San Luis Obispo County, California

San Luis Obispo County has a population of 281,555 and has grown 0.0% since the 2020 census. The median home is worth $824,700, about 8.5 times the county's median household income of $97,446.

Home price
$824,700
Income
$97,446
Population
281,555
Unemployment
5.5%

Housing

Home values, rent, property taxes, insurance and how local prices relate to local incomes.

Median home price$824,700county
Median gross rent$1,992county
Median year homes here were built1983county
Share of homes built before 198043.8%county
Share of homes that are manufactured or mobile7.9%county
Share of homes that are vacant12.9%county
Share of occupied homes that are rented37.9%county
Share of homes held for seasonal or occasional use8.1%county
Typical monthly rent$2,835county
HUD fair market rent, 2-bed$2,671county
HUD fair market rent, 1-bed$2,036county
HUD fair market rent, 3-bed$3,584county
Home insurance / yr$1,616(statewide)

Money

Household earnings and buying power. Adjusted income restates local income using the statewide cost-of-living index.

Cost of living142.3(statewide)
Median household income$97,446county
Family health premium / yr$24,143(statewide)
Infant childcare / yr$21,945(statewide)
Regular gas price / gal$5.593(statewide)
Poverty rate12.9%county

Jobs

What people here do for work, who they work for, whether they work from home, and how much of the local economy sits in one industry.

Workers who work from home15.2%county
Unemployment rate5.5%county
Share of adults in the labor force58.2%county
Share of workers who are self-employed8.3%county
Share of workers employed by government19.5%county
Share of workers in the largest industry23.4%county
Economic output per resident$87,036county

Taxes

State tax rules that can affect take-home pay, investments and everyday purchases.

Property tax rate0.68%county
Top state income tax13.30%(statewide)
Capital gains tax13.30%(statewide)
Combined sales tax9.03%(statewide)

Transportation

Distance to air travel and how people get around locally. Distances are straight-line from the county's population-weighted centre, so driving is further.

Mean commute time22.3 mincounty
Miles to nearest airport with airline service7.3 micounty
Passengers boarding at the nearest airline airport366428county
Miles to nearest general aviation field17 micounty
Airports with airline service located here1county
General aviation airfields located here2county
Passenger train stations and the railway network3county
Miles to the nearest passenger rail station4.6 micounty
Households without a vehicle3.8%county
Traffic deaths28.1county
Change in traffic deaths per 100,000-1.8(statewide)

Schools

Public schools and colleges counted where they actually sit, plus the education level of adults who live here. Students per teacher is a staffing measure, not a quality ranking.

Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher39.8%county
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma or higher92.2%county
Public schools in the county81county
Public school enrollment32720county
Students per full-time teacher21.2county
Free lunch eligible53.3%county
Elementary schools45county
Middle schools11county
High schools20county
Institutions granting bachelor's degrees or above2county
Share of local colleges that are public50.0%county
Two-year institutions2county
Miles to the nearest bachelor's-granting institution3.0 micounty

Health

Primary care physicians83county
Medicare-certified hospitals in this county3county
Hospitals here with an emergency department3county
Average CMS star rating of hospitals here3county
Fine particulate matter10.0 µgcounty
Without health insurance5.7%county
Adults who were food insecure in the past year12.6%county
Adults who received food assistance in the past year11.2%county
Frequent mental distress16.6%county
No leisure-time physical activity17.6%county
Diagnosed diabetes9.6%county

Place

Who lives here and what the place is like: population, age, migration, safety and civic profile.

Population281,555county
Land area in square miles3,301county
People per square mile of land85.3county
Supermarkets and grocery stores62county
Convenience stores19county
Share living far from a food store20.2%county
Share living in a low-income, low-access tract3.7%county
Population change since 20200.0%county
Natural change per 1,000 residents-1county
Net international migration per 1,000 residents0county
Median age40.4 yrscounty
Share of residents under 1817.5%county
Share of residents 65 and over22.1%county
Share of households that are one person26.1%county
Share of residents born outside the United States9.9%county
Second languages17.5%county
Share of residents on a religious body’s rolls38.6%county
Congregations per 100,000 residents81county
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents1county
Households that moved in6,452county
Households that moved away6,579county
Average income of arriving households$103,683county
Average income of departing households$77,168county
Homes authorised per 1,000 existing homes5county
Housing units authorised in the latest year663county
Share of permitted homes in multifamily buildings3.2%county
Violent crime rate486(statewide)

Weather

Measured annual temperature, precipitation and snowfall. These are climate facts, not a ranking.

Avg. annual temperature60.6°Fcounty
Annual precipitation18.7 incounty
Annual snowfall0.0 incounty
Average daily solar energy5.37 kWh/m²county
Days reaching 90°F30 dayscounty
Days at or below freezing8 dayscounty

Gardening

Plant hardiness zoneZone 8bcounty
Frost-free days245 dayscounty
Average last spring frostMar 19county
Average first fall frostNov 19county

Utilities

Average monthly electric bill$198county
Electric utilities serving this county1county
Electricity price per kWh39.6¢county
Household electricity use500 kWhcounty
Residential natural gas price$20.81(statewide)
Homes heated by electricity20.7%county
Homes heated by utility gas65.5%county
Homes heated by propane7.7%county
Homes heated by fuel oil0.0%county
Homes heated by wood2.5%county
Households with broadband93.1%county

Risk

Relative exposure to air pollution and natural hazards. Higher values indicate more measured risk, not a prediction.

Riverine flood risk96.7county
Coastal flood risk50.0county
Drought risk99.6county
Landslide risk99.4county
Hail risk14.0county
Earthquake risk97.9county
Tornado risk6.1county
Tropical cyclone risk0.0county
Extreme heat risk78.7county
Winter weather risk2.6county
Strong wind risk4.8county
Wildfire risk98.3county

Sports

Major pro teams based here0county
NFL teams based here0county
NBA teams based here0county
MLB teams based here0county
NHL teams based here0county
MLS soccer teams based here0county
Top-division college football teams0county
Second-tier college football teams1county
Affiliated minor league baseball teams0county
AHL teams based here0county
ECHL teams based here0county

Figures marked county are measured for San Luis Obispo County directly. The rest are published at state level only and show the California figure — see methodology for each source and its limits.

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