Counties in California by population speaking a language other than English at home
Imperial County had the highest population speaking a language other than English at home of 58 counties in 2021, at 74.9%. Plumas County had the lowest, at 7.3%. The median was 32.6% and the figure for California was 43.9%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.
Map of counties, 2021
- Under 12
- 12 to 18
- 18 to 33
- 33 to 41
- 41 to 45
- 45 and over
All counties, 2021
Full ranking
Other periods
About this ranking
People aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of all people aged 5 and over. United States: American Community Survey five-year estimate, where the period shown is the last year of the five-year span.
Measures the language used at home, not English ability: most people in this group also speak English. Spanish speakers are shown separately in spanish_at_home_share.
Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.
How to cite
U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-c16001.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.Citation styles
APA 7
U.S. Census Bureau. (2026). American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs (Counties in California by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-c16001.dat
MLA 9
American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs, Counties in California by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2021. U.S. Census Bureau, 29 Jan. 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-c16001.dat. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/california-counties?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.
Chicago (author-date)
U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs. Counties in California by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-c16001.dat. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/california-counties?period=2021.
Harvard
U.S. Census Bureau (2026) American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs, Counties in California by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-c16001.dat, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/california-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).
BibTeX
@misc{census_counties_in_california_by_2021,
author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
title = {{American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs: Counties in California by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2021}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Data set},
url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-c16001.dat},
urldate = {2026-10-12},
note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/california-counties?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary\_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-c16001.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY - DATA
AU - U.S. Census Bureau
TI - American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs: Counties in California by population speaking a language other than English at home, 2021
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/01/29
PB - U.S. Census Bureau
DB - Invokely
UR - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-c16001.dat
L2 - https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/california-counties?period=2021
Y2 - 2026/10/12
N1 - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/language-other-than-english-at-home/california-counties?period=2021.
N1 - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/summary_file/2021/table-based-SF/data/5YRData/acsdt5y2021-c16001.dat. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER -
Use this data in your AI agent
Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:
Rank Counties in California by population speaking a language other than English at home using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"language_other_than_english_share","level":"province","within":"California","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=language_other_than_english_share&level=province&within=California&limit=10Questions
Which county has the highest population speaking a language other than English at home?
Imperial County, with 74.9% in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Which county has the lowest population speaking a language other than English at home?
Plumas County, with 7.3% in 2021.
Where does this ranking come from?
Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, table C16001: people aged 5 and over who speak a language other than English at home, as a percentage of the population aged 5 and over, calculated with stored inputs. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
Population speaking a language other than English at home: other rankings
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