Live Oak is an incorporated city in Sutter County, California, United States.

It is part of the Yuba City Metropolitan Statistical Area within the Greater Sacramento CSA, and includes a hamlet historically named Stafford.

[7] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.5 square miles (6.5 km2), all of it land.

Live Oak is an agricultural community located in the fertile Sacramento Valley.

Rich farmlands, orchards, the Feather River, and the Sutter Buttes surround Live Oak.

Summers are hot, sunny and dry but a delta breeze occurs at times.

Heat waves occur during the summer months, lasting for 3–5 days on average.

During the La Niña season, rainfall averages 4 inches or below, causing drought problems during summer.

[citation needed] The 2010 United States Census[9] reported that Live Oak had a population of 8,392.

In the California State Legislature, Live Oak is in the 4th Senate District, represented by Republican Marie Alvarado-Gil, and in the 3rd Assembly District, represented by Republican James Gallagher.

In the 1970s the city decided to contract out services from the Sutter County Sheriff's Department.

There is a dedicated group of deputies from the Sheriff's Department who are stationed in and patrol mainly in the Live Oak contract area, making for a more effective patrol and more community oriented department.

The city also has a K9 unit to exclusively patrol the Live Oak area.

Its minimum-security Leo Chesney prison, located on nearly 10 acres a few blocks west of downtown Live Oak, directly abuts residential neighborhoods on its north and east perimeters.