Moraga is a town in Contra Costa County, California, located in the rolling East Bay hills of the San Francisco Bay Area. Together with Lafayette and Orinda, it forms the Lamorinda region, a trio of affluent, low-density communities strung along State Route 24 between the Caldecott Tunnel and the San Ramon Valley. Moraga's 2020 population was 16,870, and the town takes its name from Joaquín Moraga, a member of the prominent Californio family whose Rancho Laguna de los Palos Colorados once encompassed the valley. The town's history is closely tied to Saint Mary's College of California. The private Catholic liberal arts college, founded in 1863 in San Francisco, relocated to Moraga in 1928 after a fire destroyed its Oakland campus, and its Spanish Renaissance and California Mission-style buildings have anchored the town's eastern edge ever since. The college's presence gives Moraga a cultural and educational dimension unusual for a town of its size, with collegiate athletics, performances, and academic life woven into the community. Moraga itself is overwhelmingly residential. Single-family homes on generous lots spread across the hillsides, interspersed with parks, open space, and the commercial cluster around Rheem. The town is known for its strong public schools—the Moraga School District for grades K-8 and the Acalanes Union High School District for grades 9-12—which are a primary draw for families. Outdoor access is another defining feature. The Lafayette-Moraga Regional Trail, a 7.65-mile paved linear park, runs along the former Sacramento Northern Railway corridor through the town, and surrounding open space offers hiking and ridgeline views. Moraga appeals to households seeking a safe, scenic, school-focused suburb with a semi-rural feel, while remaining within commuting reach of Oakland, San Francisco, and the East Bay's employment centers via Route 24 and nearby BART stations.