Huntington Beach is a city located in Orange County California. Huntington Beach has a 2024 population of 190,037. Huntington Beach is currently declining at a rate of -1.09% annually and its population has decreased by -4.22% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 198,405 in 2020.
The average household income in Huntington Beach is $151,196 with a poverty rate of 7.26%. The median age in Huntington Beach is 43.3 years: 42.2 years for males, and 44.1 years for females.
Named for Henry Huntington, it’s Orange County’s most populous beach city and the 7th most populous city in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim metropolitan area. Known as the Surf City or HB.
The foreign-born population of Huntington Beach is 16.6% or 33,500. The largest age group in Huntington Beach is 65 and over and it’s frequently named as one of the best places in the U.S. to retire. Huntington Beach has one of the country’s <a href=”https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/news/tn-dpt-me-hb-seniors-20180213-story.html”>highest senior populations. Huntington Beach is also the second-most prosperous city in Southern California with 22.1% of its population earning more than $150,000 per year.
About 16% of the population in Huntington Beach are foreign-born versus 57% who were born in California.
California has the country’s worst poverty rate in the U.S. after adjusting for the cost of living thanks to its shortage of affordable housing. In 2019, the California Governor sued Huntington Beach for violating the state’s housing supply law in an attempt to create more housing in the city. While the lawsuit against the city argues that Huntington Beach has ignored a law requiring cities to zone land for new home construction, many residents feel that Huntington Beach is already growing too quickly. Despite a lack of housing, Huntington Beach is expected to continue its modest growth.
Originally inhabited by the Tongva or Grabrielinos, Huntington Beach’s settlement by Europeans <a href=”https://www.huntingtonbeachca.gov/about/history/”>began with Manuel Nieto, a Spanish soldier who received a Spanish land grant of 300,000 acres in reward for military service. His land was later reduced due a dispute with the Mission San Gabriel. The land was originally used to raise barley, horses, and cattle. By 1889, the region was known as the city of Shell Beach, then the town of Smeltzer. It later became Fairview then Pacific City after it was developed as a tourist destination. P.A. Stanton purchased 40 acres of beach along Main Street with a dream to build a coastal town on the Pacific Coast rivaling Atlantic City.
In 1909 Huntington Beach was incorporated but remained a very small seaside community until the oil boom in the 1920s after the discovery of what was then California’s largest oil deposit. Within a month, the town grew from 1,500 to 5,000 people. By the 1950s, oil derricks were cleaned out to make room for new houses and the population began to take off from 11,500 in 1960 to 115,900 in 1970.
According to the most recent ACS, the racial composition of Huntington Beach was:
Race | Population | Percentage (of total) |
---|---|---|
White | 129,873 | 65.76% |
Asian | 24,683 | 12.5% |
Two or more races | 23,713 | 12.01% |
Other race | 14,930 | 7.56% |
Black or African American | 2,415 | 1.22% |
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander | 978 | 0.5% |
Native American | 889 | 0.45% |
White
Asian
Two or more races
Other race
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
Native American
Household Type | Count | Average Size | Owner | Renter |
---|---|---|---|---|
All | 77,641 | 2.53 | 55.7 | 44.3 |
Married | 37,260 | 3.18 | 68.7 | 31.3 |
Non Family | 28,279 | 1.36 | 43.7 | 56.3 |
Female | 8,025 | 3.31 | 45.8 | 54.2 |
Male | 4,077 | 3.1 | 39.1 | 60.9 |
3.09
Average Family Size
2.53
Average Household Size
55.7%
Rate of Home Ownership
Married
Male
Female
NonFamily
owner
renter
Male
Female
Education Attained | Count | Percentage |
---|---|---|
9th to 12th Grade | 5,181 | 3.54% |
Associates Degree | 13,074 | 8.93% |
Bachelors Degree | 42,532 | 29.06% |
Graduate Degree | 25,753 | 17.6% |
High School Graduate | 23,537 | 16.08% |
Less Than 9th Grade | 4,340 | 2.97% |
Some College | 31,929 | 21.82% |
Less Than 9th Grade
9th to 12th Grade
High School Graduate
Some College
Associates Degree
Bachelors Degree
Graduate Degree
High School Graduation Rate
Bachelors Rate
Race | Total | High School | Bachelors |
---|---|---|---|
White | 93,153 | 90,437 | 45,530 |
Hispanic | 24,036 | 19,811 | 7,265 |
Asian | 19,384 | 17,219 | 10,626 |
2+ Races | 13,027 | 12,069 | 6,098 |
Other Race | 9,229 | 6,797 | 2,112 |
Black | 2,070 | 2,024 | 908 |
Native American | 824 | 664 | 242 |
Islander | 699 | 692 | 219 |
The highest rate of high school graduation is among islander people with a rate of 99%.
The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 54.82%.
All
Male
Female
Name | Average | Male | Female |
---|---|---|---|
Bachelors Degree | $85,192 | $96,047 | $74,335 |
Graduate Degree | $110,054 | $127,552 | $94,557 |
High School Graduate | $41,468 | $48,770 | $34,272 |
Less Than 9th Grade | $29,765 | $33,463 | $26,678 |
Overall | $69,015 | $80,067 | $57,367 |
Some College | $56,084 | $68,427 | $47,021 |
$69,015
Average Earnings
$80,067
Average Male
$57,367
Average Female
Only English
Spanish
Other Indo-European Languages
Asian and Pacific Island Languages
Other Languages
77.23% of Huntington Beach residents speak only English, while 22.77% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 9.51% of the population.
rate
Name | Total | In Poverty | Poverty Rate |
---|---|---|---|
White | 117,697 | 7,779 | 6.61% |
Hispanic | 38,440 | 3,341 | 8.69% |
Asian | 24,635 | 2,233 | 9.06% |
Other | 14,714 | 2,087 | 14.18% |
Multiple | 23,531 | 1,179 | 5.01% |
Black | 2,371 | 190 | 8.01% |
Native | 879 | 157 | 17.86% |
Islander | 913 | 21 | 2.3% |
7.26%
Overall Poverty Rate
6.72%
Male Poverty Rate
7.81%
Female Poverty Rate
The race most likely to be in poverty in Huntington Beach is Native, with 17.86% below the poverty level.
The race least likely to be in poverty in Huntington Beach is Islander, with 2.3% below the poverty level.
The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 1.42%. Among those working part-time, it was 8.11%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 14.12%.
rate
Rate | Poverty |
---|---|
Less Than 9th Grade | 19.17% |
High School | 11.31% |
Some College | 6.19% |
Bachelors or Greater | 3.88% |
rate
Rate | Poverty |
---|---|
Male Unemployed | 16.83% |
Female Unemployed | 12.79% |
Female Employed | 3.56% |
Male Employed | 2.99% |
Households
Families
MarriedFamilies
NonFamilies
Name | Median | Mean |
---|---|---|
Families | $136,494 | $172,551 |
Households | $114,747 | $151,196 |
Married Families | $156,462 | $194,614 |
Non Families | $81,889 | $104,548 |
mean
median
Married
Widowed
Divorced
Separated
NeverMarried
47.8%
Overall Marriage Rate
49.1%
Male Marriage Rate
46.5%
Female Marriage Rate
male
female
The age group where males are most likely to be married is Over 65, while the female age group most likely to be married is 35-44.
Married
Widowed
Divorced
Separated
NeverMarried
Second Gulf War
First Gulf War
Vietnam
Korea
World War II
8,945
Number of Veterans
8,190
Male Veterans
755
Female Veterans
War | Veterans |
---|---|
Vietnam | 3,367 |
Second Gulf War | 1,695 |
First Gulf War | 1,339 |
Korea | 939 |
World War II | 158 |
count
Age Group | Veterans |
---|---|
75+ | 2,935 |
65 to 74 | 2,129 |
35 to 54 | 1,525 |
55 to 64 | 1,514 |
18 to 34 | 842 |
count
Name | Veterans | % of Total |
---|---|---|
White | 6,842 | 6.17% |
Hispanic | 1,417 | 4.92% |
2+ Races | 708 | 4.56% |
Asian | 604 | 2.9% |
Other Race | 391 | 3.54% |
Black | 227 | 10.09% |
Islander | 143 | 18.79% |
Native American | 30 | 3.55% |
Less Than 9th Grade
High School Graduate
Some College
Bachelors or Greater
5.79%
Veteran Poverty Rate
24.51%
Veteran Disability Rate
LaborForceParticipation
66.3%
Labor Force Participation
62.6%
Employment Rate
5.4%
Unemployment Rate
LaborForceParticipation
LaborForceParticipation
Europe
Asia
Africa
Oceania
Latin America
North America
Non citizens include legal permanent residents (green card holders), international students, temporary workers, humanitarian migrants, and illegal immigrants.
Europe
Asia
Africa
Oceania
Latin America
North America
59.83%
Born in Huntington Beach
83.72%
Native Born
16.28%
Foreign Born
5.46%
Non Citizen
10.82%
Naturalized
83.72% of Huntington Beach residents were born in the United States, with 59.83% having been born in California. 5.46% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Asia.
Year | Population | Growth | Change |
---|---|---|---|
2029 | 179,577 | -2,092 | -1.15% |
2028 | 181,669 | -2,092 | -1.14% |
2027 | 183,761 | -2,092 | -1.13% |
2026 | 185,853 | -2,092 | -1.11% |
2025 | 187,945 | -2,092 | -1.1% |
2024 | 190,037 | -2,092 | -1.09% |
2023 | 192,129 | -2,066 | -1.06% |
2022 | 194,195 | -2,232 | -1.14% |
2021 | 196,427 | -1,978 | -1% |
2020 | 198,405 | -1,086 | -0.54% |
2019 | 199,491 | -726 | -0.36% |
2018 | 200,217 | -304 | -0.15% |
2017 | 200,521 | -59 | -0.03% |
2016 | 200,580 | 1,381 | 0.69% |
2015 | 199,199 | 2,017 | 1.02% |
2014 | 197,182 | 1,635 | 0.84% |
2013 | 195,547 | 1,591 | 0.82% |
2012 | 193,956 | 1,357 | 0.7% |
2011 | 192,599 | 1,519 | 0.79% |
2010 | 191,080 | 0 | 0% |
2000 | 189,594 | 8,075 | 4.45% |
1990 | 181,519 | 11,014 | 6.46% |
1980 | 170,505 | 54,545 | 47.04% |
1970 | 115,960 | 104,468 | 909.05% |
1960 | 11,492 | 6,255 | 119.44% |
1950 | 5,237 | 1,499 | 40.1% |
1940 | 3,738 | 48 | 1.3% |
1930 | 3,690 | 2,003 | 118.73% |
1920 | 1,687 | 872 | 106.99% |
1910 | 815 | -178,762 | -99.55% |