2020 census As of the
2020 census, the county had a population of 270,861. The median age was 40.2 years, with 18.9% of residents under the age of 18 and 18.2% aged 65 or older. For every 100 females there were 98.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 97.5 males age 18 and over. The racial makeup of the county was 59.3% White, 1.2%
Black or African American, 1.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native, 4.6%
Asian, 0.1%
Native Hawaiian and
Pacific Islander, 19.2% from some other race, and 14.3% from
two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 34.8% of the population. There were 96,261 households in the county, of which 29.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 27.0% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
Racial and ethnic composition 2010 census The county of Santa Cruz has experienced demographic fluctuations in recent history. Between 1990 and 2000, the population increased by 11.3%. This is primarily because of new births, rather than immigration or migration. The
2010 United States census reported Santa Cruz County had a population of 262,382. The racial makeup of Santa Cruz County was 190,208 (72.5%)
White, 2,766 (1.1%)
African American, 2,253 (0.9%)
Native American, 11,112 (4.2%)
Asian, 349 (0.1%)
Pacific Islander, 43,376 (16.5%) from
other races, and 12,318 (4.7%) from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 84,092 persons (32.0%).
2000 census As of the
census of 2000, there were 255,602 people, 91,139 households, and 57,144 families residing in the county. The
population density was . There were 98,873 housing units at an average density of . There were 91,139 households, out of which 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.0% were
married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.3% were non-families. 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.25. In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.8% under the age of 18, 11.9% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 23.5% from 45 to 64, and 10.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.8 males. The median income for a household in the county was $53,998, and the median income for a family was $61,941. Males had a median income of $46,291 versus $33,514 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $26,396. About 6.7% of families and 11.9% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 12.50% of those under age 18 and 6.30% of those age 65 or over. Santa Cruz County residents tend to be well-educated. 38.3% of residents age 25 and older hold a bachelor's degree at least, significantly higher than the national average of 27.2% and the state average of 29.5%. ==Government==