County · California

Monterey County, California

Monterey County, California. Monterey County had 433,729 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, down 1.7% since 2020, a steeper fall than California's (−0.5%). It holds 30 places (12 cities, villages and boroughs and 18 census-designated) and 104 census tracts. GEOID 06053.

Monterey County is the county of the Salinas, CA metropolitan statistical area (the Census Bureau's July 2023 delineation).

Residents, July 2025 estimate

433,729

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 439,035 · ACS 2020-2024: 437,613

Median household income

$97,230

±$1,883 (90% margin)
California: $99,122

Median home value

$781,000

±$13,801 (90% margin)
California: $734,700

Median gross rent

$2,055

±$32 (90% margin)
California: $2,036

How many people live in Monterey County, and is it growing?

The 2020 Census counted 439,035 residents in Monterey County. The Census Bureau estimates 433,729 for July 1, 2025, down 1.7% since 2020, a steeper fall than California's (−0.5%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 437,613 over 3,282 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 −1,431 (439,062)
2021→2022 −3,178 (435,884)
2022→2023 −1,777 (434,107)
2023→2024 −660 (433,447)
2024→2025 +282 (433,729)

Monterey County in California. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Monterey County	California	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	437,613	39,287,377	+4,203
Households	132,489±685	13,548,091	+5,334
Average household size	3.16±0.02	2.84	−0.11
Housing units	145,469±143	14,644,735	+3,649

Monterey County's population since 2000

From 401,762 in 2000 to 433,729 in 2025: up 8.0%. The 2000, 2010 and 2020 figures are census counts. The 2005 figure is the Census Bureau's intercensal estimate, revised to fit the 2000 and 2010 counts and drawn on 2010 boundaries; 2015 and 2025 are July 1 estimates made from the census before them.

2000 Census 401,762
2005 (estimate) 405,139
2010 Census 415,057
2015 (estimate) 430,178
2020 Census 439,035
2025 (estimate) 433,729

Source: The 2000, 2010 and 2020 Census counts and the Census Bureau's population estimates (intercensal 2000-2010, Vintage 2020, Vintage 2025) · Census population estimates

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); PEP Vintage 2025 (CO-EST2025); 2020 Census · Check it at data.census.gov

What cities and towns are in Monterey County?

Monterey County holds 30 places: 12 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places) and 18 census-designated places. The largest is Salinas with 159,134 residents (2025 estimate). Places that cross a county line are listed with the share of their 2020 residents who live in this county.

Places in Monterey County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Salinas	city	163,542	161,761±59	$91,908	$654,100	13.6%	100%
Seaside	city	32,366	31,814±40	$85,311	$787,100	16.0%	100%
Monterey	city	30,218	29,613±34	$102,846	$1,076,300	9.8%	100%
Soledad	city	24,925	26,365±56	$96,862	$595,900	16.7%	100%
Marina	city	22,359	22,563±63	$95,955	$818,700	12.2%	100%
Greenfield, Monterey County	city	18,937	20,232±27	$84,740	$531,400	11.4%	100%
Prunedale	CDP	18,885	19,723±2,077	$103,819	$833,400	11.1%	100%
Pacific Grove	city	15,090	14,951±32	$106,065	$1,190,400	7.6%	100%
King City	city	13,332	13,604±30	$66,761	$449,900	23.0%	100%
Gonzales	city	8,647	8,492±28	$77,672	$618,800	6.4%	100%
Castroville	CDP	7,515	6,720±807	$89,354	$617,100	18.4%	100%
Carmel Valley Village	CDP	4,524	4,785±654	$156,161	$1,275,500	4.8%	100%
Del Monte Forest	CDP	4,204	3,613±392	$142,763	$2,000,000 or more	6.1%	100%
Carmel-by-the-Sea	city	3,220	3,162±16	$129,250	$2,000,000 or more	6.2%	100%
Las Lomas	CDP	3,046	3,355±834	$86,775	$687,300	19.4%	100%
Pajaro	CDP	2,882	2,899±559	$84,875	$750,000	19.3%	100%
Pine Canyon	CDP	1,871	2,477±807	$110,827	$414,100	6.3%	100%
Boronda	CDP	1,760	1,351±645	$63,125	$578,000	10.9%	100%
Del Rey Oaks	city	1,592	1,570±232	$134,500	$835,800	3.8%	100%
Elkhorn	CDP	1,588	1,664±560	$126,964	$811,200	2.0%	100%
Aromas	CDP	2,708	3,245±959	$148,438	$863,500	3.1%	50%
ChualarGEOID 0613364	CDP	1,185	812±359	$59,125	$649,100	14.8%	100%
SpreckelsGEOID 0673612	CDP	692	174±130	not published	$843,800	24.1%	100%
San ArdoGEOID 0664476	CDP	392	462±275	not published	$445,900	40.3%	100%
Lockwood (Monterey County)GEOID 0642146	CDP	368	240±202	not published	not published	7.5%	100%
Sand City	city	325	404±157	$77,917	$1,080,400	36.3%	100%
San LucasGEOID 0668140	CDP	324	134±98	$56,094	$335,000	17.2%	100%
Fort Hunter LiggettGEOID 0625093	CDP	250	1,119±124	not published	not published	–	100%
Moss LandingGEOID 0649488	CDP	237	45±66	not published	not published	11.1%	100%
BradleyGEOID 0607974	CDP	69	112±101	not published	not published	9.8%	100%

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026); 2020 place-by-county parts · Check it at data.census.gov

Who lives in Monterey County?

The median resident of Monterey County is 35.5 years old; 25.7% are under 18 and 14.9% are 65 or older. The largest group is Hispanic or Latino residents (of any race) at 61.6%, then non-Hispanic white residents at 26.9%. 29.6% of residents were born outside the United States.

Age, origin and education, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Race groups are non-Hispanic; Hispanic includes any race.
Measure	Monterey County	California	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	35.5±0.1	37.9	+1.1
Under 18 years	25.7%	22.0%	–
65 years and over	14.9%±0.1 pts	15.7%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	61.6%	40.2%	+2.9 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	26.9%±0.1 pts	33.8%	−3.0 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	2.0%±0.1 pts	5.2%	−0.5 pts
Asian alone, not Hispanic	5.5%±0.2 pts	15.3%	no clear change
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.1%±0.1 pts	0.3%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.4%±0.1 pts	0.3%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	3.0%±0.2 pts	4.4%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.4%±0.1 pts	0.6%	–
Born outside the United States	29.6%±0.6 pts	27.0%	no clear change
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	56.3%±0.6 pts	44.4%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	4.2%±0.3 pts	4.3%	–
With a disability	9.3%±0.4 pts	11.6%	–
No health insurance coverage	9.6%±0.5 pts	6.6%	no clear change
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	73.3%±0.7 pts	84.7%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	28.2%±0.7 pts	37.1%	+3.5 pts
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	11.5%±0.5 pts	14.4%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	1.8%±0.2 pts	1.1%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profiles DP02, DP05) · Check it at data.census.gov

What do households in Monterey County earn?

Half of Monterey County's 132,489 households earn less than $97,230 a year (±$1,883), against $99,122 in California. In 2015-2019 the median was $87,398 in 2024 dollars, so it rose by $9,832 after inflation. 12.7% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Monterey County	California	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$97,230±$1,883	$99,122	+$9,832
Mean household income	$131,486±$2,976	$140,436	–
Per capita income	$40,422±$856	$49,513	+$3,411
People below the poverty line	12.7%±0.8 pts	12.0%	no clear change
Children under 18 below the poverty line	17.7%±1.7 pts	15.0%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	9.6%±0.9 pts	12.4%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	93.8%±0.4 pts	93.5%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What does housing cost in Monterey County?

Owners occupy 52.1% of Monterey County's occupied homes and renters 47.9%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $781,000 by its owner (±$13,801). The median renter pays $2,055 a month including utilities, and 45.0% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Monterey County	California	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$781,000±$13,801	$734,700	+$145,224
Median gross rent	$2,055±$32	$2,036	+$215
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	45.0%±2.0 pts	46.0%	no clear change
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$2,832±$52	$2,946	–
Owner-occupied homes	52.1%±1.0 pts	55.9%	no clear change
Housing units	145,469±143	14,644,735	+3,649
Homeowner vacancy rate	0.7%±0.2 pts	0.8%	–
Rental vacancy rate	2.1%±0.5 pts	4.2%	–
Single-family detached homes	63.0%±1.0 pts	57.0%	–
Mobile homes	4.0%±0.4 pts	3.5%	–
Built 2020 or later	0.6%±0.1 pts	1.3%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	7.0%±0.4 pts	8.9%	–

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP04) · Check it at data.census.gov

How many new homes is Monterey County building?

Builders took permits for 775 new housing units across Monterey County in 2025 (663 single-family), 1.8 per 1,000 residents.

2019 480 units
2020 753 units
2021 882 units
2022 1,086 units
2023 617 units
2024 677 units
2025 775 units

Source: Building Permits Survey, annual county files 2019-2025, U.S. Census Bureau · Census Building Permits Survey

How do people in Monterey County get to work?

70.3% of Monterey County's workers drive alone and 9.8% work from home. The average trip to work takes 25.4 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 5.2%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Monterey County	California	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	60.1%±0.6 pts	63.8%	–
Unemployment rate	5.2%±0.4 pts	6.6%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	70.3%±1.0 pts	65.7%	–
Carpooled	9.9%±0.7 pts	9.5%	–
Public transportation	1.1%±0.2 pts	2.9%	–
Walked	2.9%±0.3 pts	2.4%	–
Worked from home	9.8%±0.6 pts	17.2%	+5.2 pts
Mean travel time to work	25.4 min±0.4	28.7 min	+2.0 min

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) (Data Profile DP03) · Check it at data.census.gov

What are Monterey County's census tracts?

Monterey County is divided into 104 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $50,250 (Tract 13) to $199,643 (Tract 116.06).

All 104 census tracts of Monterey County, with their figures

Source: American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) · Check it at data.census.gov

How does Monterey County compare with California's other counties?

Monterey County's rank among California's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	21st of 58
Growth 2020-2025	36th of 58
Residents per square mile	25th of 58
Median household income	21st of 58
Median home value	17th of 58
Median gross rent	16th of 56
Poverty rate	30th of 57
Bachelor's degree or higher	28th of 58
Median age	45th of 58

Every county in California

Source: PlainCities ranks from the American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates, U.S. Census Bureau (released January 2026) and PEP Vintage 2025 · How ranks are computed

How these figures are made: methodology and release checks · reading a margin of error · every state · corrections

Not on this page: crime, weather and schools for Monterey County are other agencies' records. Crime: the FBI's Crime Data Explorer · climate: NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals · schools: the National Center for Education Statistics' school search.