Data / Rankings / Population aged 65 and over / Counties in California

Counties in California by share of population aged 65 and over

Sierra County had the highest share of population aged 65 and over of 58 counties in 2021, at 30.8%. Kings County had the lowest, at 10.9%. The median was 17.5% and the figure for California was 15.7%. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Highest30.8Sierra County
Lowest10.9Kings County
Median17.558 counties
California15.7History

All counties, 2021

CSVChart (SVG)

Sierra CountySierra County: 30.8 %30.8Plumas CountyPlumas County: 30.3 %30.3Mariposa CountyMariposa County: 28.9 %28.9Amador CountyAmador County: 28.8 %28.8Calaveras CountyCalaveras County: 28.5 %28.5Nevada CountyNevada County: 28.2 %28.2Modoc CountyModoc County: 28 %28Tuolumne CountyTuolumne County: 28 %28Siskiyou CountySiskiyou County: 27.6 %27.6Trinity CountyTrinity County: 25.9 %25.9Alpine CountyAlpine County: 25 %25Inyo CountyInyo County: 24.3 %24.3Mendocino CountyMendocino County: 23.7 %23.7Marin CountyMarin County: 23.3 %23.3Lake CountyLake County: 23 %23El Dorado CountyEl Dorado County: 22.9 %22.9San Luis Obispo CountySan Luis Obispo County: 22.8 %22.8Shasta CountyShasta County: 22.6 %22.6Sonoma CountySonoma County: 21.7 %21.7Napa CountyNapa County: 21.4 %21.4Placer CountyPlacer County: 20.8 %20.8Tehama CountyTehama County: 20.5 %20.5Humboldt CountyHumboldt County: 20 %20Del Norte CountyDel Norte County: 19.7 %19.7Santa Cruz CountySanta Cruz County: 19.6 %19.6Butte CountyButte County: 19.5 %19.5San Francisco CountySan Francisco County: 17.7 %17.7Glenn CountyGlenn County: 17.7 %17.7San Mateo CountySan Mateo County: 17.5 %17.5Ventura CountyVentura County: 17.5 %17.5Santa Barbara CountySanta Barbara County: 17.5 %17.5Solano CountySolano County: 17.2 %17.2Mono CountyMono County: 17.2 %17.2Contra Costa CountyContra Costa County: 17.1 %17.1Sutter CountySutter County: 16.5 %16.5Orange CountyOrange County: 16.2 %16.2San Diego CountySan Diego County: 15.7 %15.7Riverside CountyRiverside County: 15.5 %15.5Sacramento CountySacramento County: 15.4 %15.4Colusa CountyColusa County: 15.4 %15.4Lassen CountyLassen County: 15.4 %15.4Los Angeles CountyLos Angeles County: 15.1 %15.1Alameda CountyAlameda County: 15.1 %15.1Madera CountyMadera County: 14.7 %14.7Yolo CountyYolo County: 14.7 %14.7Santa Clara CountySanta Clara County: 14.6 %14.6Monterey CountyMonterey County: 14.6 %14.6Stanislaus CountyStanislaus County: 14.4 %14.4San Benito CountySan Benito County: 13.9 %13.9San Joaquin CountySan Joaquin County: 13.9 %13.9Imperial CountyImperial County: 13.7 %13.7Yuba CountyYuba County: 13.7 %13.7Fresno CountyFresno County: 13.4 %13.4San Bernardino CountySan Bernardino County: 13 %13Tulare CountyTulare County: 12.4 %12.4Kern CountyKern County: 12.1 %12.1Merced CountyMerced County: 12 %12Kings CountyKings County: 10.9 %10.9
%. Source: Invokely calculation with data from U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

Full ranking

RankCounties2021 (%)Change on 2020
1Sierra County30.8-0.3 pts
2Plumas County30.3+0.2 pts
3Mariposa County28.9+0.7 pts
4Amador County28.8+0.2 pts
5Calaveras County28.5+0.3 pts
6Nevada County28.2+0.2 pts
7Modoc County28+1 pts
8Tuolumne County28+0.7 pts
9Siskiyou County27.6+0.6 pts
10Trinity County25.9+0.6 pts
11Alpine County25-0.7 pts
12Inyo County24.3+0.4 pts
13Mendocino County23.7+0.5 pts
14Marin County23.3+0.5 pts
15Lake County23+0.3 pts
16El Dorado County22.9+0.4 pts
17San Luis Obispo County22.8+0.9 pts
18Shasta County22.6+0.2 pts
19Sonoma County21.7+0.7 pts
20Napa County21.4+0.6 pts
21Placer County20.8+0.2 pts
22Tehama County20.5+0.4 pts
23Humboldt County20+0.8 pts
24Del Norte County19.7+0.6 pts
25Santa Cruz County19.6+1.4 pts
26Butte County19.5+0.5 pts
27San Francisco County17.7+1.5 pts
28Glenn County17.7+0.5 pts
29San Mateo County17.5+0.9 pts
30Ventura County17.5+0.6 pts
31Santa Barbara County17.5+0.8 pts
32Solano County17.2+0.6 pts
33Mono County17.2+0.8 pts
34Contra Costa County17.1+0.5 pts
35Sutter County16.5+0.4 pts
36Orange County16.2+0.5 pts
37San Diego County15.7+0.5 pts
38Riverside County15.5+0.2 pts
39Sacramento County15.4+0.4 pts
40Colusa County15.4+0.4 pts
41Lassen County15.4+0.7 pts
42Los Angeles County15.1+0.5 pts
43Alameda County15.1+0.7 pts
44Madera County14.70 pts
45Yolo County14.7+0.7 pts
46Santa Clara County14.6+0.7 pts
47Monterey County14.6+0.4 pts
48Stanislaus County14.4+0.2 pts
49San Benito County13.9+0.2 pts
50San Joaquin County13.9+0.2 pts
51Imperial County13.7+0.3 pts
52Yuba County13.7+0.2 pts
53Fresno County13.4+0.2 pts
54San Bernardino County13+0.2 pts
55Tulare County12.4+0.1 pts
56Kern County12.1+0.2 pts
57Merced County12+0.2 pts
58Kings County10.9+0.3 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Residents aged 65 or over as a percentage of total population. Spain: 1 January, INE annual census. United States: 1 July, Census Bureau population estimates. World Bank figures for other countries and the World refer to mid-year.

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. Population Estimates Program, county population by age and sex (cc-est agesex): residents aged 65 and over as a percentage of the total, 1 July; states and the nation summed from counties. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/counties/asrh/cc-est2025-agesex-all.csv. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

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 share of population aged 65 and over using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"population_65_plus_share","level":"province","within":"California","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=population_65_plus_share&level=province&within=California&limit=10

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Questions

Which county has the highest share of population aged 65 and over?

Sierra County, with 30.8% in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which county has the lowest share of population aged 65 and over?

Kings County, with 10.9% 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, Population Estimates Program, county population by age and sex (cc-est agesex): residents aged 65 and over as a percentage of the total, 1 July; states and the nation summed from counties. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

Population aged 65 and over: other rankings

Counties in California: more rankings