Kern County, California Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Kern 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 Kern County, California. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Kern County, California. The estimated population of Kern County, California is 905,644 people, with a median age of 32.1.

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

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
905,644
+1.48%
+3.06%
2020
892,458
+0.54%
-
2019
887,641
+0.52%
-
2018
883,053
+0.49%
-
2017
878,744
 - -

Population of Kern 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
32.2%
35.4%
 -9.04%
Black/African American
5.1%
5.1%
 0.00%
Native
0.4%
0.5%
 -20.00%
Hispanic
54.7%
52.2%
 +4.79%
Asian
4.7%
4.5%
 +4.44%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0.1%
0.1%
 0.00%
Two Or More Races
2.5%
2.1%
 +19.05%
Other
0.3%
0.1%
 +200.00%

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 Kern 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 32.1 +0.63% 31.6 +0.96% 32.5 0%
2020 31.9 +0.95% 31.3 +0.64% 32.5 +0.93%
2019 31.6 +0.32% 31.1 +0.32% 32.2 +0.31%
2018 31.5 +0.64% 31 +0.65% 32.1 +0.63%
2017 31.3 - 30.8 - 31.9 -

The median age of Kern 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 74,300 -3.12% 71,712 -3.82% 71,989 69,008
10 to 19 69,841 +7.86% 66,766 +7.51% 75,465 71,909
20 to 29 75,204 -2.31% 64,219 -1.28% 73,474 63,395
30 to 39 64,346 +8.02% 56,249 +6.14% 69,654 59,792
40 to 49 54,592 +3.11% 50,399 +1.87% 56,280 51,325
50 to 59 50,911 +0.04% 49,374 -2.73% 50,918 48,039
60 to 69 35,180 +11.78% 37,105 +10.81% 39,502 41,281
70+ 26,019 +9.42% 32,527 +7.59% 28,557 35,056

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Kern County, California is $58,824.00.

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 Kern County.

  • Under 25
    $37,871.00
  • 25 to 44
    $63,422.00
  • 45 to 64
    $67,327.00
  • 65 and over
    $44,124.00

Average Household Income

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

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Kern 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 Kern County, California is currently $80,195.00.

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.

5.78% of households in Kern 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 Kern County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    20.47%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    22.80%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    16.94%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    12.88%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    14.47%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    6.66%
  • $200,000 or more
    5.78%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Kern County is $25,328.00.

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

This is different from the average or mean income because it includes and accounts for all people in Kern 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 Kern 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
    8.62%
  • Bachelor's degree
    22.78%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    14.58%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    46.92%
  • Less than high school diploma
    7.11%

Employment

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

The total population of Kern County over the age of 16 is 671,496.

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 Kern County is 52.70%.

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 54,223 26.90% 25.20%
20 to 24 years 65,030 69.80% 14.40%
25 to 29 years 71,839 72.40% 9.50%
30 to 34 years 67,509 74.50% 7.40%
35 to 44 years 118,210 73.80% 6.90%
45 to 54 years 100,736 71.70% 7.40%
55 to 59 years 49,553 62.70% 6.30%
60 to 64 years 45,376 49.40% 6.60%
65 to 74 years 61,305 21.30% 5.70%
75 years and over 37,715 5.20% 8.00%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Kern 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 423,993 57.60% 8.40%
Black or African American 36,486 51.20% 15.90%
American Indian and Alaska Native 7,141 52.10% 11.50%
Asian 34,888 60.50% 5.30%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 1,038 58.50% 17.40%
Other 90,076 60.70% 9.40%
Two or more races 77,874 60.70% 9.20%
Hispanic or Latino 341,897 61.10% 8.80%
Not Hispanic or Latino 239,459 54.80% 8.20%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Kern 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 Kern County is 353,637, with median earnings of $33,895.00.

Women in Kern County, California earning approximately 66.80% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 353,637 $33,895.00
Male 197,406 $40,328.00
Female 156,231 $26,942.00

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 26,143 $68,170.00
Business and Financial 9,833 $63,702.00
Computer and Mathematical 6,126 $78,595.00
Architecture and Engineering 6,371 $92,928.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 3,041 $65,397.00
Community and Social Service 6,569 $49,447.00
Legal 1,883 $83,438.00
Educational and Library 21,943 $44,902.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 3,690 $31,429.00
Healthcare Practitioners 14,745 $72,886.00
Healthcare Support 14,497 $23,791.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 4,409 $31,399.00
Law Enforcement 5,879 $89,062.00
Food Preparation and Serving 18,543 $16,403.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 13,782 $26,066.00
Personal Care and Service 9,591 $15,596.00
Sales 30,160 $26,173.00
Office and Administrative Support 36,972 $33,868.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 31,472 $20,671.00
Construction and Extraction 23,271 $43,540.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 13,165 $47,638.00
Production 15,928 $36,096.00
Transportation and Material Moving 16,914 $42,802.00

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 15,955 $85,152.00 10,188 $55,696.00
Business and Financial 4,853 $76,473.00 4,980 $53,620.00
Computer and Mathematical 4,574 $88,855.00 1,552 $51,136.00
Architecture and Engineering 5,463 $99,618.00 908 $68,676.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 1,662 $70,000.00 1,379 $64,026.00
Community and Social Service 2,618 $53,033.00 3,951 $46,474.00
Legal 919 $125,082.00 964 $48,617.00
Educational and Library 5,404 $54,231.00 16,539 $42,771.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 2,162 $32,274.00 1,528 $26,812.00
Healthcare Practitioners 4,576 $77,560.00 10,169 $70,964.00
Healthcare Support 2,270 $24,754.00 12,227 $23,652.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 3,268 $33,542.00 1,141 $26,740.00
Law Enforcement 5,363 $89,844.00 516 $70,217.00
Food Preparation and Serving 7,537 $18,750.00 11,006 $15,452.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 8,807 $30,546.00 4,975 $19,056.00
Personal Care and Service 2,219 $25,022.00 7,372 $14,180.00
Sales 14,801 $34,632.00 15,359 $20,952.00
Office and Administrative Support 8,301 $37,480.00 28,671 $32,411.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 20,468 $23,069.00 11,004 $16,487.00
Construction and Extraction 22,817 $44,105.00 454 $28,750.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 12,961 $47,906.00 204 $28,750.00
Production 12,135 $41,587.00 3,793 $23,644.00
Transportation and Material Moving 15,014 $45,886.00 1,900 $23,361.00

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 274,705 households in Kern County, with an average household size of 3.19 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 203,732 families in Kern County with an average family size of 3.71 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 138,442 20,914 44,376 70,973
Average Household Size 3.83 3.71 3.99 1.28
Total Families 138,442 20,914 44,376 0
Average Household Size 3.78 3.24 3.69 0

Poverty

Of the 203,732 families in Kern County, 15.60% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Kern 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 299,810 housing units in Kern County, California.

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

Total Percentage
Occupied 274,705 91.63%
Vacant 25,105 8.37%

35.60% of the total 299,810 housing units in Kern County are rental units. This is approximately 106,730 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 162,816 are occupied by the owner - or 54.31% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Kern County is $1,063.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Kern 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
    5,159
  • Less than $500
    5,929
  • $500 to $999
    41,774
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    37,054
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    15,380
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    4,767
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    1,079
  • $3,000 or more
    747

Property Value

The median value of a property in Kern County is $241,400.00.

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

  • Less than $50,000
    7,675
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    9,094
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    15,759
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    25,486
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    52,795
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    39,152
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    10,849
  • $1,000,000 or more
    2,006

Property Age

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

  • 1939 or earlier
    13,433
  • 1940 to 1949
    13,528
  • 1950 to 1959
    31,690
  • 1960 to 1969
    28,834
  • 1970 to 1979
    48,167
  • 1980 to 1989
    50,225
  • 1990 to 1999
    42,233
  • 2000 to 2009
    52,665
  • 2010 to 2013
    18,876
  • 2014 or later
    159

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 Kern County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    17,861
  • 1 vehicle available
    82,849
  • 2 vehicles available
    103,504
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    70,491

Commuting to Work

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

23.7 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Kern 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
    7,567
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    32,212
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    51,381
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    71,142
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    57,893
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    22,723
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    37,330
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    4,136
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    7,566
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    14,051
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    11,195
  • 90 or more minutes
    10,450

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Kern 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 Kern County, California

We have data for 71 places in Kern County, California. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.