Note: As defined by the US Census Bureau, a city's official boundaries often extend miles beyond the city itself and may even cross county lines. As such, several thousand US cities officially exist in two or more counties (and therefore appear on multiple counties' lists of cities.)
City | Rank | 2024 Pop. | 2020 Pop. | Change | Density (/mi²) | Area (mi²) | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Cruz | 1 | 61,021 | 62,941 | -0.78% | 4,790 | 12.7 | City |
| Watsonville | 2 | 50,328 | 52,482 | -1.06% | 7,416 | 6.8 | City |
| Scotts Valley | 3 | 11,762 | 12,228 | -0.98% | 2,547 | 4.6 | City |
| Soquel | 4 | 10,648 | 10,721 | 0.67% | 2,316 | 4.6 | CDP |
| Capitola | 5 | 9,456 | 9,920 | -1.21% | 5,932 | 1.6 | City |
| Rio Mar | 6 | 8,972 | 9,713 | -0.2% | 2,991 | 3.0 | CDP |
| Ben Lomond | 7 | 7,416 | 7,378 | 1.16% | 886 | 8.4 | CDP |
| Pleasure Point | 8 | 6,894 | 6,173 | 7.7% | 9,192 | 0.8 | CDP |
| Aptos | 9 | 6,680 | 6,245 | 0.5% | 1,016 | 6.6 | CDP |
| Boulder Creek | 10 | 5,587 | 5,305 | 0.87% | 744 | 7.5 | CDP |
| Twin Lakes | 11 | 5,119 | 5,546 | 0.29% | 7,408 | 0.7 | CDP |
| Felton | 12 | 3,642 | 3,197 | -0.79% | 785 | 4.6 | CDP |
| Seacliff | 13 | 3,597 | 3,580 | 0.64% | 4,927 | 0.7 | CDP |
| Freedom | 14 | 3,408 | 3,959 | 0.71% | 3,008 | 1.1 | CDP |
| Day Valley | 15 | 3,226 | 3,414 | -0.4% | 174 | 18.5 | CDP |
| Bonny Doon | 16 | 2,888 | 2,962 | 0.52% | 174 | 16.6 | CDP |
| Corralitos | 17 | 2,125 | 2,260 | -0.7% | 239 | 8.9 | CDP |
| Aptos Hills-Larkin Valley | 18 | 1,640 | 1,397 | -3.13% | 177 | 9.3 | CDP |
| Pasatiempo | 19 | 1,301 | 1,226 | 1.4% | 1,462 | 0.9 | CDP |
| Mount Hermon | 20 | 1,197 | 1,394 | 1.01% | 1,842 | 0.7 | CDP |
| Brookdale | 21 | 984 | 1,293 | -6.82% | 256 | 3.8 | CDP |
| Lompico | 22 | 873 | 881 | -2.13% | 258 | 3.4 | CDP |
| Davenport | 23 | 690 | 509 | 2.99% | 243 | 2.8 | CDP |
| Paradise Park | 24 | 563 | 468 | 2.36% | 2,025 | 0.3 | CDP |
| Zayante | 25 | 409 | 765 | -4.88% | 145 | 2.8 | CDP |
Note: City markers shown outside the county boundary mean that a part of the city extends into this county, but is primarily located in an adjacent county.
Santa Cruz is the largest city in Santa Cruz County.
Zayante is the smallest city in Santa Cruz County.
There are 25 cities in Santa Cruz County, California.