Imperial County, California Population 2024

179,174

Imperial County, California's estimated 2024 population is 179,174 with a growth rate of 0.07% in the past year according to the most recent United States census data. Imperial County, California is the 31st largest county in California. The 2010 population was 174,704 and has seen a growth of 2.56% since that time.

Note: data after 2022 is projected based on recent change
Year
Population
Growth
Change
2029179,7591170.07%
2028179,6421170.07%
2027179,5251170.07%
2026179,4081170.07%
2025179,2911170.07%
2024179,1741170.07%
2023179,0571170.07%
2022178,940-198-0.11%
2021179,138-474-0.26%
2020179,612-827-0.46%
2019180,439-623-0.34%
2018181,062-188-0.1%
2017181,2501,3690.76%
2016179,8811,1800.66%
2015178,7019150.51%
2014177,7861,4850.84%
2013176,301-186-0.11%
2012176,4877560.43%
2011175,7311,0270.59%
2010174,70400%
1990109,30317,19318.67%
198092,11017,61823.65%
197074,4922,3873.31%
196072,1059,13014.5%
195062,9753,2355.42%
194059,740-1,163-1.91%
193060,90317,45040.16%
192043,45329,862219.72%
191013,591-166,168-92.44%
2024 Growth Rate
0.07% (117)
County Website
Imperial County
County Seat
El Centro
2020 Population
179,612
Area
4176 mi²
Density
43 people/mi²
Growth Since 2020
-0.24% (-438)

Population by Race

Race
Population
Percentage (of total)
White70,86039.46%
Other race62,55134.83%
Two or more races36,15620.13%
Black or African American4,6082.57%
Asian2,7101.51%
Native American2,6341.47%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander590.03%

White

Other race

Two or more races

Black or African American

Asian

Native American

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Imperial County, California Population by Race

Imperial County, California Population Pyramid 2024

Imperial County, California Median Age

32.6

Total

31.6

Male

33.6

Female

Imperial County, California Adults

There are 128,529 adults, (23,671 of whom are seniors) in Imperial County, California.

Imperial County, California Age Dependency

71.3

Age Dependency Ratio

22.6

Old Age Dependency Ratio

48.7

Child Dependency Ratio

Imperial County, California Sex Ratio

Female87,14848.53%
Male92,43051.47%

Imperial County, California Population by Age

Imperial County, California Renter vs Owner Occupied by Household Type

Household Type
Count
Average Size
Owner
Renter
All47,0243.6557.742.3
Married22,2784.3971.928.1
Non Family12,1621.2347.452.6
Female9,0084.9139.760.3
Male3,5764.0449.650.4

4.36

Average Family Size

3.65

Average Household Size

57.7%

Rate of Home Ownership

Married

Male

Female

NonFamily

owner

renter

Imperial County, California Households and Families

Male

Female

Education Attained
Count
Percentage
9th to 12th Grade15,91814.44%
Associates Degree8,3607.59%
Bachelors Degree13,00811.8%
Graduate Degree4,5324.11%
High School Graduate27,88425.3%
Less Than 9th Grade15,74214.28%
Some College24,75722.47%

Less Than 9th Grade

9th to 12th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Associates Degree

Bachelors Degree

Graduate Degree

Imperial County, California Educational Attainment by Sex (over 25)

Imperial County, California Educational Attainment by Race

High School Graduation Rate

Bachelors Rate

Race
Total
High School
Bachelors
Hispanic90,13860,68612,533
Other Race39,07124,2034,470
2+ Races20,98815,2393,641
White13,34212,3243,681
Black3,5372,770392
Asian1,9731,744858
Native American1,7051,270261
Islander48480

The highest rate of high school graduation is among islander people with a rate of 100%.

The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 43.49%.

Imperial County, California Educational Attainment by Race

All

Male

Female

Name
Average
Male
Female
Bachelors Degree$50,511$68,513$42,050
Graduate Degree$80,451$86,657$72,289
High School Graduate$33,299$39,969$21,806
Less Than 9th Grade$22,867$28,530$15,983
Overall$34,612$42,306$27,065
Some College$38,768$49,369$32,537

$34,612

Average Earnings

$42,306

Average Male

$27,065

Average Female

Imperial County, California Earnings by Educational Attainment

Imperial County, California Language by Age

Only English

Spanish

Other Indo-European Languages

Asian and Pacific Island Languages

Other Languages

Imperial County, California Language

25.5% of Imperial County, California residents speak only English, while 74.5% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 73.13% of the population.

Imperial County, California Language

Imperial County, California Poverty by Race

rate

Name
Total
In Poverty
Poverty Rate
Hispanic148,02132,71822.1%
Other58,11811,90020.48%
Multiple35,3156,96819.73%
White16,5162,03412.32%
Native2,47679031.91%
Black2,88169424.09%
Asian2,5832519.72%
Islander2414.17%

21.05%

Overall Poverty Rate

18.79%

Male Poverty Rate

23.26%

Female Poverty Rate

Poverty in Imperial County, California

The race most likely to be in poverty in Imperial County, California is Native, with 31.91% below the poverty level.

The race least likely to be in poverty in Imperial County, California is Islander, with 4.17% below the poverty level.

The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 3.05%. Among those working part-time, it was 20.37%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 28.53%.

Imperial County, California Poverty

rate

Rate
Poverty
Less Than 9th Grade27.63%
High School17.81%
Some College13.87%
Bachelors or Greater6.98%

Imperial County, California Poverty Rate by Education

rate

Rate
Poverty
Female Unemployed32.86%
Male Unemployed28.33%
Female Employed9.87%
Male Employed6.74%

Imperial County, California Poverty Rate by Employment Status and Sex

Imperial County, California Income by Household Type

Households

Families

MarriedFamilies

NonFamilies

Name
Median
Mean
Families$60,776$80,038
Households$53,847$72,923
Married Families$79,850$96,011
Non Families$27,159$45,226

mean

median

Income by Household Type

Imperial County, California Marital Status

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Marriage Rates

41.8%

Overall Marriage Rate

43.4%

Male Marriage Rate

40.0%

Female Marriage Rate

Imperial County, California Married by Age and Sex

male

female

Imperial County, California Marriage

The age group where males are most likely to be married is 55-64, while the female age group most likely to be married is 55-64.

Imperial County, California Marital Status by Race

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Imperial County, California Marital Status

Second Gulf War

First Gulf War

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

5,045

Number of Veterans

4,734

Male Veterans

311

Female Veterans

War
Veterans
Second Gulf War1,638
First Gulf War1,352
Vietnam1,217
Korea343
World War II43

Imperial County, California Veterans by War

count

Age Group
Veterans
35 to 541,743
75+1,031
65 to 74875
18 to 34748
55 to 64648

Imperial County, California Veterans by Age

count

Name
Veterans
% of Total
Hispanic3,0702.88%
White2,3714.87%
2+ Races1,0444.2%
Other Race9251.98%
Black46111.57%
Native American1508.23%
Asian944.51%

Imperial County, California Veterans by Race

Imperial County, California Veterans by Education

Less Than 9th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Bachelors or Greater

10.81%

Veteran Poverty Rate

35.89%

Veteran Disability Rate

Imperial County, California Veterans by Education

LaborForceParticipation

52.3%

Labor Force Participation

45.2%

Employment Rate

13.2%

Unemployment Rate

Imperial County, California Employment by Age

LaborForceParticipation

Imperial County, California Employment by Race

LaborForceParticipation

Imperial County, California Employment by Education

Origin of Non-Citizens

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.

Origin of Naturalized Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

59.77%

Born in Imperial County, California

69.45%

Native Born

30.55%

Foreign Born

14.51%

Non Citizen

16.04%

Naturalized

Place of Birth

69.45% of Imperial County, California residents were born in the United States, with 59.77% having been born in California. 14.51% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.

Imperial County, California Place of Birth

Sources