San Benito County, California
San Benito County, CA: non-irrigated cash rent $16 an acre (2024); land and buildings $5,362 an acre in the 2022 census. County averages from public records, not an appraisal of any farm. FIPS 06069. Figures as of 2026-09-20.
Irrigated cash rent in San Benito County stands at $651 per acre in 2026, against a non-irrigated rate of just $16 per acre. Land value under the operators' own estimate reached $5,362 per acre in 2022, up 50.2 percent from 2017. Irrigation covers 87 percent of harvested cropland, with 71 percent of that water drawn from groundwater as of 2015. Drought has been a real presence: 366 of 1357 weeks fell into severe drought or worse from 2000-2025, with 2016 the worst year at 52 weeks, and 90 weeks logged from 2021-2025. July nights have warmed from a 1991-2020 normal of 58.7 F to 60.5 F over 2017-2026.
CA median of 2024 surveys $22 · 2nd lowest of 13
CA median $431 · 13th highest of 40
CA median $11,471 · 13th lowest of 52
CA median $7.22 · 19th highest of 42
CA median 43% · 21st highest of 55
Cash rent
Dollars per acre, USDA NASS county survey. A break in a line is a year with no published survey; nothing is drawn across it.
Land value
Corn yield
Crop insurance record
Claims paid divided by total premium (the farmer share plus the federal subsidy), each closed crop year since 1989. Above the dashed line, the county's insurance book paid out more than it took in. 2026, still open, is left out.
Drought and weather
Weeks per year, U.S. Drought Monitor, with half the county or more in D2 (severe) drought or worse.
Land, water and programs
Acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program, USDA FSA, by fiscal year.
Next door
| County | Dry rent | Irr. rent | Land value | Claims per $100 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Benito County | $16 2024 | $651 | $5,362 | $7.64 |
| Fresno County | $22 | $305 | $16,378 | $5.95 |
| Merced County | $33 | $411 | $16,527 | $3.54 |
| Monterey County | $14 2024 | $1,810 2025 | $12,799 | $5.65 |
| Santa Clara County | $25 2024 | $823 2025 | $13,303 | $21.33 |
| Santa Cruz County | — | $2,220 2025 | $38,401 | $1.31 |
| Median next door | $28 2 co. | $358 2 co. | $16,378 | $5.65 |
Counties that share a stretch of boundary. An older rent carries its year and stays out of the median.
Cite this page
AGSIST Farmland Atlas. San Benito County, California. Figures as of 2026-09-20, from USDA NASS, USDA RMA, USDA FSA, the U.S. Drought Monitor and NOAA. https://agsist.com/farmland-atlas/california/san-benito-countyEvery figure is a county average from the sources named below. Ranks count counties with 10,000 acres or more in farms, in the same survey year for rent, within the state. Methods: how each figure is built. Downloads: all counties, CSV.
Sources, dates and arithmetic
"Figures as of" is the date this page's numbers last changed; it moves only when a figure on the page does. Source files and their retrieval dates are listed on the data page.
Rent: USDA NASS Cash Rents Survey, county. Land value: Census of Agriculture, operators' estimate of land and buildings. Yield: NASS county corn yields, trend fitted here over every published year since 2008. Loss ratio: claims (indemnity) divided by total premium, USDA RMA Summary of Business, 1989 on, open crop year left out. Drought: U.S. Drought Monitor, weeks with half the county or more in D2 or worse. July lows: NOAA nClimDiv county monthly minimum temperature. A dash means the record does not carry the figure or the source withheld it; the reason is printed beside it.