Cities in California by civilian labor force

Los Angeles, CA had the highest civilian labor force of 281 cities in 2020, at 2 million. Paradise, CA had the lowest, at 1,340. The median was 30,275. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest2,004,688Los Angeles, CA
Lowest1,340Paradise, CA
Median30,275281 cities

Top 40 cities, 2020

Los Angeles, CA: 2,004,688 personsLos Angeles, CA2,004,688San Diego, CA: 697,096 personsSan Diego, CA697,096San Jose, CA: 533,428 personsSan Jose, CA533,428San Francisco, CA: 520,700 personsSan Francisco, CA520,700Sacramento, CA: 255,169 personsSacramento, CA255,169Long Beach, CA: 241,125 personsLong Beach, CA241,125Fresno, CA: 238,743 personsFresno, CA238,743Oakland, CA: 232,860 personsOakland, CA232,860Bakersfield, CA: 183,246 personsBakersfield, CA183,246Anaheim, CA: 174,782 personsAnaheim, CA174,782Riverside, CA: 153,431 personsRiverside, CA153,431Santa Ana, CA: 153,373 personsSanta Ana, CA153,373Irvine, CA: 150,024 personsIrvine, CA150,024Stockton, CA: 141,272 personsStockton, CA141,272Chula Vista, CA: 127,349 personsChula Vista, CA127,349Fremont, CA: 114,940 personsFremont, CA114,940Santa Clarita, CA: 114,564 personsSanta Clarita, CA114,564Huntington Beach, CA: 102,760 personsHuntington Beach, CA102,760Fontana, CA: 99,647 personsFontana, CA99,647San Bernardino, CA: 98,437 personsSan Bernardino, CA98,437Modesto, CA: 97,115 personsModesto, CA97,115Oxnard, CA: 97,063 personsOxnard, CA97,063Glendale, CA: 96,519 personsGlendale, CA96,519Moreno Valley, CA: 96,498 personsMoreno Valley, CA96,498Santa Rosa, CA: 90,095 personsSanta Rosa, CA90,095Rancho Cucamonga, CA: 86,700 personsRancho Cucamonga, CA86,700Ontario, CA: 86,241 personsOntario, CA86,241Sunnyvale, CA: 85,110 personsSunnyvale, CA85,110Oceanside, CA: 85,093 personsOceanside, CA85,093Garden Grove, CA: 84,822 personsGarden Grove, CA84,822Hayward, CA: 84,225 personsHayward, CA84,225Elk Grove, CA: 82,024 personsElk Grove, CA82,024Salinas, CA: 80,857 personsSalinas, CA80,857Corona, CA: 79,082 personsCorona, CA79,082Pasadena, CA: 74,935 personsPasadena, CA74,935Palmdale, CA: 72,527 personsPalmdale, CA72,527Santa Clara, CA: 72,072 personsSanta Clara, CA72,072Escondido, CA: 71,796 personsEscondido, CA71,796Torrance, CA: 71,702 personsTorrance, CA71,702Pomona, CA: 71,455 personsPomona, CA71,455Los Angeles, CA: 2,004,688 personsLos Angeles, CA2,004,688San Diego, CA: 697,096 personsSan Diego, CA697,096San Jose, CA: 533,428 personsSan Jose, CA533,428San Francisco, CA: 520,700 personsSan Francisco, CA520,700Sacramento, CA: 255,169 personsSacramento, CA255,169Long Beach, CA: 241,125 personsLong Beach, CA241,125Fresno, CA: 238,743 personsFresno, CA238,743Oakland, CA: 232,860 personsOakland, CA232,860Bakersfield, CA: 183,246 personsBakersfield, CA183,246Anaheim, CA: 174,782 personsAnaheim, CA174,782Riverside, CA: 153,431 personsRiverside, CA153,431Santa Ana, CA: 153,373 personsSanta Ana, CA153,373Irvine, CA: 150,024 personsIrvine, CA150,024Stockton, CA: 141,272 personsStockton, CA141,272Chula Vista, CA: 127,349 personsChula Vista, CA127,349Fremont, CA: 114,940 personsFremont, CA114,940Santa Clarita, CA: 114,564 personsSanta Clarita, CA114,564Huntington Beach, CA: 102,760 personsHuntington Beach, CA102,760Fontana, CA: 99,647 personsFontana, CA99,647San Bernardino, CA: 98,437 personsSan Bernardino, CA98,437Modesto, CA: 97,115 personsModesto, CA97,115Oxnard, CA: 97,063 personsOxnard, CA97,063Glendale, CA: 96,519 personsGlendale, CA96,519Moreno Valley, CA: 96,498 personsMoreno Valley, CA96,498Santa Rosa, CA: 90,095 personsSanta Rosa, CA90,095Rancho Cucamonga, CA: 86,700 personsRancho Cucamonga, CA86,700Ontario, CA: 86,241 personsOntario, CA86,241Sunnyvale, CA: 85,110 personsSunnyvale, CA85,110Oceanside, CA: 85,093 personsOceanside, CA85,093Garden Grove, CA: 84,822 personsGarden Grove, CA84,822Hayward, CA: 84,225 personsHayward, CA84,225Elk Grove, CA: 82,024 personsElk Grove, CA82,024Salinas, CA: 80,857 personsSalinas, CA80,857Corona, CA: 79,082 personsCorona, CA79,082Pasadena, CA: 74,935 personsPasadena, CA74,935Palmdale, CA: 72,527 personsPalmdale, CA72,527Santa Clara, CA: 72,072 personsSanta Clara, CA72,072Escondido, CA: 71,796 personsEscondido, CA71,796Torrance, CA: 71,702 personsTorrance, CA71,702Pomona, CA: 71,455 personsPomona, CA71,455
persons. Source: BLS, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2020
persons
Change on 2019
1Los Angeles, CA2,004,688-3.1%
2San Diego, CA697,096-2.5%
3San Jose, CA533,428-1.7%
4San Francisco, CA520,700-3.7%
5Sacramento, CA255,169-0.1%
6Long Beach, CA241,125-3.8%
7Fresno, CA238,743-0.4%
8Oakland, CA232,860-1.4%
9Bakersfield, CA183,246+1.2%
10Anaheim, CA174,782-1.9%
11Riverside, CA153,431+0.3%
12Santa Ana, CA153,373-2.6%
13Irvine, CA150,024-3.6%
14Stockton, CA141,272+1.7%
15Chula Vista, CA127,349-1.2%
16Fremont, CA114,940-4.6%
17Santa Clarita, CA114,564-4.6%
18Huntington Beach, CA102,760-3.8%
19Fontana, CA99,647+1.6%
20San Bernardino, CA98,437+1.8%
21Modesto, CA97,115+0.8%
22Oxnard, CA97,063-2.6%
23Glendale, CA96,519-2.7%
24Moreno Valley, CA96,498+1.6%
25Santa Rosa, CA90,095-4.5%
26Rancho Cucamonga, CA86,700+0.3%
27Ontario, CA86,241+1.8%
28Sunnyvale, CA85,110-4%
29Oceanside, CA85,093-2.8%
30Garden Grove, CA84,822-0.9%
31Hayward, CA84,225-2.5%
32Elk Grove, CA82,024-0.1%
33Salinas, CA80,857-3.6%
34Corona, CA79,082+0.9%
35Pasadena, CA74,935-5.4%
36Palmdale, CA72,527-4.4%
37Santa Clara, CA72,072+0.6%
38Escondido, CA71,796-3.4%
39Torrance, CA71,702-5.5%
40Pomona, CA71,455-4.3%
41Roseville, CA71,357-0.2%
42Orange, CA70,541-4.6%
43Fullerton, CA69,205-2.9%
44Lancaster, CA68,913-4%
45Simi Valley, CA65,820-2.3%
46Visalia, CA64,546+0.6%
47Costa Mesa, CA63,670-4.1%
48Concord, CA63,449-3.1%
49Thousand Oaks, CA61,869-3%
50Berkeley, CA61,712-5.5%
51Vallejo, CA60,924-1.9%
52Daly City, CA60,453-1.1%
53San Mateo, CA58,295-4.8%
54Richmond, CA58,069-1.6%
55Downey, CA57,426-4.3%
56Burbank, CA56,651-2.8%
57Antioch, CA56,446-1%
58Inglewood, CA56,243-1.9%
59San Buenaventura (Ventura), CA55,677-2.2%
60Clovis, CA55,148+0.4%
61Fairfield, CA55,034-2.6%
62West Covina, CA54,007-4.2%
63Carlsbad, CA53,566-2.5%
64Santa Maria, CA51,602-2.4%
65Santa Monica, CA51,200-5.8%
66Victorville, CA51,195+2.5%
67El Monte, CA51,123-2.7%
68Temecula, CA50,951+1%
69Chico, CA50,848-4.6%
70Murrieta, CA50,212+1.9%
71Norwalk, CA50,033-3.5%
72Jurupa Valley, CA48,867+1.1%
73Vista, CA48,384-2.8%
74Rialto, CA47,871+1.1%
75Santa Barbara, CA47,778-2.1%
76San Leandro, CA47,347-2.2%
77El Cajon, CA46,657-0.7%
78Carson, CA46,274-3.7%
79Mountain View, CA46,027-3.9%
80Tracy, CA45,431+4.1%
81Livermore, CA45,165-4.4%
82Mission Viejo, CA45,043-4.4%
83South Gate, CA44,902-3.8%
84Hawthorne, CA44,848-1.7%
85Vacaville, CA44,798-2.8%
86Redwood City, CA44,523-5.4%
87Lake Forest, CA44,225-4.6%
88San Marcos, CA44,217-3.7%
89Compton, CA43,879-3.1%
90Chino, CA43,807+1.5%
91Menifee, CA43,457+2.9%
92Buena Park, CA42,883-2.6%
93Alhambra, CA42,840-2.4%
94Milpitas, CA42,661-1.5%
95Lakewood, CA42,442-4.5%
96Westminster, CA42,325-0.7%
97Indio, CA41,908+2.4%
98Citrus Heights, CA41,892-0.8%
99San Ramon, CA41,835-4.3%
100Whittier, CA41,646-4.7%
101Newport Beach, CA41,357-4.4%
102Redding, CA41,134+0.7%
103Napa, CA40,840-5.5%
104Tustin, CA40,311-3.5%
105Upland, CA40,272+0.5%
106Hesperia, CA39,665+1.2%
107Chino Hills, CA39,452+0.5%
108Bellflower, CA39,065-3.4%
109Alameda, CA39,047-3.6%
110South San Francisco, CA38,218-2.2%
111Pleasanton, CA37,833-5.7%
112Redondo Beach, CA37,643-6.1%
113Folsom, CA37,299-0.5%
114Manteca, CA37,181+3.2%
115Rancho Cordova, CA37,059-0%
116Pittsburg, CA37,041-1%
117Merced, CA36,033+3.6%
118Union City, CA35,877-3.9%
119Eastvale, CA35,453+1.1%
120Perris, CA35,261+1.1%
121Dublin, CA35,158-4.4%
122Redlands, CA34,846-0.3%
123Baldwin Park, CA34,345-3.4%
124Lake Elsinore, CA33,817+2%
125Hemet, CA33,501+1.8%
126Rocklin, CA32,954-1.3%
127Laguna Niguel, CA32,601-4.3%
128Santa Cruz, CA32,544-5.7%
129Camarillo, CA32,452-2.4%
130Turlock, CA32,352-0.2%
131Walnut Creek, CA32,217-4.6%
132Palo Alto, CA32,058-5%
133Davis, CA31,863-3.9%
134Yorba Linda, CA31,688-4.4%
135La Habra, CA31,625-3.5%
136Gardena, CA31,582-3%
137Yuba City, CA31,514-0.1%
138Encinitas, CA31,372-4.3%
139La Mesa, CA30,490-2.9%
140Montebello, CA30,380-4.1%
141Lodi, CA30,275+1.3%
142Pico Rivera, CA30,034-4.2%
143San Clemente, CA30,010-3.9%
144San Rafael, CA29,946-6%
145Petaluma, CA29,944-4.5%
146Brentwood, CA29,441-2%
147Monterey Park, CA29,339-1.5%
148Lynwood, CA29,280-3.5%
149Woodland, CA29,137-1.8%
150Tulare, CA28,918+2.1%
151Gilroy, CA28,498-1%
152Aliso Viejo, CA28,423-4.6%
153National City, CA28,357+3.1%
154Madera, CA28,050-1.8%
155Cupertino, CA27,998-4.9%
156Apple Valley, CA27,731+0.5%
157Porterville, CA27,721-0.9%
158Santee, CA27,575-3.8%
159Diamond Bar, CA27,125-5%
160Covina, CA26,780-4.4%
161Fountain Valley, CA26,644-2.9%
162West Sacramento, CA26,588-1.7%
163Newark, CA26,084-3%
164Paramount, CA26,027-3.7%
165Rancho Santa Margarita, CA25,930-5.2%
166Colton, CA25,572+1.2%
167Cathedral City, CA25,466+4.1%
168Highland, CA25,437+1.1%
169Azusa, CA25,415-5.2%
170Arcadia, CA25,361-4.7%
171Placentia, CA25,359-3.6%
172Rosemead, CA25,338+0.3%
173West Hollywood, CA25,202-3.1%
174Huntington Park, CA25,136-4.9%
175San Luis Obispo, CA24,741-3.3%
176San Bruno, CA24,690-3%
177Glendora, CA24,476-5.5%
178Rohnert Park, CA24,455-3.5%
179Novato, CA24,430-4.7%
180Cypress, CA24,101-2.9%
181Watsonville, CA24,063-4.5%
182Yucaipa, CA23,878-0%
183La Mirada, CA23,568-4.7%
184Hanford, CA23,466-0.8%
185Beaumont, CA23,457+2.5%
186Delano, CA23,076-5.5%
187Campbell, CA22,993-2.6%
188Brea, CA22,841-3.5%
189Cerritos, CA22,748-4.8%
190San Jacinto, CA22,694+3.6%
191Morgan Hill, CA22,306-0.5%
192Poway, CA22,266-4.9%
193Palm Desert, CA21,830+2.9%
194Oakley, CA21,814-1.9%
195Culver City, CA21,577-5.3%
196Coachella, CA21,569+1.4%
197Pacifica, CA20,992-3.8%
198Ceres, CA20,809-0.3%
199Hollister, CA20,500+1.4%
200San Gabriel, CA20,327-2.1%
201Palm Springs, CA20,174+3.5%
202Danville, CA20,057-5.2%
203Lincoln, CA19,613-1.4%
204Monrovia, CA19,383-3.3%
205Lompoc, CA19,316-2.1%
206Martinez, CA18,987-4.6%
207El Centro, CA18,742-0.3%
208Los Banos, CA18,547+0.8%
209La Puente, CA18,469-3.7%
210Stanton, CA18,402-1.3%
211Goleta, CA18,275-2.4%
212Moorpark, CA18,252-3.3%
213Pleasant Hill, CA17,751-4.3%
214Rancho Palos Verdes, CA17,629-7.4%
215Temple City, CA17,496-2.8%
216Lawndale, CA17,384-2.2%
217Calexico, CA17,371-13.3%
218Claremont, CA17,345-7.5%
219Bell Gardens, CA17,201-3.4%
220San Juan Capistrano, CA17,183-4.8%
221Foster City, CA17,066-6.1%
222Montclair, CA17,065+2.9%
223Seaside, CA17,027+0.3%
224Dana Point, CA16,843-4%
225San Dimas, CA16,770-5.8%
226Menlo Park, CA16,753-7%
227Burlingame, CA16,580-5.4%
228East Palo Alto, CA16,452-3.7%
229La Quinta, CA16,407+3.1%
230San Carlos, CA16,319-5.7%
231Wildomar, CA16,161+1.1%
232Manhattan Beach, CA15,795-7.9%
233Laguna Hills, CA15,622-4.6%
234Beverly Hills, CA15,559-5.8%
235Desert Hot Springs, CA15,475+3.5%
236Los Gatos, CA15,191-3.8%
237Monterey, CA15,030-1.7%
238San Pablo, CA14,849-1.4%
239Belmont, CA14,648-6%
240Bell, CA14,631-4%
241Atascadero, CA14,628-4.7%
242Santa Paula, CA14,611-2.8%
243South Pasadena, CA14,438-6.5%
244La Verne, CA14,334-4.5%
245Suisun City, CA14,305-2.6%
246El Paso de Robles (Paso Robles), CA14,255-3%
247El Cerrito, CA13,770-3.5%
248Hercules, CA13,538-2.4%
249Atwater, CA13,487-1.8%
250Windsor, CA13,469-5.1%

Showing the top 250 of 281. The Excel download has every row.

Other periods

About this ranking

Employed plus unemployed residents, annual average.

More on how it is measured
  • People aged 16 and over by place of residence, from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  • Active-duty military personnel and people living in institutions are excluded.

United States cities only for now. Counts people where they live, not jobs: for wage and salary jobs by state use oews_employment. BLS estimates cities by splitting county estimates with Census Bureau employment and population data and unemployment insurance claims, so city figures are less precise than state ones. BLS publishes cities of 25,000 or more, and smaller cities in New England.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the cities are compared on one definition. 4 cities with data in other periods have no value for 2020 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2026). Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average (Cities in California by civilian labor force, 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24

MLA 9

Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average, Cities in California by civilian labor force, 2020. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 30 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/california-cities?period=2020. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. Cities in California by civilian labor force, 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/california-cities?period=2020.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average, Cities in California by civilian labor force, 2020 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/california-cities?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_cities_in_california_by_2020,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average: Cities in California by civilian labor force, 2020}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/california-cities?period=2020. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average: Cities in California by civilian labor force, 2020
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/30
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/california-cities?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/civilian-labor-force/california-cities?period=2020.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU20-24. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

Which city has the highest civilian labor force?

Los Angeles, CA, with 2 million in 2020, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which city has the lowest civilian labor force?

Paradise, CA, with 1,340 in 2020.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12. 4 cities have no value for 2020 and are not ranked.

Civilian labor force: other rankings

Cities in California: more rankings