Butte County, California Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Butte County, California, including popular demographics data like median age, number of households, household income, gender, employment and unemployment rates, occupations, religion, and more.

We are using the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year survey data from the US Census Bureau, which is accurate up to 2021.

Table of Contents

Population

There is a lot of data that lets us see how many people live in Butte County, California. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Butte County, California. The estimated population of Butte County, California is 217,884 people, with a median age of 36.6.

We can look at the total population in Butte County over the last 5 years to see how much it has changed.

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
217,884
 -2.44% -3.25%
2020
223,344
 -1.1% -
2019
225,817
 -0.55% -
2018
227,075
+0.83%
-
2017
225,207
 - -

Population of Butte County, California by Race and Ethnicity

We can also look at how the population has changed over the last 5 years by each of the race/ethnicity types as defined by the US Census Bureau.

Race 2021 2017 Change
White
70.3%
72.9%
 -3.57%
Black/African American
1.8%
1.5%
 +20.00%
Native
0.7%
0.7%
 0.00%
Hispanic
17.4%
15.7%
 +10.83%
Asian
4.9%
4.4%
 +11.36%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0.2%
0.2%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
4.6%
4.5%
 +2.22%
Other
0.1%
0.2%
 -50.00%

This data can be very important for a number of reasons, including social and economic research, planning and development, and marketing to a multi-cultural population.

Note that the Native group includes both Native American and Alaskan Native people.

Population of Butte County, California by Age and Gender

The age and gender of a population is another interesting demographic statistic because it lets us track trends in the population over time. For example, we can see how the population has changed over the last 5 years by median age as a total, and also by male and female.

Year Total Male Female
2021 36.6 -0.81% 35.6 0% 37.8 -1.05%
2020 36.9 -0.54% 35.6 0% 38.2 -0.78%
2019 37.1 0% 35.6 +0.28% 38.5 -0.26%
2018 37.1 +0.54% 35.5 +0.28% 38.6 +0.26%
2017 36.9 - 35.4 - 38.5 -

The median age of Butte County, California gives you an idea of the age distribution, with half of the population being older than the median age and half being younger.

This can then be used to infer and compare against birth rates, parent ages, and more metrics to understand the population. For example, an increasing median age indicates an aging population, which can be a sign of a declining population in terms of birth rates and workforce participation.

Age 2021 2017
(Years) Male Female Male Female
0 to 9 13,271 -4.34% 12,794 -7.5% 12,699 11,843
10 to 19 14,045 -1.51% 13,222 +5.27% 13,832 13,926
20 to 29 21,050 -6.09% 19,661 -4.45% 19,782 18,790
30 to 39 12,481 +8.69% 12,752 +1.01% 13,600 12,874
40 to 49 12,292 -6.14% 11,221 -2.28% 11,550 10,964
50 to 59 13,868 -11.48% 14,934 -13.59% 12,339 13,005
60 to 69 13,342 -4.7% 14,188 -1.54% 12,714 13,938
70+ 11,238 +3.84% 14,848 -3.06% 11,652 14,376

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Butte County, California is $59,863.00.

In simple terms, the median income is the middle income of a group of people. Half of the people in the group make more than the median income, and half make less. The median income is a good indicator of the overall income of a group of people, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more.

Median Income by Age

We can also look at the median income by age to see how the median income varies by age, and how it compares to the overall median income for Butte County.

  • Under 25
    $30,360.00
  • 25 to 44
    $66,606.00
  • 45 to 64
    $75,172.00
  • 65 and over
    $50,979.00

Average Household Income

Whenever we ask what is the average household income in Butte County, we are actually talking about the mean household income.

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Butte County, and then dividing that number by the total number of households. This is a good way to get a general idea of the average income of a group of people, but it can be skewed by a very high or very low incomes.

The average household income of Butte County, California is currently $84,766.00.

In terms of accurately summarizing income at a geographic level, the median income is a better metric than the average income because it isn't affected by a small number of very high or very low incomes.

If you had an area where the average income was greater than the median, it can mean that there is significant income inequality, with income being concentrated in a small number of wealthy households.

7.46% of households in Butte County are classed as high income households (making $200,000+ per year).

Household Income Tiers

The US Census Bureau divides households into income tiers based on the median income for the area. This is a good way to compare the income of Butte County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    21.46%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    21.64%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    16.10%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    12.08%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    14.46%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    6.81%
  • $200,000 or more
    7.46%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Butte County is $33,424.00.

Per capita income is the average income of a person in a given area. It is calculated by dividing the total income of Butte County by the total population of Butte County.

This is different from the average or mean income because it includes and accounts for all people in Butte County, California, including people like children, the elderly, unemployed people, retired people, and more.

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Butte County to see how many people have a high school degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree.

Educational attainment is a good indicator of the overall education level of a population, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more to see how education levels affect income, unemployment rates, and more.

  • Master's degree or higher
    11.56%
  • Bachelor's degree
    35.06%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    15.49%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    33.69%
  • Less than high school diploma
    4.21%

Employment

Employment rates are all based around the total population in Butte County that are over the age of 16.

The total population of Butte County over the age of 16 is 178,693.

Of those people, a total of 58.10% are working or actively looking for work. This is called the labor force participation rate.

The participation rate is a useful market measure because it shows the relative amount of labor resources available to the economy.

The employment to total population rate in Butte County is 53.80%.

Employment by Age

We can look at the employment rates by age to see how it compares to the overall employment rate.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
16 to 19 years 13,109 34.90% 16.20%
20 to 24 years 23,417 74.30% 13.00%
25 to 29 years 15,155 81.10% 7.60%
30 to 34 years 13,029 80.50% 5.80%
35 to 44 years 24,849 80.60% 5.50%
45 to 54 years 22,820 74.90% 4.20%
55 to 59 years 13,634 62.90% 4.30%
60 to 64 years 13,486 47.70% 6.40%
65 to 74 years 23,673 25.50% 4.70%
75 years and over 15,521 5.30% 0.70%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Butte County. The table below shows the rates for each of the ethnicity groups types defined by the US Census Bureau.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
White 142,375 57.00% 6.80%
Black or African American 3,322 54.90% 14.20%
American Indian and Alaska Native 1,993 53.20% 4.60%
Asian 8,205 62.40% 7.20%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 517 41.00% 17.90%
Other 9,466 68.70% 8.20%
Two or more races 12,815 61.90% 8.40%
Hispanic or Latino 27,999 66.70% 9.50%
Not Hispanic or Latino 130,552 56.10% 6.30%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Butte County as well as the gender breakdown and earnings of them.

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in Butte County is 96,203, with median earnings of $34,616.00.

Women in Butte County, California earning approximately 78.20% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 96,203 $34,616.00
Male 49,724 $39,187.00
Female 46,479 $30,641.00

Occupations by Category

In the table below, we can break down the population and earnings even further by occupation. The list of occupation categories below will show you how many people are employed in each category and the median earnings of each profession.

Occupation Employed Earnings
Management 10,224 $65,346.00
Business and Financial 3,689 $54,738.00
Computer and Mathematical 1,881 $65,804.00
Architecture and Engineering 1,418 $70,789.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 1,223 $54,576.00
Community and Social Service 2,058 $37,540.00
Legal 642 $85,294.00
Educational and Library 7,198 $50,391.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 1,995 $29,540.00
Healthcare Practitioners 6,370 $72,698.00
Healthcare Support 5,278 $20,895.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 1,193 $49,271.00
Law Enforcement 711 $67,804.00
Food Preparation and Serving 6,651 $14,771.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 3,483 $22,097.00
Personal Care and Service 2,710 $17,104.00
Sales 9,312 $26,827.00
Office and Administrative Support 11,415 $31,371.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 1,569 $27,671.00
Construction and Extraction 4,280 $39,667.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 2,575 $45,763.00
Production 3,997 $35,117.00
Transportation and Material Moving 2,928 $40,435.00

Occupations by Gender

The table below shows the same occupations from the list above, but we have split them by male and female to see how many male and females work in each occupation, the median earnings, and the male to female ratio of earnings.

That last metric is important because it can be used to look at the gender pay gap between men and women.

Occupation Male Female
Population Earnings Population Earnings
Management 6,420 $76,293.00 3,804 $57,131.00
Business and Financial 1,297 $63,139.00 2,392 $53,524.00
Computer and Mathematical 1,435 $59,625.00 446 $76,250.00
Architecture and Engineering 1,067 $76,827.00 351 $41,765.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 827 $57,979.00 396 $47,500.00
Community and Social Service 708 $38,194.00 1,350 $34,524.00
Legal 288 $93,462.00 354 $63,500.00
Educational and Library 2,310 $63,373.00 4,888 $44,429.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 1,000 $31,763.00 995 $28,278.00
Healthcare Practitioners 1,672 $103,125.00 4,698 $65,816.00
Healthcare Support 1,300 $13,950.00 3,978 $23,271.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 959 $53,876.00 234 $16,310.00
Law Enforcement 600 $69,167.00 111 $44,867.00
Food Preparation and Serving 3,087 $15,617.00 3,564 $14,054.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 2,333 $26,394.00 1,150 $15,924.00
Personal Care and Service 654 $20,000.00 2,056 $16,555.00
Sales 4,888 $30,887.00 4,424 $22,552.00
Office and Administrative Support 3,004 $32,282.00 8,411 $30,790.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 1,168 $29,107.00 401 $25,326.00
Construction and Extraction 4,105 $39,564.00 175 $49,625.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 2,565 $45,874.00 10 $0.00
Production 3,037 $36,891.00 960 $21,820.00
Transportation and Material Moving 2,334 $41,575.00 594 $26,719.00

Households and Family Size

A household defined bu the US Census Bureau is a group of people who occupy a housing unit. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, group of rooms, or single room occupied as separate living quarters.

There are currently 85,292 households in Butte County, with an average household size of 2.48 people.

A family is defined as a group of two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption who live together in the same household.

There are 51,149 families in Butte County with an average family size of 3.03 people.

Households by Marital Status

The four categories of household by marital status are:

  • Married-couple family
  • Male householder with no spouse present
  • Female household with no spouse present
  • Nonfamily household

The table below shows the total number of households and families, with the average sizes of each.

Married Male Female Nonfamily
Total Households 35,714 4,970 10,465 34,143
Average Household Size 3.15 3.07 3.25 1.47
Total Families 35,714 4,970 10,465 0
Average Household Size 3.11 2.58 2.95 0

Poverty

Of the 51,149 families in Butte County, 10.50% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Butte County:

Household Size Poverty Threshold
1 Person $14,580.00
2 People $19,720.00
3 People $24,860.00
4 People $30,000.00
5 People $35,140.00
6 People $40,280.00
7 People $45,420.00
8 People $50,560.00

Housing

There are 95,047 housing units in Butte County, California.

The table below shows the split between occupied and vacant units:

Total Percentage
Occupied 85,292 89.74%
Vacant 9,755 10.26%

35.66% of the total 95,047 housing units in Butte County are rental units. This is approximately 33,895 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 49,549 are occupied by the owner - or 52.13% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Butte County is $1,172.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Butte County that fall into a particular rent range. These can then be used to compare with other areas, or to see how they have changed over time.

  • No rent paid
    1,848
  • Less than $500
    1,465
  • $500 to $999
    10,527
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    12,686
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    6,495
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    1,458
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    912
  • $3,000 or more
    352

Property Value

The median value of a property in Butte County is $325,600.00.

Just like with rental rates, we can look at the number of properties in Butte County that fall into a particular value range.

  • Less than $50,000
    2,929
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    2,082
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    2,726
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    4,528
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    9,647
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    17,840
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    8,475
  • $1,000,000 or more
    1,322

Property Age

We can also look at the age of properties in Butte County. The chart below shows the number of properties in Butte County that fall into a particular age range.

  • 1939 or earlier
    6,417
  • 1940 to 1949
    5,349
  • 1950 to 1959
    9,323
  • 1960 to 1969
    8,758
  • 1970 to 1979
    19,502
  • 1980 to 1989
    17,491
  • 1990 to 1999
    12,249
  • 2000 to 2009
    10,194
  • 2010 to 2013
    5,323
  • 2014 or later
    441

Vehicles per Household

The number of vehicles available per household can be a good indicator of the level of affluence in an area. The chart below shows the number of households in Butte County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    5,346
  • 1 vehicle available
    25,315
  • 2 vehicles available
    31,772
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    22,859

Commuting to Work

In this section, we can also look at how people in Butte County get to work. The chart below shows the number of people in Butte County that commute to work in a particular way.

21.4 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Butte County.

These commute times can be compared to other date like income and educational levels to see how they relate to each other and if there are any trends in the data that might suggest a correlation.

  • Less than 5 minutes
    3,814
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    15,939
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    19,336
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    13,650
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    7,004
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    3,987
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    7,872
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    2,215
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    1,388
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    4,165
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    2,627
  • 90 or more minutes
    2,569

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Butte County, California in this article! Hopefully you have found it very useful in your research of the area.

If you use any of the data found on this page, please consider linking back to USPopulation.org as the source and if you have any feedback or data requests, click here to contact us.

Places in Butte County, California

We have data for 38 places in Butte County, California. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.