 min * Starlite Cafe, 3 min * Cafe Smitten, 4 min ### Banks 0.7 of 1 point * Navy Federal Credit Union, 10 min * Citizens Business Bank, 10 min * Wells Fargo, 10 min ### Parks 1.0 of 1 point * Central Park, 2 min * Centennial Plaza, 8 min * Weill Park, 10 min ### Schools 0.9 of 1 point * Downtown Elementary School, 7 min * Kern County Juvenile Court, 10 min * Bridges Academy, 16 min ### Books & libraries 1.0 of 1 point * Box Of Comix, 2 min * Mega City 2, 7 min * KCL - Beale Memorial Library, 8 min ### Culture & entertainment 1.0 of 1 point * Bakersfield Museum of Art, 2 min * Bakersfield Music Hall of Fame, 5 min * Education District, Bakersfield, 8 min Measured from the center at 35.3772, -119.0104, the point near Bakersfield, California's middle with the most places in walking range. Walking times assume 80 m per minute along an estimated street route. ## Street layout Within 800 m of the center there are about 79 street intersections per km², and blocks average 105 m long. That is a well-connected street grid, so the score is not reduced. ## How far walkability reaches Bakersfield, California's score of 51 is the average across the 5 km around its center, the point with the most everyday places within a walk. Walkability averages 84 within 1 km of the center, 59 from 1 to 3 km out and 42 from 3 to 5 km out. 10 of the 91 points within 5 km fall on water or on land without streets, such as hillsides, forest or farmland, and are left out, so the score describes only the built-up part. 21% of the sampled area scores 70 or more, where most errands can be done on foot. Walkability falls off steeply away from the center, so check a specific address on the map. ![Walkability scores across the 5 km around central Bakersfield, California, one hexagon per square kilometer. 20% of points score 70 or more; the lowest, 2, is 5 km to the north.](https://howwalkable.com/maps/united-states/bakersfield.svg?v=29b47eb56f87) Each hexagon is the score at a point, 1 km from its neighbours, across the 5 km around central Bakersfield, California. Rings mark 1, 3 and 5 km from the center. Gaps are water or land without streets. | Area | Score | Scoring 70+ | Points sampled | | ------------- | ----- | ----------- | -------------- | | Center | 90 | 100% | 1 | | Within 1 km | 84 | 86% | 7 | | 1 to 3 km out | 59 | 32% | 28 | | 3 to 5 km out | 42 | 4% | 46 | ## Nearby cities | City | Distance | Score | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------- | ----- | | [Los Angeles](https://howwalkable.com/cities/united-states/los-angeles), United States | 163 km | 82 | | [Long Beach, California](https://howwalkable.com/cities/united-states/long-beach), United States | 194 km | 63 | | [Anaheim, California](https://howwalkable.com/cities/united-states/anaheim), United States | 199 km | 64 | | [Santa Ana, California](https://howwalkable.com/cities/united-states/santa-ana), United States | 210 km | 66 | | [San Jose, California](https://howwalkable.com/cities/united-states/san-jose), United States | 338 km | 67 | ## Questions about walking in Bakersfield, California ### Is Bakersfield, California a walkable city? Partly. Bakersfield, California has a walkability score of 51 out of 100 across the 5 km around its center, which makes it somewhat walkable: some errands can be done on foot. Its center scores 90. The score covers about 80 km² around the busiest point rather than the whole city, and suburbs further out are usually less walkable, so check a specific address on the map. It ranks 55th of 58 cities in the United States and joint 582nd of 690 worldwide on How Walkable. ### What is the most walkable city in the United States? New York City is the most walkable of the 58 cities ranked in the United States, with a score of 93. Bakersfield, California ranks 55th with 51. ### How does Bakersfield, California compare with nearby cities? Bakersfield, California is less walkable than its nearest ranked neighbours: it scores 51, against Los Angeles (82, 163 km away), Long Beach, California (63, 194 km away) and Anaheim, California (64, 199 km away). ### Which part of Bakersfield, California is most walkable? Bakersfield's most walkable area is its center, the point near the middle of the city with the most places in walking range, which scores 90. Walkability averages 84 within 1 km of it. Beyond 2.5 km, it holds up best to the west (averaging 56) and falls most to the north (32). ### Why is Bakersfield, California's score different from its Walk Score? Walk Score's city scores average every neighborhood within the city limits, weighted by where people live, so they count outer suburbs that the 5 km around Bakersfield, California's center leaves out, and they are usually lower. Address by address the two agree closely: across 46 addresses in the United States and Canada, How Walkable's scores were 5.9 points from Walk Score's on average, as the accuracy study at [howwalkable.com/accuracy](https://howwalkable.com/accuracy) shows. ### How is Bakersfield, California's walkability score calculated? For Bakersfield, California it is the average of 81 points spaced 1 km apart within 5 km of its busiest point, leaving out water and land without streets; 17 of them score 70 or more. Each point counts groceries, restaurants, shops, cafés, banks, parks, schools, libraries and cultural venues within a 30 minute walk, gives nearer places more weight, and loses up to 20% where streets are sparse or blocks are long, using open map data from Overture Maps (release 2026-09-23.1) and OpenStreetMap. It measures what is within a walk, not what the walk is like: pavements, traffic, safety, hills and heat are not part of the score. This page is generated from open map data with a published walkability method, explained in the [methodology](https://howwalkable.com/methodology). Places from Overture Maps release 2026-09-23.1. City position and population from GeoNames. Ask about walking anywhere in ChatGPT with the [How Walkable app](https://chatgpt.com/plugins/plugin_asdk_app_6accc634bcf8819189c1bcaf0e227f0f), for example "How walkable is Bakersfield, California?" Scores, rankings and text by How Walkable (https://howwalkable.com), licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/); credit How Walkable and link to this page when reusing them.