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COUNTY · 2010 ACS

San Diego County

California · 3,095,313 residents · 4,210 sq mi
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San Diego County is a county of 3,095,313 people in California. The typical home is worth $486,000, having more than doubled since 2000. Owners hold 54% of the housing stock. 23% of locals were born outside the United States. Renters pay $1,228 a month at the median. About 34% of adults have finished a four-year degree.

At a glance
Wealthier
above the US median
US median: $52,703
Younger
median age 34.6
US median: 37.2
More educated
34% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 28%
Less affordable
home values up 81%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $225,659
Section 01

Population & growth

Total population
3,095,313
+10%since 2000
from 2,813,833 in 2000
1990 – 2025
Median age
34.6
+4%since 2000
from 33.2 in 2000
US average: 37.2
Land area
4,210 sq mi
Population, 1990 – 2024
2.4M2.7M2.9M3.2M3.4M19902000201020202024San Diego County
20243.3M
1990201020202024
Age distribution, 2010
Under 56.6%(203,423)
US avg: 6.5%
5 to 96.3%(194,029)
US avg: 6.6%
10 to 146.4%(198,716)
US avg: 6.7%
15 to 197.3%(225,095)
US avg: 7.1%
20 to 248.7%(270,750)
US avg: 7%
25 to 3415.2%(470,922)
US avg: 13.3%
35 to 4413.6%(420,563)
US avg: 13.3%
45 to 5413.9%(430,774)
US avg: 14.6%
55 to 6410.6%(329,616)
US avg: 11.8%
65 to 745.8%(180,554)
US avg: 7%
75 to 843.8%(116,911)
US avg: 4.2%
85 and over1.7%(53,960)
US avg: 1.8%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 02

Income & economy

Median household income
$63,069
+6%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $47,067 in 2000
US average: $52,703
1990 – 2024
Per capita income
$30,715
+34%since 2000
from $22,926 in 2000
US average: $27,286
Households earning $100K+
42.3%
+0.3 ptssince 2009
from 42.0% in 2009
US average: 33.3%
Poverty rate
12.3%
−0.1 ptssince 2000
from 12.4% in 2000
US average: 13.8%
Income inequality (Gini)
0.452
US average: 0.461
Workforce by industry, 2010
Information10.8%
US avg: 11.5%
Retail trade9.2%
US avg: 10.9%
Other services7.4%
US avg: 7%
Wholesale trade7.2%
US avg: 7.2%
Public administration4.5%
US avg: 4.9%
Finance & insurance3.8%
US avg: 5.1%
Professional, scientific, technical3%
US avg: 4.2%
Transportation & warehousing2.9%
US avg: 3.1%
Arts, entertainment, food2.5%
US avg: 2.4%
Education & health services0.8%
US avg: 0.9%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing0.7%
US avg: 1.9%
Construction0.7%
US avg: 1.4%
Manufacturing0.1%
US avg: 0.5%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 03

Housing

Median home value
$486,000
+81%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $212,000 in 2000
US average: $225,659
1990 – 2024
Median gross rent
$1,228
+27%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $761 in 2000
US average: $853
Owner-occupied
54.4%
−1.1 ptssince 2000
from 55.4% in 2000
45.6% rent
Vacancy rate
8.1%
+0.5 ptssince 2009
from 7.6% in 2009
US average: 12.1%
Persons per household
2.75 people
Unchangedsince 2009
from 2.76 people in 2009
US average: 2.60
Owner cost-burdened
44.2%
+0.5 ptssince 2009
from 43.7% in 2009
US average: 30.9%
Renter cost-burdened
54.0%
+0.5 ptssince 2009
from 53.5% in 2009
US average: 46.8%
Afford Score
7.7
−6%since 2009
from 8.2 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.
Section 04

Race & ethnicity

2000
White, non-Hispanic55%(1,548,833)
Black5.5%(154,487)
Hispanic / Latino26.7%(750,965)
Asian8.7%(245,297)
Other0%
2010
White, non-Hispanic48.5%(1,500,047)
Black4.7%(146,600)
Hispanic / Latino32%(991,348)
Asian10.6%(328,058)
Other3.8%(117,188)

No data for the years selected.

Section 04 · Origins

Detailed origins & ancestry

Hispanic origin
Mexican27.9%(843,391)
Central American0.7%(20,909)
South American0.5%(16,475)
Puerto Rican0.5%(16,103)
Spaniard0.3%(9,799)
Salvadoran0.2%(5,744)
Guatemalan0.2%(5,542)
Cuban0.2%(4,710)
Colombian0.2%(4,555)
Peruvian0.1%(3,155)
Honduran0.1%(3,016)
Panamanian0.1%(2,875)
+ 10 more hispanic origin groups with data
Argentine0.1%(2,307)
Nicaraguan0.1%(2,012)
Ecuadorian0.1%(1,865)
Chilean0.1%(1,864)
Dominican0%(1,378)
Costa Rican0%(1,196)
Venezuelan0%(878)
Bolivian0%(852)
Uruguayan0%(429)
Paraguayan0%(168)
Ancestry
German12.5%(377,268)
Irish9.4%(282,766)
English8.7%(262,378)
Italian4.8%(144,319)
French2.7%(82,112)
American2.5%(76,031)
Polish2.1%(62,094)
Scottish2%(59,926)
Swedish1.5%(46,391)
Scotch-Irish1.5%(46,116)
Norwegian1.4%(43,505)
Dutch1.3%(38,399)
+ 51 more ancestry groups with data
Russian1.1%(34,609)
Subsaharan African0.9%(26,793)
Arab0.8%(25,434)
Portuguese0.7%(21,235)
Welsh0.7%(20,179)
Danish0.6%(17,527)
British0.5%(15,558)
Hungarian0.5%(14,031)
French Canadian0.4%(13,359)
Iranian0.4%(13,154)
Greek0.4%(12,143)
Czech0.4%(11,932)
Swiss0.3%(9,616)
Canadian0.3%(8,467)
Austrian0.3%(8,059)
Iraqi0.2%(7,019)
Ukrainian0.2%(6,956)
Lebanese0.2%(5,894)
Lithuanian0.2%(5,771)
West Indian0.2%(5,528)
Armenian0.2%(5,503)
Finnish0.2%(5,311)
Somali0.2%(5,264)
Romanian0.1%(4,090)
Brazilian0.1%(3,445)
Belgian0.1%(3,332)
Slovak0.1%(3,129)
Ethiopian0.1%(2,871)
Croatian0.1%(2,851)
Turkish0.1%(2,273)
Serbian0.1%(2,258)
Jamaican0.1%(2,171)
Australian0.1%(2,070)
Syrian0.1%(1,649)
Palestinian0%(1,385)
Israeli0%(1,362)
Latvian0%(1,307)
Bulgarian0%(1,093)
Haitian0%(1,068)
Egyptian0%(1,011)
Slovene0%(988)
Nigerian0%(948)
Moroccan0%(863)
Jordanian0%(501)
Guyanese0%(359)
Macedonian0%(300)
Kenyan0%(166)
Barbadian0%(137)
Ghanaian0%(98)
Section 05

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher
34.1%
+4.5 ptssince 2000
from 29.5% in 2000
US average: 27.9%
High school or higher
85.3%
+2.7 ptssince 2000
from 82.6% in 2000
US average: 84.9%
Graduate degree
12.7%
+1.9 ptssince 2000
from 10.9% in 2000
US average: 10.2%
Section 06

Commute & transportation

Average commute
24.6 min
+47%since 2000
from 16.7 min in 2000
US average: 25.2
Drive alone to work
75.3%
−0.1 ptssince 2009
from 75.4% in 2009
US average: 76.2%
Carpooled to work
10.6%
−0.1 ptssince 2009
from 10.7% in 2009
US average: 10.4%
Public transit
3.3%
Unchangedsince 2009
from 3.3% in 2009
US average: 4.7%
Worked from home
6.1%
+0.1 ptssince 2009
from 5.9% in 2009
US average: 4.1%
Walked to work
2.9%
+0.1 ptssince 2009
from 2.8% in 2009
US average: 2.8%
Biked to work
0.6%
Unchangedsince 2009
from 0.6% in 2009
US average: 0.5%
No vehicle available
6.1%
+0.1 ptssince 2009
from 6.1% in 2009
US average: 8.7%
Section 07

Work & employment

Self-employed
11.8%
+0.2 ptssince 2009
from 11.7% in 2009
US average: 12.9%
Management & professional
39.5%
Unchangedsince 2009
from 39.5% in 2009
US average: 35.2%
Section 08

People & community

Male
50.2%
+0.1 ptssince 2009
from 50.1% in 2009
Female
49.8%
−0.1 ptssince 2009
from 49.9% in 2009
Foreign born
23.1%
+0.4 ptssince 2009
from 22.7% in 2009
US average: 12.8%
Veterans
11.1%
−0.5 ptssince 2009
from 11.6% in 2009
US average: 9.9%
Marital status (2024)
Men 15+
Never married40.6%(555,874)
Married50.1%(685,901)
Widowed1.8%(25,326)
Divorced7.5%(102,565)
Women 15+
Never married32.8%(441,929)
Married48.8%(658,612)
Widowed6.9%(92,830)
Divorced11.5%(155,621)
SHARE WITHIN EACH SEX · POPULATION 15 AND OVER · 2024
Section 09

Health coverage

Showing 2024 (the nearest year with coverage data).

Uninsured
6.4%
−10.4 ptssince 2013
from 16.8% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Employer-based
55.2%
+1.2 ptssince 2020
from 54.0% in 2020
US average: 54.8%
Direct-purchase
12.4%
−0.5 ptssince 2020
from 12.9% in 2020
US average: 13.8%
Medicare
16.4%
+1.1 ptssince 2020
from 15.3% in 2020
US average: 18.4%
Medicaid
20.7%
+0.5 ptssince 2020
from 20.2% in 2020
US average: 20.9%
VA health care
2.7%
+0.1 ptssince 2020
from 2.6% in 2020
US average: 2.2%
Any private
69.3%
+0.2 ptssince 2020
from 69.1% in 2020
US average: 67.1%
Any public
35.1%
+1.5 ptssince 2020
from 33.6% 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)39.4%(72,407)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)29.9%(54,894)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era27.8%(51,079)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War3.2%(5,867)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0.9%(1,599)
US avg: 1%

Share of the 183,791 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
Drill deeper

Places similar to San Diego County

Orange County
Pop 3,149,507
Riverside County
Pop 2,544,916
Maricopa County
Pop 4,689,558
King County
Pop 2,344,939
Places similar to San Diego County
Head to head

Compare San Diego County to nearby counties

SAN DIEGO COUNTY VS
Riverside County
Income$93,074+48%
Home value$557,300+15%
Population2,544,916−22%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
SAN DIEGO COUNTY VS
Orange County
Income$116,289+84%
Home value$962,600+98%
Population3,149,507−4%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
SAN DIEGO COUNTY VS
Imperial County
Income$57,681−9%
Home value$309,600−36%
Population181,411−94%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
SAN DIEGO COUNTY VS
Los Angeles County
Income$90,112+43%
Home value$834,200+72%
Population9,694,934+195%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
Frequently asked

How many people live in San Diego County, California?

San Diego County, California has about 3,095,313 residents according to the 2010 American Community Survey.

What is the median household income in San Diego County, California?

The typical household in San Diego County, California earns about $63,069 a year. Half of households make more than that, and half make less.

Is San Diego County, California expensive?

In San Diego County, California, the median home is worth about $486,000, and the typical rent is about $1,228 a month.

How educated are people in San Diego County, California?

About 34.1% of adults age 25 and over in San Diego County, California hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

What is the poverty rate in San Diego County, California?

About 12.3% of people in San Diego County, California live below the federal poverty line.

Has San Diego County, California grown since 1990?

Yes, San Diego County, California has grown since 1990. The population has added about 597,297 residents, a change of about 24 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 →