The West Valley refers to a portion of the Santa Clara Valley in Santa Clara County. It may more accurately be defined as the southwest portion of the valley, and includes the cities of Campbell, Cupertino, Los Gatos, Monte Sereno and Saratoga, as well as the southwestern portion of San Jose, including the neighborhoods/districts of West San Jose, San Tomas and Cambrian Park. The West Valley roughly corresponds to the area south of Interstate 280 and west of Meridian Avenue.
The West Valley is primarily suburban/residential in nature, although Cupertino is home to several high-tech companies, including Apple Computer, and Campbell, Los Gatos and Saratoga have significant downtown retail districts. Like the rest of Santa Clara Valley, the area was primarily agricultural through the 1950s and experienced explosive growth and development through the 1960s and 1970s. As part of Silicon Valley, the area is quite affluent, and Los Gatos, Monte Sereno, and Saratoga in particular have numerous million-dollar-plus homes and estates.