The richest and poorest ZIP codes in California
Ranking all 1391 California ZIP codes by median household income. 94020 leads at $250,001; 92257 sits at the bottom at $22,611.
This study ranks every populated ZIP code in California by median household income, using the most recent American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Of the 1391 California ZIP codes with at least 1,000 residents and a published income estimate, the median ZIP reports $95,179, the richest reports $250,001, and the poorest reports $22,611. The richest California ZIP earns roughly 11.1× the poorest.
The 25 richest ZIP codes in California
94020 in San Mateo County County tops the state at $250,001.
| # | ZIP | County | Median household income | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 94020 | San Mateo County | $250,001 | 1,694 |
| 2 | 94022 | Santa Clara County | $250,001 | 20,027 |
| 3 | 94024 | Santa Clara County | $250,001 | 23,051 |
| 4 | 94027 | San Mateo County | $250,001 | 7,002 |
| 5 | 94028 | San Mateo County | $250,001 | 6,531 |
| 6 | 94506 | Contra Costa County | $250,001 | 27,055 |
| 7 | 94507 | Contra Costa County | $250,001 | 14,586 |
| 8 | 94563 | Contra Costa County | $250,001 | 19,378 |
| 9 | 94957 | Marin County | $250,001 | 2,321 |
| 10 | 95030 | Santa Clara County | $250,001 | 13,151 |
| 11 | 95120 | Santa Clara County | $250,001 | 36,967 |
| 12 | 95070 | Santa Clara County | $250,001 | 31,417 |
| 13 | 94920 | Marin County | $246,045 | 12,609 |
| 14 | 94539 | Alameda County | $243,552 | 52,396 |
| 15 | 94301 | Santa Clara County | $242,006 | 17,508 |
| 16 | 91011 | Los Angeles County | $241,875 | 19,935 |
| 17 | 94070 | San Mateo County | $240,074 | 30,447 |
| 18 | 94708 | Contra Costa County | $234,923 | 11,947 |
| 19 | 94549 | Contra Costa County | $234,516 | 28,420 |
| 20 | 94037 | San Mateo County | $233,826 | 2,917 |
| 21 | 94062 | San Mateo County | $233,262 | 25,759 |
| 22 | 94925 | Marin County | $232,763 | 10,077 |
| 23 | 95671 | Sacramento County | $232,700 | 4,432 |
| 24 | 94973 | Marin County | $231,094 | 1,689 |
| 25 | 95014 | Santa Clara County | $230,913 | 60,932 |
The 25 poorest ZIP codes in California
92257 in Imperial County County sits at the bottom of the state at $22,611.
| # | ZIP | County | Median household income | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 92257 | Imperial County | $22,611 | 2,158 |
| 2 | 95560 | Humboldt County | $23,720 | 1,213 |
| 3 | 95652 | Sacramento County | $23,750 | 1,486 |
| 4 | 92401 | San Bernardino County | $26,596 | 1,659 |
| 5 | 92281 | Imperial County | $29,375 | 2,082 |
| 6 | 90014 | Los Angeles County | $31,000 | 10,224 |
| 7 | 95202 | San Joaquin County | $31,020 | 7,066 |
| 8 | 93240 | Kern County | $31,267 | 5,981 |
| 9 | 90021 | Los Angeles County | $32,222 | 2,897 |
| 10 | 93701 | Fresno County | $32,768 | 9,808 |
| 11 | 93241 | Kern County | $33,417 | 15,250 |
| 12 | 90007 | Los Angeles County | $35,378 | 38,715 |
| 13 | 90013 | Los Angeles County | $36,948 | 14,357 |
| 14 | 96052 | Trinity County | $37,222 | 2,366 |
| 15 | 92242 | San Bernardino County | $37,500 | 1,359 |
| 16 | 90058 | Los Angeles County | $37,557 | 3,585 |
| 17 | 92274 | Riverside County | $38,654 | 18,167 |
| 18 | 93205 | Kern County | $39,590 | 1,708 |
| 19 | 95365 | Merced County | $39,741 | 3,963 |
| 20 | 93721 | Fresno County | $40,033 | 7,225 |
| 21 | 92363 | San Bernardino County | $40,068 | 5,531 |
| 22 | 93285 | Kern County | $40,275 | 2,920 |
| 23 | 93706 | Fresno County | $40,930 | 40,638 |
| 24 | 95423 | Lake County | $41,143 | 3,513 |
| 25 | 95968 | Butte County | $42,000 | 1,364 |
How to read this
ZIP-code-level income is one of the most-asked questions about American geography and one of the noisiest answers. A ZIP with a handful of high-income retirees can outrank a wealthy suburb that has more residents but a wider income range. We require at least 1,000 residents to enter the ranking, which removes the most extreme small-N noise without dropping legitimate small ZIPs.
ZIP codes are also not what most people think they are. The Census Bureau publishes data for ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs), which are statistical approximations of USPS ZIP code service areas, drawn from the residential addresses in the 2020 Decennial Census. Some real ZIP codes are PO-Box-only and have no ZCTA; some ZCTAs combine adjacent ZIPs. Treat each row as "the area around ZIP X" rather than "ZIP X itself" and the rankings hold up.
The full ranked list of all 1391 California ZIPs (not just the top and bottom 25) is available as a CSV at /data/studies/richest-and-poorest-zip-codes-in-california.csv. Click any ZIP above to open its CensusEasy page, which carries the full demographic profile (age, education, race, housing, commute) for that ZIP plus its national percentile on each metric.
What is the richest ZIP code in California?
94020 in San Mateo County County, with a median household income of $250,001 in the latest ACS 5-year estimates.
What is the poorest ZIP code in California?
92257 in Imperial County County, with a median household income of $22,611. The minimum-population threshold for inclusion is 1,000 residents.
Why are some ZIP codes missing from the list?
ZIPs with fewer than 1,000 residents are excluded because the ACS income estimate carries too much sampling noise to rank reliably. PO-Box-only ZIPs are also excluded because the Census Bureau does not publish demographic data for them (they are not ZCTAs).
Median household income by ZIP Code Tabulation Area (ZCTA), from the latest American Community Survey 5-year estimates (table B19013). We restrict the ranking to California ZCTAs with at least 1,000 residents and a published income value, which excludes the smallest ZIPs whose ACS estimates have very wide confidence intervals.
State assignment uses the Census 2020 ZCTA-to-state crosswalk; ZIPs that straddle a state line are assigned to the state containing the bulk of their population. County labels come from the parent county in the Census 2020 ZCTA-to-county crosswalk.
The ranking is sorted by income value, not by margin of error. For the largest ZIPs the published estimate is precise to within a few hundred dollars; for the smallest qualifying ZIPs the margin can be five thousand dollars or more. Treat positions within a tight cluster as roughly tied.
The full underlying ranking is available as a CSV — every place with both data points, not just the top rows shown above. Columns: rank, place, state, baseline value, latest value, change, and the CensusEasy URL for each place.
↓ richest-and-poorest-zip-codes-in-california.csvYou may cite or republish these findings, and the downloadable dataset is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Reuse requires that you credit CensusEasy and link back to this page so readers can verify the underlying data.
CensusEasy Data Team (2026). "The richest and poorest ZIP codes in California." CensusEasy. Retrieved from https://censuseasy.com/studies/richest-and-poorest-zip-codes-in-california
- 1990 Decennial Census - Summary Tape File 3A (STF3A), public-domain CD-ROM extracts. Median household income from P080, education attainment from P057, mean commute time computed from P049.
- American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates - US Census Bureau, latest published vintage, Tables B19013 (income), B15003 (education), B08303 / B08013 (commute), B25077 (home value).
- Decennial Census 2020 - for population and density baselines.
- BLS Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) - annual averages, used to convert nominal dollars to 2024 dollars. Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- The full underlying tables for every place are available on each place's CensusEasy page; click any row in this study to open the place page.
CensusEasy publishes original research grounded in US Census Bureau data. Every study includes the underlying numbers, methodology, and sources so readers can verify or extend the analysis.
Data note. Figures in this report are derived from US Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics data, including American Community Survey estimates that carry sampling margins of error. This information is provided as is, for general informational purposes, without warranty of accuracy or completeness. CensusEasy is not affiliated with or endorsed by the US Census Bureau or any government agency. See our Terms of Use for details.