The UC Berkeley campus is located on the eastern side of the city, close to the Berkeley Hills. The neighborhoods surrounding the main campus (Northside, Downtown Berkeley, and Southside) tend to have the highest rental prices in the area. Rental prices will be highest in the immediate vicinity of the campus or the closer you are to campus. Many students choose to pay these higher prices in order to live within walking distance of the campus. However, we have also had a small number of students who choose to live in Albany, Emeryville, or El Cerrito and commute to campus for the lower rental prices.
Remember that all students will receive an AC Transit EasyPass, which allows you to take any AC Transit bus for free. When searching for accommodation, bear this in mind and map out a possible route on Google Maps to get an estimate of how long it will take to get to campus.
It's also important to note that your EasyPass doesn't get you free access to BART trains so you would need to factor in additional commuting costs if you chose to live in an area outside of Berkeley that would require you to take a BART train into Berkeley.
All areas of Berkeley are generally considered safe. Whether you are looking at a housing accommodation in Berkeley, Oakland, or San Francisco, you can always reach out to us to ask about a specific neighborhood or address.
The campus also offers a wide range of safety services such as late-night shuttles and campus escorts. The Berkeley campus has a dedicated, full-service police department with 77 officers, 45 full-time non-sworn personnel, and 60 student employees.