county

Kern County, CA

Demographic and economic profile of Kern County, CA, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Kern County's economy of 922,529 residents is anchored in agriculture and energy extraction, reflected in a GDP per capita of $52,249 against relatively modest median worker earnings of $35,890. The workforce skews young at a median age of 32.7, with 18.6% holding a bachelor's degree or higher and a labor force participation rate of 58.8%, alongside an unemployment rate of 8.4%. Housing costs remain comparatively low, with a median home value of $310,600 and median gross rent of $1,220/month, and the county posted 3.1% population growth over five years.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

922,529

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Household Income

$70,210

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

32.7 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+3.1% since 2018

Kern County added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone402,035 (43.9%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race193,478 (21.1%)
  • Some Other Race Alone177,000 (19.3%)
  • Asian Alone48,277 (5.3%)
  • Black or African American Alone46,662 (5.1%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races33,920 (3.7%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish335,599
  2. 2.Other Indo-European12,096
  3. 3.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)10,599
  4. 4.Other Asian and Pacific Island6,738
  5. 5.Arabic5,060

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

28.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

59.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

11.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

20.2%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

31,813

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

$52,249

Data USA · as of 2023

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$29,238

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

8.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

19.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance83,029
  2. 2.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining45,529
  3. 3.Retail Trade (Group)39,956
  4. 4.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services30,507
  5. 5.Arts, Entertainment, & Recreation, & Accommodation & Food Services29,762

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations109,482
  2. 2.Service Occupations68,977
  3. 3.Sales & Office Occupations66,824
  4. 4.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations64,357
  5. 5.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations56,129

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting, & Mining (LQ 8.10×)46,880
  2. 2.Public Administration (LQ 1.34×)23,053
  3. 3.Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities (LQ 1.24×)26,385
  4. 4.Construction (LQ 1.05×)26,473
  5. 5.Retail Trade (LQ 1.00×)39,473

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$310,600

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$1,220/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

60.1%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $300,000 to $399,99943,977 (25.7%)
  • $400,000 to $499,99929,198 (17.1%)
  • $500,000 to $749,99921,315 (12.5%)
  • $250,000 to $299,99919,472 (11.4%)
  • $200,000 to $249,99919,272 (11.3%)
  • $150,000 to $174,9995,387 (3.1%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

18.6%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

77.1%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

58.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$35,890

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

24.4 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

6.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone279,407 (78.4%)
  • Carpooled40,811 (11.4%)
  • Worked At Home26,632 (7.5%)
  • Walked3,576 (1.0%)
  • Other3,554 (1.0%)
  • Public Transit1,299 (0.4%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Similar Locations

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.