County · California

Santa Barbara County, California

Santa Barbara County, California. Santa Barbara County had 442,065 residents in 2025 by the Census Bureau's estimate, down 1.4% since 2020, a steeper fall than California's (−0.5%). It holds 28 places (8 cities, villages and boroughs and 20 census-designated) and 109 census tracts. GEOID 06083.

Santa Barbara County is the county of the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metropolitan statistical area (the Census Bureau's July 2023 delineation).

Residents, July 2025 estimate

442,065

Census Bureau estimate (no margin published)
2020 Census count: 448,229 · ACS 2020-2024: 443,701

Median household income

$98,161

±$2,430 (90% margin)
California: $99,122

Median home value

$790,700

±$17,571 (90% margin)
California: $734,700

Median gross rent

$2,131

±$35 (90% margin)
California: $2,036

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

The 2020 Census counted 448,229 residents in Santa Barbara County. The Census Bureau estimates 442,065 for July 1, 2025, down 1.4% since 2020, a steeper fall than California's (−0.5%). The 2020-2024 American Community Survey puts the population at 443,701 over 2,734 square miles of land.

July 2020→2021 −10,796 (437,529)
2021→2022 +7,872 (445,401)
2022→2023 −2,523 (442,878)
2023→2024 +203 (443,081)
2024→2025 −1,016 (442,065)

Santa Barbara County in California. Boundaries: Census Bureau 2024.

Counts, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates, with the change from 2015-2019
Measure	Santa Barbara County	California	Change since 2015-2019
Total population	443,701	39,287,377	−1,128
Households	149,608±835	13,548,091	+3,752
Average household size	2.81±0.02	2.84	−0.10
Housing units	160,592±195	14,644,735	+3,431

Santa Barbara County's population since 2000

From 399,347 in 2000 to 442,065 in 2025: up 10.7%. 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 399,347
2005 (estimate) 408,079
2010 Census 423,895
2015 (estimate) 442,051
2020 Census 448,229
2025 (estimate) 442,065

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 Santa Barbara County?

Santa Barbara County holds 28 places: 8 cities, villages and boroughs (incorporated places) and 20 census-designated places. The largest is Santa Maria with 111,390 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 Santa Barbara County, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Ring: estimate with a coefficient of variation over 40%.

Santa Maria	city	109,707	110,462±74	$84,746	$531,700	17.3%	100%
Santa Barbara	city	88,665	87,779±52	$106,182	$1,570,800	14.0%	100%
Lompoc	city	44,444	43,646±45	$72,004	$472,900	17.3%	100%
Goleta	city	32,690	32,685±44	$122,370	$1,062,100	9.3%	100%
Orcutt	CDP	32,034	31,454±1,864	$111,416	$624,500	8.0%	100%
Eastern Goleta Valley	CDP	28,656	28,295±1,514	$146,284	$1,361,700	7.9%	100%
Isla Vista	CDP	15,500	13,920±1,069	$25,972	$1,218,800	70.4%	100%
Carpinteria	city	13,264	13,036±25	$100,658	$1,043,100	7.0%	100%
University of California-Santa Barbara	CDP	9,710	12,121±523	$69,327	$452,900	17.5%	100%
Montecito	CDP	8,638	9,031±666	$231,005	$2,000,000 or more	8.3%	100%
Guadalupe	city	8,057	8,566±45	$66,930	$495,600	27.7%	100%
Vandenberg Village	CDP	7,308	6,776±865	$110,904	$637,100	3.3%	100%
Solvang	city	6,126	6,034±29	$109,091	$949,600	11.3%	100%
Buellton	city	5,161	5,074±32	$99,936	$837,400	4.9%	100%
Santa Ynez	CDP	4,505	4,467±878	$110,781	$1,163,000	13.0%	100%
Mission Hills	CDP	3,571	3,859±707	$111,974	$492,900	5.4%	100%
Vandenberg AFBGEOID 0682072	CDP	3,559	3,477±379	$84,167	not published	1.4%	100%
Mission Canyon	CDP	2,540	2,357±447	$208,466	$2,000,000 or more	5.6%	100%
Los AlamosGEOID 0643252	CDP	1,839	1,163±475	$79,167	$831,300	2.8%	100%
Toro Canyon	CDP	1,835	1,477±339	$140,743	$2,000,000 or more	6.0%	100%
SummerlandGEOID 0675714	CDP	1,222	1,348±424	$95,694	$2,000,000 or more	12.2%	100%
Los Olivos	CDP	1,202	1,038±240	$143,229	$1,522,700	3.0%	100%
Ballard	CDP	768	863±298	$140,833	$1,742,200	15.2%	100%
New Cuyama	CDP	542	555±118	$60,759	$216,500	13.9%	100%
SisquocGEOID 0672086	CDP	191	158±77	not published	$573,900	20.9%	100%
CasmaliaGEOID 0611754	CDP	147	55±50	not published	not published	36.4%	100%
GareyGEOID 0629070	CDP	72	28±23	$162,679	$767,900	0.0%	100%
CuyamaGEOID 0617727	CDP	37	21±24	not published	not published	0.0%	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 Santa Barbara County?

The median resident of Santa Barbara County is 34.6 years old; 22.4% are under 18 and 16.6% are 65 or older. The largest group is Hispanic or Latino residents (of any race) at 48.2%, then non-Hispanic white residents at 40.6%. 22.2% 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	Santa Barbara County	California	Change since 2015-2019
Median age	34.6±0.1	37.9	+0.8
Under 18 years	22.4%	22.0%	–
65 years and over	16.6%±0.1 pts	15.7%	–
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	48.2%	40.2%	+2.8 pts
White alone, not Hispanic	40.6%±0.1 pts	33.8%	−3.9 pts
Black or African American alone, not Hispanic	1.5%±0.1 pts	5.2%	−0.4 pts
Asian alone, not Hispanic	5.2%±0.2 pts	15.3%	no clear change
American Indian and Alaska Native alone, not Hispanic	0.2%±0.1 pts	0.3%	–
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, not Hispanic	0.1%±0.1 pts	0.3%	–
Two or more races, not Hispanic	3.7%±0.2 pts	4.4%	–
Some other race alone, not Hispanic	0.5%±0.1 pts	0.6%	–
Born outside the United States	22.2%±0.6 pts	27.0%	−0.8 pts
Speak a language other than English at home (age 5+)	40.5%±0.7 pts	44.4%	–
Civilian veterans (age 18+)	4.6%±0.3 pts	4.3%	–
With a disability	11.3%±0.4 pts	11.6%	–
No health insurance coverage	8.7%±0.5 pts	6.6%	−1.3 pts
High school graduate or higher (age 25+)	81.9%±0.6 pts	84.7%	–
Bachelor's degree or higher (age 25+)	36.8%±0.7 pts	37.1%	+2.6 pts
Graduate or professional degree (age 25+)	14.8%±0.5 pts	14.4%	–
Moved from another state in the past year	1.6%±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 Santa Barbara County earn?

Half of Santa Barbara County's 149,608 households earn less than $98,161 a year (±$2,430), against $99,122 in California. In 2015-2019 the median was $91,839 in 2024 dollars, so it rose by $6,322 after inflation. 14.7% of residents live below the poverty line.

Income and poverty in 2024 dollars, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Santa Barbara County	California	Change since 2015-2019
Median household income	$98,161±$2,430	$99,122	+$6,322
Mean household income	$140,893±$2,772	$140,436	–
Per capita income	$48,028±$926	$49,513	+$3,675
People below the poverty line	14.7%±0.8 pts	12.0%	+1.2 pts
Children under 18 below the poverty line	17.8%±1.9 pts	15.0%	no clear change
Households receiving SNAP	10.9%±0.7 pts	12.4%	–
Households with a broadband subscription	92.5%±0.5 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 Santa Barbara County?

Owners occupy 52.4% of Santa Barbara County's occupied homes and renters 47.6%. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $790,700 by its owner (±$17,571). The median renter pays $2,131 a month including utilities, and 49.5% of renters pay 35% or more of their income on rent.

Housing, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Santa Barbara County	California	Change since 2015-2019
Median home value (owner-occupied)	$790,700±$17,571	$734,700	+$80,097
Median gross rent	$2,131±$35	$2,036	+$109
Renters paying 35% or more of income on rent	49.5%±1.7 pts	46.0%	+2.7 pts
Median monthly owner costs, with a mortgage	$2,973±$51	$2,946	–
Owner-occupied homes	52.4%±0.9 pts	55.9%	no clear change
Housing units	160,592±195	14,644,735	+3,431
Homeowner vacancy rate	0.6%±0.2 pts	0.8%	–
Rental vacancy rate	3.3%±0.6 pts	4.2%	–
Single-family detached homes	56.1%±0.9 pts	57.0%	–
Mobile homes	4.6%±0.4 pts	3.5%	–
Built 2020 or later	0.7%±0.2 pts	1.3%	–
Built 1939 or earlier	8.0%±0.5 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 Santa Barbara County building?

Builders took permits for 1,371 new housing units across Santa Barbara County in 2025 (433 single-family), 3.1 per 1,000 residents.

2019 1,175 units
2020 1,027 units
2021 1,152 units
2022 1,096 units
2023 471 units
2024 750 units
2025 1,371 units

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

How do people in Santa Barbara County get to work?

64.7% of Santa Barbara County's workers drive alone and 13.4% work from home. The average trip to work takes 20.8 minutes. The unemployment rate in 2020-2024 averaged 6.4%.

Work and commuting, ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Measure	Santa Barbara County	California	Change since 2015-2019
In the labor force (age 16+)	62.5%±0.6 pts	63.8%	–
Unemployment rate	6.4%±0.5 pts	6.6%	no clear change
Drove alone to work	64.7%±1.1 pts	65.7%	–
Carpooled	11.7%±0.7 pts	9.5%	–
Public transportation	2.2%±0.3 pts	2.9%	–
Walked	3.9%±0.5 pts	2.4%	–
Worked from home	13.4%±0.7 pts	17.2%	+7.1 pts
Mean travel time to work	20.8 min±0.4	28.7 min	no clear change

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 Santa Barbara County's census tracts?

Santa Barbara County is divided into 109 census tracts. Among those with a reliable estimate, median household income runs from $22,722 (Tract 29.26) to $246,607 (Tract 15).

All 109 census tracts of Santa Barbara 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 Santa Barbara County compare with California's other counties?

Santa Barbara County's rank among California's counties with a reliable estimate (1 = highest)
Measure	Rank
Population	20th of 58
Growth 2020-2025	34th of 58
Residents per square mile	23rd of 58
Median household income	19th of 58
Median home value	16th of 58
Median gross rent	14th of 56
Poverty rate	18th of 57
Bachelor's degree or higher	18th of 58
Median age	49th 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 Santa Barbara 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.