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COUNTY

Mendocino County

California · 88,122 residents (2025 est.) · 3,507 sq mi
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Part of the Ukiah micropolitan area
The short version

Mendocino County is a county of 90,244 people in California. The median age is 44.1, about 5 years above the US median. About 25% of adults have finished a four-year degree. That trails the California median by roughly 31%. Density works out to 26 people per square mile. The typical home is worth $512,200, having roughly tripled since 2000.

At a glance
Lower income
below the US median
US median: $82,259
Older
median age 44.1
US median: 38.9
Less educated
25% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Less affordable
home values up 70%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Section 01

Population & growth

Total population
90,244
+5%since 2000
from 86,265 in 2000
88,122 in 2025 (Census Bureau estimate)
1990 – 2025
Population density
26 / sq mi
+5%since 2009
from 25 / sq mi in 2009
US average: 281
Median age
44.1
+13%since 2000
from 38.9 in 2000
US average: 38.9
Land area
3,507 sq mi
Population, 1990 – 2024
79K83K86K89K93K19902000201020202024Mendocino County
202490K
1990201020202024
Age distribution, 2024
Under 55.2%(4,666)
US avg: 5.6%
5 to 96.3%(5,682)
US avg: 6%
10 to 145.8%(5,251)
US avg: 6.4%
15 to 195.7%(5,167)
US avg: 6.6%
20 to 244.9%(4,385)
US avg: 6.5%
25 to 3410.8%(9,760)
US avg: 13.7%
35 to 4412.2%(10,985)
US avg: 13.2%
45 to 5411.6%(10,448)
US avg: 12.2%
55 to 6413%(11,746)
US avg: 12.7%
65 to 7414.9%(13,430)
US avg: 10.2%
75 to 847.5%(6,803)
US avg: 5.1%
85 and over2.1%(1,921)
US avg: 1.9%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 02

Income & economy

Median household income
$68,092
+4%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $35,996 in 2000
US average: $82,259
1990 – 2024
Per capita income
$38,760
+99%since 2000
from $19,443 in 2000
US average: $44,673
Households earning $100K+
45.8%
+20.8 ptssince 2009
from 25.1% in 2009
US average: 53.3%
Poverty rate
15.4%
−0.6 ptssince 2000
from 15.9% in 2000
US average: 12.5%
Income inequality (Gini)
0.481
+8%since 2010
from 0.444 in 2010
US average: 0.476
Workforce by industry, 2024
Information11.2%
US avg: 10.8%
Wholesale trade8%
US avg: 6.9%
Retail trade6.9%
US avg: 9.9%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing6.4%
US avg: 1.6%
Construction6.1%
US avg: 1.2%
Finance & insurance5.6%
US avg: 5.9%
Other services4.5%
US avg: 6.7%
Professional, scientific, technical3.9%
US avg: 5.1%
Public administration2.1%
US avg: 4.8%
Education & health services1.7%
US avg: 0.9%
Transportation & warehousing1.2%
US avg: 2.2%
Arts, entertainment, food1.1%
US avg: 1.9%
Manufacturing0.3%
US avg: 0.4%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 03

Housing

Median home value
$512,200
+70%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $165,000 in 2000
US average: $376,019
1990 – 2024
Median gross rent
$1,317
+20%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $600 in 2000
US average: $1,442
Owner-occupied
61.7%
+0.4 ptssince 2000
from 61.3% in 2000
38.3% rent
Vacancy rate
16.4%
+3.6 ptssince 2009
from 12.8% in 2009
US average: 10.0%
Persons per household
2.53 people
+2%since 2009
from 2.49 people in 2009
US average: 2.54
Owner cost-burdened
32.2%
−6.4 ptssince 2009
from 38.7% in 2009
US average: 22.9%
Renter cost-burdened
49.7%
−1.4 ptssince 2009
from 51.1% in 2009
US average: 47.4%
Afford Score
7.5
−23%since 2009
from 9.7 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Years of local income it takes to buy a local home, on a scale of about 0 to 15. Lower is more affordable.
Gentrification Score
25
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means faster recent growth in incomes, home values, and college degrees.
Section 04

Race & ethnicity

2000
White, non-Hispanic74.9%(64,581)
Black0.5%(471)
Hispanic / Latino16.5%(14,213)
Asian1.2%(1,006)
Other0%
2024
White, non-Hispanic61.1%(55,170)
Black0.6%(546)
Hispanic / Latino27.6%(24,941)
Asian2.1%(1,895)
Other8.5%(7,692)
Diversity Score
68
+20%since 2009
from 56 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means a more even mix of racial and ethnic groups.
Segregation Score
21
+3%since 2020
from 20 in 2020
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means White and non-White residents are more separated across neighborhoods.
Section 04 · Origins

Detailed origins & ancestry

Hispanic origin
Mexican24.5%(22,098)
Spaniard0.3%(295)
Puerto Rican0.3%(280)
Venezuelan0.3%(254)
Nicaraguan0.2%(199)
Salvadoran0.2%(196)
Chilean0.2%(140)
Bolivian0.1%(85)
Costa Rican0.1%(72)
Cuban0.1%(65)
+ 6 more hispanic origin groups with data
Peruvian0%(20)
Honduran0%(19)
Argentine0%(19)
Colombian0%(15)
Asian origin
Chinese0.8%(717)
Filipino0.3%(266)
Vietnamese0.3%(241)
Thai0.2%(147)
Japanese0.1%(117)
Korean0.1%(106)
Taiwanese0.1%(51)
Cambodian0%(43)
Nepalese0%(40)
Laotian0%(33)
Hmong0%(7)
+ 2 more asian origin groups with data
Pacific Islander origin
Samoan0%(40)
Guamanian0%(26)
Fijian0%(19)
Chamorro0%(14)
Ancestry
German12.1%(10,890)
English11.6%(10,466)
Irish9.6%(8,654)
Italian4.6%(4,156)
Scottish3%(2,667)
French1.7%(1,576)
Portuguese1.7%(1,568)
Swedish1.7%(1,553)
Scotch-Irish1.4%(1,241)
American1.4%(1,236)
Norwegian1.2%(1,111)
Finnish1.2%(1,051)
+ 35 more ancestry groups with data
Russian1.1%(972)
Polish1%(882)
Dutch0.9%(854)
Danish0.9%(813)
Welsh0.7%(594)
British0.5%(438)
Czech0.4%(368)
Swiss0.3%(306)
Greek0.3%(301)
Hungarian0.2%(186)
Canadian0.2%(171)
Austrian0.2%(168)
Ukrainian0.2%(155)
Armenian0.2%(150)
Arab0.2%(139)
Croatian0.1%(135)
Lithuanian0.1%(87)
Romanian0.1%(87)
Belgian0.1%(74)
Brazilian0.1%(65)
Lebanese0.1%(61)
Israeli0.1%(48)
Iranian0%(34)
Syrian0%(28)
Slovak0%(20)
Turkish0%(18)
Latvian0%(15)
Section 05

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher
25.2%
+4.9 ptssince 2000
from 20.2% in 2000
US average: 35.6%
High school or higher
87.3%
+6.5 ptssince 2000
from 80.8% in 2000
US average: 89.6%
Graduate degree
10.1%
+2.2 ptssince 2000
from 8.0% in 2000
US average: 14.0%
Section 06

Commute & transportation

Average commute
21.5 min
+44%since 2000
from 14.9 min in 2000
US average: 26.5
Drive alone to work
70.9%
Unchangedsince 2009
from 71.0% in 2009
US average: 68.9%
Carpooled to work
10.0%
−2.2 ptssince 2009
from 12.2% in 2009
US average: 8.5%
Public transit
0.2%
−0.4 ptssince 2009
from 0.5% in 2009
US average: 3.2%
Worked from home
12.2%
+2.8 ptssince 2009
from 9.3% in 2009
US average: 15.0%
Walked to work
5.9%
+0.9 ptssince 2009
from 5.0% in 2009
US average: 2.4%
Biked to work
0.3%
−0.8 ptssince 2009
from 1.1% in 2009
US average: 0.4%
No vehicle available
7.3%
+1.4 ptssince 2009
from 5.9% in 2009
US average: 8.3%
Section 07

Work & employment

Unemployment rate
9.0%
−2.0 ptssince 2011
from 11.0% in 2011
US average: 5.2%
Labor force participation
56.5%
−5.8 ptssince 2011
from 62.3% in 2011
US average: 63.5%
Women 20-64 in the labor force
73.4%
+3.4 ptssince 2020
from 70.0% in 2020
US average: 74.6%
Self-employed
17.2%
+0.9 ptssince 2009
from 16.3% in 2009
US average: 13.1%
Management & professional
34.2%
+5.7 ptssince 2009
from 28.4% in 2009
US average: 42.5%
Section 08

People & community

Male
49.6%
−0.5 ptssince 2009
from 50.1% in 2009
Female
50.4%
+0.5 ptssince 2009
from 49.9% in 2009
Foreign born
12.2%
+1.1 ptssince 2009
from 11.1% in 2009
US average: 14.1%
Veterans
5.9%
−4.6 ptssince 2009
from 10.5% in 2009
US average: 6.2%
With a disability
18.6%
+2.6 ptssince 2012
from 16.0% in 2012
US average: 13.3%
Uninsured
7.7%
−10.8 ptssince 2013
from 18.5% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Broadband at home
89.6%
+15.8 ptssince 2017
from 73.8% in 2017
US average: 91.0%
Computer in household
93.5%
+4.6 ptssince 2020
from 88.9% in 2020
US average: 95.5%
Same house as last year
89.7%
+2.5 ptssince 2020
from 87.3% in 2020
US average: 87.7%
English only at home
77.9%
−1.4 ptssince 2016
from 79.2% in 2016
US average: 77.7%
Spanish at home
18.8%
+0.7 ptssince 2016
from 18.1% in 2016
US average: 13.6%
Marital status
Men 15+
Never married37.9%(14,041)
Married44.3%(16,407)
Widowed3.8%(1,422)
Divorced14%(5,167)
Women 15+
Never married28.7%(10,776)
Married43.4%(16,306)
Widowed10.6%(4,005)
Divorced17.3%(6,521)
SHARE WITHIN EACH SEX · POPULATION 15 AND OVER · 2024
Section 09

Health coverage

Uninsured
7.7%
−10.8 ptssince 2013
from 18.5% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Employer-based
37.7%
+1.8 ptssince 2020
from 35.9% in 2020
US average: 54.8%
Direct-purchase
14.5%
Unchangedsince 2020
from 14.5% in 2020
US average: 13.8%
Medicare
25.8%
+2.2 ptssince 2020
from 23.6% in 2020
US average: 18.4%
Medicaid
34.2%
−1.5 ptssince 2020
from 35.7% in 2020
US average: 20.9%
VA health care
3.0%
−0.2 ptssince 2020
from 3.2% in 2020
US average: 2.2%
Any private
51.7%
+2.3 ptssince 2020
from 49.4% in 2020
US average: 67.1%
Any public
54.4%
−0.8 ptssince 2020
from 55.2% in 2020
US average: 36.7%

Shares are "alone or in combination": a person with both Medicare and Medicaid counts in each, so categories overlap and do not sum to 100%.

Section 09 · Service history

Veterans

Veterans by period of service, 2024
Gulf War (2001 or later)9.4%(395)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)13%(547)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era43.9%(1,846)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War8.3%(350)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0.5%(19)
US avg: 1%

Share of the 4,203 veterans here. A veteran who served across eras counts in each, so shares can total more than 100%. Peacetime-only service is included in the total but not shown as an era.

BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
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Head to head

Compare Mendocino County to nearby counties

MENDOCINO COUNTY VS
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Income$60,621−11%
Home value$324,300−37%
Population67,772−23%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
MENDOCINO COUNTY VS
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Income$67,139−1%
Home value$352,400−31%
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MENDOCINO COUNTY VS
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Income$75,672+11%
Home value$393,400−23%
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MENDOCINO COUNTY VS
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Income$104,674+54%
Home value$815,500+59%
Population486,444+452%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
Frequently asked

How many people live in Mendocino County, California?

Mendocino County, California has about 90,244 residents according to the 2024 American Community Survey.

What is the median household income in Mendocino County, California?

The typical household in Mendocino County, California earns about $68,092 a year. Half of households make more than that, and half make less.

Is Mendocino County, California expensive?

In Mendocino County, California, the median home is worth about $512,200, and the typical rent is about $1,317 a month.

How educated are people in Mendocino County, California?

About 25.2% of adults age 25 and over in Mendocino County, California hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

What is the poverty rate in Mendocino County, California?

About 15.4% of people in Mendocino County, California live below the federal poverty line.

Has Mendocino County, California grown since 1990?

Yes, Mendocino County, California has grown since 1990. The population has added about 9,899 residents, a change of about 12 percent over that period.

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DATA: US CENSUS BUREAU ACS 5-YEAR + DECENNIAL CENSUS · UPDATED 2024

How we source and harmonize this data →