Imperial County, CA

County

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2024 Population

180,202

US Senator

Alex Padilla

Democratic Party

US Senator

Adam Schiff

Democratic Party

2024 Median Age

33.2

0.606% 1-year increase

2024 Poverty Rate

19.5%

0.561% 1-year decrease

2024 Median Household Income

$57,681

2.28% 1-year growth

2024 Median Property Value

$309,600

10.8% 1-year growth

2024 Employed Population

62,277

1.53% 1-year growth

About

None of the households in Imperial County, CA reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider the potential multi-lingual nature of households, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household.

85.1% of the residents in Imperial County, CA are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Imperial County, CA are Imperial Valley College (2,754 degrees awarded in 2023) and CET-El Centro (146 degrees).

In 2024, the median property value in Imperial County, CA was $309,600, and the homeownership rate was 56.8%.

Most people in Imperial County, CA drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 22.1 minutes. The average car ownership in Imperial County, CA was 2 cars per household.

Imperial County, CA borders La Paz County, AZ, Yuma County, AZ, Riverside County, CA, and San Diego County, CA.

United States California El Centro, CA

Population & Diversity

Imperial County, CA is home to a population of 180k people, from which 85.1% are citizens. As of 2024, 31.6% of Imperial County, CA residents were born outside of the country (57k people).

In 2024, there were 1.34 times more Other (Hispanic) residents (74.6k people) in Imperial County, CA than any other race or ethnicity. There were 55.7k Two Races Including Other (Hispanic) and 19.3k White (Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

85.1%

2024 Citizenship

85.6%

2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 85.1% of Imperial County, CA residents were US citizens, which is lower than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Imperial County, CA was 85.6%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Imperial County, CA compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Imperial County, CA

Other (Hispanic)
74.6k ± 3.32k
Two Races Including Other (Hispanic)
55.7k ± 3.22k
White (Hispanic)
19.3k ± 2.42k

86%

Hispanic Population

155k people

86% of the people in Imperial County, CA are hispanic (155k people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Imperial County, CA as a share of the total population.

Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the County level, so we are showing data for California.

Most Common Origin

Mexico
3,862,617 ± 45,816 people
Philippines
824,246 ± 22,054 people
China
687,951 ± 20,184 people

In 2023, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of California was Mexico, the natal country of 3,862,617 California residents, followed by Philippines with 824,246 and China with 687,951.

Foreign-Born Population

31.6%

2024 Foreign-Born Population

57k people

30.8%

2023 Foreign-Born Population

55.2k people

As of 2024, 31.6% of Imperial County, CA residents (57k people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 14%. In 2023, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Imperial County, CA was 30.8%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

The following chart shows the percentage of foreign-born residents in Imperial County, CA compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Gulf War (2001-)
1,316 ± 443
Vietnam
1,225 ± 260
Gulf War (1990s)
884 ± 341

Imperial County, CA has a large population of military personnel who served in Gulf War (2001-), 1.07 times greater than any other conflict.

The chart shows the distribution of veterans by conflict in Imperial County, CA.

Economy

The economy of Imperial County, CA employs 62.3k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Imperial County, CA were Health Care & Social Assistance (10,391 people), Retail Trade (6,966 people), and Public Administration (6,240 people), and the highest paying industries were Public Administration ($78,819), Mining, Quarrying, & Oil & Gas Extraction ($76,875), and Utilities ($75,947).

Employment

Occupations

62.3k

2024 Value

± 2,228

1.53%

1 Year growth

± 5.08%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Imperial County, CA grew at a rate of 1.53%, from 61.3k employees to 62.3k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Imperial County, CA, are Office & Administrative Support Occupations (5,736 people), Sales & Related Occupations (5,682 people), and Healthcare Support Occupations (5,083 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Imperial County, CA.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for California.

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in California (not-seasonally adjusted) compared with the four states with the most similar impact.

The most recent data point uses Advance State Claims data, which can be revised in subsequent weeks.

Industries

Employment by Industries

62.3k

2024 Value

± 2,228

1.53%

1 Year growth

± 5.08%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Imperial County, CA grew at a rate of 1.53%, from 61.3k employees to 62.3k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Imperial County, CA, are Health Care & Social Assistance (10,391 people), Retail Trade (6,966 people), and Public Administration (6,240 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Imperial County, CA, though some of these residents may live in Imperial County, CA and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$45,054

Median earning men ± $2,858

$31,070

Median earning women ± $1,491

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Public Administration ($91,081), Transportation & Warehousing, & Utilities ($57,871), and Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($54,693).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Public Administration ($54,570), Information ($51,216), and Construction ($49,167).

Employment by Industry Sector

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for California.

Y-Axis

2.57%

Year-over-year growth

Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 17.9M people employed in California. This represents a 2.57% increase in employment when compared to February 2022.

Right after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, during April 2020, a general dip can be seen across industry sectors, resulting in an overall decline in employment by 14%.

The following chart shows monthly employment numbers for each industry sector in California.

Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments

173
Transportation and Warehousing
151
Other Services (except Public Administration)
137
Real Estate and Rental and Leasing

The visualization shows the distribution of establishments by industry and by size according to the number of employees.

The visualization shows the number of establishments and its share across establishment sizes.

Payroll by Industry Sector

The industries with the highest total annual payroll

$333k
Health Care and Social Assistance
$266k
Retail Trade
$146k
Manufacturing

The chart shows the total annual payroll and the average annual payroll by industry.

Civics

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in California went to Kamala Harris with 58.5% of the vote. The runner-up was Donald J. Trump (38.3%), followed by Robert Kennedy (1.25%).

Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff are the senators currently representing the state of California. In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

California is currently represented by 52 members in the U.S. house, and members of the House of Representives are elected to 2-year terms.

Presidential Elections

Presidential Popular Vote Over Time

Voting results are not available for Imperial County, CA. Showing the available data for California.

2024 Election Results

Kamala Harris (58.5%)
Democratic Party
Donald J. Trump (38.3%)
Republican Party
Robert Kennedy (1.25%)
Independent Party

In the 2024 presidential election, the popular vote in California went to Kamala Harris with 58.5% of the vote. The runner-up was Donald J. Trump (38.3%), followed by Robert Kennedy (1.25%).

The following chart shows the popular vote results in California for each registered party from 1976 to 2024.

Senator Elections

US Senators from California

Senatorial voting results are only available at the state level. Showing data for California.

Alex Padilla

Senator from California

Assumed office on January 20, 2021
Appointed to the seat following the resignation of Kamala Harris, who had become Vice President of the United States.

Adam Schiff

Senator from California

Assumed office on December 8, 2024
Elected to the seat to succeed Laphonza Butler, who had been appointed to the seat following the death of Dianne Feinstein.

Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff are the senators currently representing California.

In the United States, senators are elected to 6-year terms with the terms for individual senators staggered.

The following chart shows elected senators in California over time, excluding special elections, colored by their political party.

Education

In 2023, universities in Imperial County, CA awarded 2,900 degrees. The student population of Imperial County, CA in 2023 is skewed towards women, with 3,742 male students and 4,536 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Imperial County, CA are Hispanic or Latino (2,685 and 92.6%), White (133 and 4.59%), Unknown (35 and 1.21%), and Black or African American (18 and 0.621%).

The largest universities in Imperial County, CA by number of degrees awarded are Imperial Valley College (2,754 and 95%) and CET-El Centro (146 and 5.03%).

The most popular majors in Imperial County, CA are Liberal Arts & Sciences (830 and 28.6%), Biological & Physical Sciences (327 and 11.3%), and Criminal Justice - Law Enforcement Administration (197 and 6.79%).

Admissions & Enrollments

Enrollments by Gender and Races

In 2023 there were 8,278 students enrolled in Imperial County, CA, 45.2% men and 54.8% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in Hispanic or Latino with 7,551 records, of which 56.4% were women and 43.6% men.

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common

Criminal Justice - Law Enforcement Administration
171 degrees awarded
Biological & Physical Sciences
327 degrees awarded
Liberal Arts & Sciences
264 degrees awarded

In 2023, the most common concentation for Associates Degree recipients in Imperial County, CA was Criminal Justice - Law Enforcement Administration with 171 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Associates Degree from schools in Imperial County, CA according to their major.

Universities

Gender

Race

Largest Universities by degrees awarded

Imperial Valley College
2,754 degrees awarded
CET-El Centro
146 degrees awarded

In 2023, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Imperial Valley College with 2,754 degrees awarded.

Student Diversity

In 2023, 1,088 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Imperial County, CA, which is 0.6 times less than the 1,812 female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2023, the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was Hispanic or Latino students. These 2,685 degrees mean that there were 20.2 times more degrees awarded to Hispanic or Latino students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, White, with 133 degrees awarded.

Awarded Degrees over Time

The graph shows the evolution of awarded degrees by degrees. Under the paragraphs, the average number of awarded degrees by university in each degree is shown.

Tuition

Average Net Price by Sector

Public, 2-year ($1,104) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2023.

Public, 2-year ($22) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2023.

Public, 2-year ($1,223) is the sector with the highest average net price of books and supplies.

The graph shows the average net price by sector and year.

Housing & Living

The median property value in Imperial County, CA was $309,600 in 2024, which is 0.931 times smaller than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $279,500 to $309,600, a 10.8% increase. The homeownership rate in Imperial County, CA is 56.8%, which is lower than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Imperial County, CA have an average commute time of 22.1 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Imperial County, CA is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

In 2025, 25.5% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Imperial County, CA. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 2.31%.

Housing

Property

$309,600

Median Property Value 2024

±$8,398

$28,210

Median Property Taxes

±$1,447

The following chart display owner-occupied housing units distributed between a series of property tax buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. In Imperial County, CA the largest share of households pay taxes in the $3k+ range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Imperial County, CA compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

Rent vs Own

56.8%

Homeownership

2024

67.1%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2024

In 2024, 56.8% of the housing units in Imperial County, CA were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 56.8%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Imperial County, CA compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

Equity

Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.

$57,681

Median Household Income

± $2,564

49.6k

Number of Households

± 1,966

In 2024, the median household income of the 49.6k households in Imperial County, CA grew to $57,681 from the previous year's value of $56,393.

The following chart displays the households in Imperial County, CA distributed between a series of income buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households have an income in the $75k - $100k range.

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Imperial County, CA is from California.

0.495

2023 Wage GINI in California

0.498

2022 Wage GINI in California

In 2023, the income inequality in California was 0.495 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.573% decline from 2022 to 2023, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat more even. The GINI for California was higher than than the national average of 0.476. In other words, wages are distributed less evenly in California in comparison to the national average.

This chart shows the number of workers in California across various wage buckets compared to the national average.

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2024

Drove Alone (79%)
Carpooled (8.82%)
Worked At Home (7.16%)

In 2024, 79% of workers in Imperial County, CA drove alone to work, followed by those who carpooled to work (8.82%) and those who worked at home (7.16%).

The following chart shows the number of households using each mode of transportation over time, using a logarithmic scale on the y-axis to help better show variations in the smaller means of commuting.

Commute Time

22.1 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Imperial County, CA have a shorter commute time (22.1 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 3.18% of the workforce in Imperial County, CA have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Imperial County, CA compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

The following chart displays the households in Imperial County, CA distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Imperial County, CA have 2 cars.

Poverty

Severe Housing Problems

In 2025, 25.5% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Imperial County, CA. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 2.31%.

The graph shows the trend of the percentage of the population living with severe housing problems.

Poverty & Diversity

19.5% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Imperial County, CA (33.8k out of 173k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is higher than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Females 6 - 11, followed by Females 25 - 34 and then Females 18 - 24.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Imperial County, CA is Hispanic, followed by Other and Two Or More.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.

Children in Poverty

In 2025, 22.1% of the children was living in poverty in Imperial County, CA. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 10.9%.

The graph shows the trend of the percentage of the children living in poverty.

Social Needs

Data only available at the state level.

Most prevalent states

California
35,798 individuals
New York
5,087 individuals
Florida
4,915 individuals

In 2017, California had the highest estimated number of chronically homeless individuals in the nation, at 35,798. New York has the second highest (5,087), followed by Florida (4,915).

The following map shows the estimated number of chronically homeless individuals by state over multiple years.

Security

Crimes & Accidents

Indicator

In 2022, the number of reported violent crimes offenses per 100,000 population was 366 in Imperial County, CA. From 2014 to 2022, the indicator grew 40.1 per 100,000 population.

The graph shows the trend in the number of reported violent crimes offenses per 100,000 population.

Health

94% of the population of Imperial County, CA has health coverage, with 31.4% on employee plans, 45.1% on Medicaid, 7.24% on Medicare, 9.32% on non-group plans, and 0.89% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Imperial County, CA see 3,997 patients per year on average, which represents a 0% change from the previous year (3,997 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 3081 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 487 patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.6% were men and 50.4% were women.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

3,997 to 1

Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Imperial County, CA

Primary care physicians in Imperial County, CA see an average of 3,997 patients per year. This represents a 0% change from the previous year (3,997 patients).

The following chart shows how the number of patients seen by primary care physicians has been changing over time in Imperial County, CA in comparison to its neighboring geographies.

Health Care Diversity

In 2024, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 31.2% under 18 years, 21.7% between 18 and 34 years, 33% between 35 and 64 years, and 14.1% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.6% were men and 50.4% were women.

The following chart shows the number of people with health coverage by gender.

Uninsured People

6.02%

Uninsured

31.4%

Employer Coverage

45.1%

Medicaid

7.24%

Medicare

9.32%

Non-Group

0.89%

Military or VA

Between 2023 and 2024, the percent of uninsured citizens in Imperial County, CA declined by 11.4% from 6.79% to 6.02%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Imperial County, CA changed over time compared with the percent of individuals enrolled in various types of health insurance.

Health Indicators

Health Outcomes

Indicator

In 2025, the number of deaths among residents under age 18 per 100,000 population was 36 in Imperial County, CA.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Imperial County, CA.

Health Behaviors

Indicator

In 2025, the percentage of the adult population (age 18 and older) that reports a body mass index (BMI) greater than or equal to 30 kg/m2 (age-adjusted) was 38.5% in Imperial County, CA.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Imperial County, CA.