Watsonville, CA

Census Place

Add Comparison
2024 Population
51,712
US Senator
Alex Padilla
Democratic Party
US Senator
Adam Schiff
Democratic Party
2024 Median Age
33.8
3.36% 1-year increase
2024 Poverty Rate
14.7%
2.82% 1-year decrease
2024 Median Household Income
$78,393
4.82% 1-year growth
2024 Median Property Value
$686,000
4.3% 1-year growth
2024 Employed Population
21,924
1.38% 1-year decline

About

None of the households in Watsonville, 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.

76.2% of the residents in Watsonville, CA are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Watsonville, CA are CET-Watsonville (87 degrees awarded in 2023).

In 2024, the median property value in Watsonville, CA was $686,000, and the homeownership rate was 44.8%.

Most people in Watsonville, CA drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 26.1 minutes. The average car ownership in Watsonville, CA was 2 cars per household.

United StatesCaliforniaSanta Cruz County, CASanta Cruz-Watsonville, CAMonterey County (North Central)--Seaside, Monterey, Marina & Pacific Grove Cities PUMA, CASanta Cruz County (North)--Watsonville & Scotts Valley Cities PUMA, CASanta Cruz County (South & Coastal)--Santa Cruz City PUMA, CA

Population & Diversity

Watsonville, CA is home to a population of 51.7k people, from which 76.2% are citizens. As of 2024, 35.5% of Watsonville, CA residents were born outside of the country (18.3k people).

In 2024, there were 2.26 times more Other (Hispanic) residents (22.8k people) in Watsonville, CA than any other race or ethnicity. There were 10.1k Two Races Including Other (Hispanic) and 7.16k White (Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

76.2%
2024 Citizenship
78.1%
2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 76.2% of Watsonville, CA residents were US citizens, which is lower than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Watsonville, CA was 78.1%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

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

View Data
Save Image

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Watsonville, CA
  1. Other (Hispanic)
    22.8k ± 1.53k
  2. Two Races Including Other (Hispanic)
    10.1k ± 1.32k
  3. White (Hispanic)
    7.16k ± 1.38k
82.3%
Hispanic Population
42.6k people

In 2024, there were 2.26 times more Other (Hispanic) residents (22.8k people) in Watsonville, CA than any other race or ethnicity. There were 10.1k Two Races Including Other (Hispanic) and 7.16k White (Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

82.3% of the people in Watsonville, CA are hispanic (42.6k people).

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

View Data
Save Image

Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the Place level, so we are showing data for California.
Most Common Origin
  1. Mexico
    3,862,617 ± 45,816 people
  2. Philippines
    824,246 ± 22,054 people
  3. 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.

View Data
Save Image

Foreign-Born Population

35.5%
2024 Foreign-Born Population
18.3k people
35.1%
2023 Foreign-Born Population
18.3k people

As of 2024, 35.5% of Watsonville, CA residents (18.3k 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 Watsonville, CA was 35.1%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

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

View Data
Save Image

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period
  1. Vietnam
    256 ± 120
  2. Gulf War (2001-)
    201 ± 122
  3. Gulf War (1990s)
    63 ± 74

Watsonville, CA has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 1.27 times greater than any other conflict.

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

View Data
Save Image

Economy

The economy of Watsonville, CA employs 21.9k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Watsonville, CA were Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting (3,052 people), Health Care & Social Assistance (2,786 people), and Retail Trade (2,190 people), and the highest paying industries were Utilities ($113,517), Management of Companies & Enterprises ($96,705), and Information ($93,750).

Employment

Occupations

21.9k
2024 Value
± 1,262
−1.38%
1 Year decline
± 8.35%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Watsonville, CA declined at a rate of −1.38%, from 22.2k employees to 21.9k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Watsonville, CA, are Farming, Fishing, & Forestry Occupations (2,617 people), Sales & Related Occupations (1,837 people), and Office & Administrative Support Occupations (1,806 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Watsonville, CA.

View Data
Save Image

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.

View Data
Save Image

Industries

Employment by Industries

21.9k
2024 Value
± 1,262
−1.38%
1 Year decline
± 8.35%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Watsonville, CA declined at a rate of −1.38%, from 22.2k employees to 21.9k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Watsonville, CA, are Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting (3,052 people), Health Care & Social Assistance (2,786 people), and Retail Trade (2,190 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Watsonville, CA, though some of these residents may live in Watsonville, CA and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

View Data
Save Image

Median Earnings by Industry

$42,130
Median earning men ± $2,418
$34,025
Median earning women ± $2,444

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Information ($82,607), Public Administration ($64,347), and Manufacturing ($56,520).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Information ($138,398), Public Administration ($61,930), and Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($53,625).

View Data
Save Image

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.

View Data
Save Image

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

Voting results are not available for Watsonville, CA. Showing the available data for California.
2024 Election Results
  1. Kamala Harris (58.5%)
    Democratic Party
  2. Donald J. Trump (38.3%)
    Republican Party
  3. 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.

View Data
Save Image

Senator Elections

US Senators from California

Senatorial voting results are only available at the state level. Showing data for California.
Alex Padilla
Senator from California3
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 California1
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.

View Data
Save Image

Education

In 2023, universities in Watsonville, CA awarded 87 degrees. The student population of Watsonville, CA in 2023 is skewed towards men, with 94 male students and 55 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Watsonville, CA are Hispanic or Latino (81 and 93.1%), Black or African American (2 and 2.3%), White (2 and 2.3%), and American Indian or Alaska Native (1 and 1.15%).

The largest universities in Watsonville, CA by number of degrees awarded are CET-Watsonville (87 and 100%).

The most popular majors in Watsonville, CA are Building Construction Technology (30 and 34.5%), Welding Technology (26 and 29.9%), and Medical Assistant (25 and 28.7%).

Admissions & Enrollments

Enrollments by Gender and Races

In 2023 there were 149 students enrolled in Watsonville, CA, 63.1% men and 36.9% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in Hispanic or Latino with 145 records, of which 37.9% were women and 62.1% men.

View Data
Save Image

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common
  1. Welding Technology
    26 degrees awarded
  2. Medical Assistant
    25 degrees awarded
  3. Building Construction Technology
    30 degrees awarded

In 2023, the most common concentation for 1 to 2 Year Postsecondary Certificate recipients in Watsonville, CA was Welding Technology with 26 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a 1 to 2 Year Postsecondary Certificate from schools in Watsonville, CA according to their major.

View Data
Save Image

Universities

Gender
Race
CET-Watsonville
Largest Universities by degrees awarded
87 degrees awarded

In 2023, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was CET-Watsonville with 87 degrees awarded.

View Data
Save Image

Student Diversity

In 2023, 50 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Watsonville, CA, which is 1.35 times more than the 37 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 81 degrees mean that there were 40.5 times more degrees awarded to Hispanic or Latino students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Black or African American, with 2 degrees awarded.

View Data
Save Image

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.

View Data
Save Image
View Data
Save Image

Housing & Living

The median property value in Watsonville, CA was $686,000 in 2024, which is 2.06 times larger than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $657,700 to $686,000, a 4.3% increase. The homeownership rate in Watsonville, CA is 44.8%, which is lower than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Watsonville, CA have an average commute time of 26.1 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Watsonville, CA is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

Housing

Property

$686,000
Median Property Value 2024
±$24,605
$6,793
Median Property Taxes
±$639

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 Watsonville, CA the largest share of households pay taxes in the $3k+ range.

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

View Data
Save Image
View Data
Save Image

Rent vs Own

44.8%
Homeownership
2024
65.8%
Homeowners with Mortgage
2024

In 2024, 44.8% of the housing units in Watsonville, CA were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 43.6%.

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

View Data
Save Image

Equity

Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.
$78,393
Median Household Income
± $5,682
15.2k
Number of Households
± 1,016

In 2024, the median household income of the 15.2k households in Watsonville, CA grew to $78,393 from the previous year's value of $74,785.

The following chart displays the households in Watsonville, 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.

View Data
Save Image

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Watsonville, 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.

View Data
Save Image

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2024
  1. Drove Alone (70.8%)
  2. Carpooled (16%)
  3. Worked At Home (6.43%)

In 2024, 70.8% of workers in Watsonville, CA drove alone to work, followed by those who carpooled to work (16%) and those who worked at home (6.43%).

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.

View Data
Save Image

Commute Time

26.1 minutes
Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Watsonville, CA have a shorter commute time (26.1 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 2.66% of the workforce in Watsonville, CA have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

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

View Data
Save Image
View Data
Save Image

Car Ownership

2 cars
Average Number

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

View Data
Save Image

Poverty

Poverty & Diversity

14.7% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Watsonville, CA (7.54k out of 51.2k 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 Males 6 - 11, followed by Females 35 - 44 and then Females 6 - 11.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Watsonville, CA is Hispanic, followed by Other and White.

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.

View Data
Save Image

Health

90.8% of the population of Watsonville, CA has health coverage, with 35.2% on employee plans, 37.9% on Medicaid, 8.27% on Medicare, 8.83% on non-group plans, and 0.53% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in California see 1,233 patients per year on average, which represents a 0% change from the previous year (1,233 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 1076 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 213 patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.9% were men and 50.1% were women.

Coverage

Health Care Diversity

In 2024, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 31.1% under 18 years, 20.6% between 18 and 34 years, 35.6% between 35 and 64 years, and 12.8% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 49.9% were men and 50.1% were women.

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

View Data
Save Image

Uninsured People

9.21%
Uninsured
35.2%
Employer Coverage
37.9%
Medicaid
8.27%
Medicare
8.83%
Non-Group
0.53%
Military or VA

Between 2023 and 2024, the percent of uninsured citizens in Watsonville, CA declined by 6.18% from 9.82% to 9.21%.

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

View Data
Save Image