Best Web Design in Santa Monica, CA (2026)

Web Design for Santa Monica, California

Santa Monica is an oceanfront Los Angeles County city famous for its 1909 pier, wide beaches, and left-leaning politics. It grew from a 19th-century seaside resort into a hub for aerospace, film, and now technology, earning the 'Silicon Beach' tag as home to Snap Inc. and other tech and entertainment giants. It is also a birthplace of modern skateboarding culture and the symbolic western end of Route 66.

AppWT works with Santa Monica, CA businesses from Livonia, Michigan, mostly online and travelling as needed.

About Santa Monica

Also known as. SaMo. City by the Sea. Jewel of the Sunset Bay. Dogtown (surf and skate scene).

History. The Tongva (Gabrielino) and Chumash peoples are indigenous to the region; a Tongva village, Comicranga, stood in the area. The name Santa Monica dates to 1769-1770, tied to St. Monica's feast day, with local springs said to evoke the tears St. Monica shed for her son Augustine. Rancho San Vicente y Santa Monica was granted to the Sepulveda family in 1839. U.S. Senator John P. Jones and Robert Baker (with his Californio wife Arcadia Bandini de Stearns Baker) founded modern Santa Monica in 1875; it incorporated in 1886. The Douglas Aircraft Company built a plant at Clover Field in 1922; in 1924 two Douglas World Cruisers completed the first aerial circumnavigation of the globe. The RAND Corporation began in 1948 as a spin-off from the Douglas Company. The historically Black Belmar and Pico neighborhoods were displaced by the Civic Auditorium (1958) and the Santa Monica Freeway (1966).

Local economy. A core of 'Silicon Beach': Snap Inc. (maker of Snapchat) is one of the city's largest employers, alongside Universal Music Group, Hulu, and Activision. Entertainment industry presence including Lionsgate, Miramax, Illumination, and Starz, plus video-game studios such as Naughty Dog. Top employers also include the City of Santa Monica, Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica College, and Providence Saint John's Health Center. Tourism and retail are major drivers; Santa Monica businesses generated about $3.2 billion in taxable sales in 2023, much of it downtown around the Third Street Promenade.

Culture and community. A cradle of modern surfing (waterman George Freeth) and of 1970s skateboarding through the 'Dogtown' Z-Boys scene. Beach volleyball is believed to have been developed in Santa Monica in the 1920s, associated with Duke Kahanamoku. The Santa Monica Civic Auditorium hosted the Academy Awards in the 1960s and the landmark 1964 T.A.M.I. Show concert film. Music and arts venues include McCabe's Guitar Shop and the New West Symphony; Bergamot Station is a large gallery complex. Festivals and events include Pride on the Promenade, Dia de Muertos celebrations, the holiday tree lighting, and the seasonal 'Ice at Santa Monica' rink.

What makes Santa Monica distinct. Santa Monica marks the symbolic western end of historic Route 66, at the pier. Its famous coastal marine layer produces locally named seasons: 'May Gray,' 'June Gloom,' and 'Fogust,' yet the city still averages around 310 sunny days a year. During World War II, Hollywood set designers camouflaged the Douglas Aircraft plant with fake netting and a dummy neighborhood to hide it from aerial attack. Santa Monica was among the first U.S. cities to adopt a comprehensive sustainability plan (1994) and switched to 100% renewably sourced electricity in 2019. The RAND Corporation, an influential global policy think tank, was founded and remains headquartered in the city.

A coastal city and beach resort town on Santa Monica Bay, with a Mediterranean climate and a mix of tourism, technology, and entertainment employers.

Santa Monica Landmarks and Local Life

• Santa Monica Pier - Historic pier opened in 1909, home to the Looff Hippodrome carousel and Pacific Park
• Third Street Promenade - Pedestrian shopping and dining street downtown
• California Heritage Museum - Museum of California decorative arts and history in a historic Main Street house
• Palisades Park - Linear park along the bluffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean
• Tongva Park - About 6-acre park between Ocean Avenue and Main Street

Santa Monica at a Glance

U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2023.

• Median household income: About $109,739
• Adults with a bachelor degree or higher: About 68.9%
• Housing: Only about 28.8% of housing units are owner-occupied, making the city predominantly renter-occupied
• Housing: About 19.3% of housing units are single-family detached homes, with most housing in apartments and condominiums