Butte County, California

Butte County is a county in California, United States, in the northern Sacramento Valley about
80 miles north of Sacramento. It had a population of 211,632 at the 2020 census, an estimated
209,211 by 2025, and covers 1,636 square miles (4,237 km2) centred near 39°40′N 121°36′W.

Oroville is the county seat; its postal code is 95965. The county holds 4 cities, 1 incorporated
town, 25 census-designated places and 7 unincorporated communities, and it runs on Pacific Time.
Its FIPS code is 06007.

Towns & Villages in Butte County

Butte County has 37 named places on record: 4 incorporated cities, 1 incorporated town, 25
census-designated places (CDPs, Census Bureau statistical areas with no local government) and 7
unincorporated communities with no CDP status at all. Population figures below are 2020 census
counts; a dash means no count exists for that place.

The old list on this page carried several duplicates and mistakes now corrected: “De
Sabla” and “DeSabla” were the same unincorporated place counted twice; “Robinson
Mill,” “Robinson Mills” and “Robinsons Corner” were three spellings of one
place; and entries such as “Blavo,” “Cana,” “Craig,” “Dodge Place,”
“Dodgeland,” “Elsey,” “Esquon,” “Fagan,” “Hughes Place,” “James,”
“Kister,” “Kramm,” “Mayaro,” “Merrimac,” “Mineral Slide,” “Oroleve,”
“Parkhill,” “Peachton,” “Pentz,” “Poe,” “Ramada,” “Rancho Llano Seco,”
“Riceton,” “Roble,” “Rogerville,” “Shippee,” “Toadtown,” “Vista Robles” and
“Wicks Corner” do not appear in the Census Bureau’s place list for the county and are
dropped here for lack of a verifiable source.

ZIP Codes

• 95926 — Chico (the city also uses 95927–95929, 95973 and 95976 for other zones and PO boxes)
• 95965 — Oroville (also serves Oroville East and Kelly Ridge; Oroville also uses 95940 and 95966)
• 95948 — Gridley
• 95917 — Biggs
• 95969 — Paradise (also uses 95967)
• 95938 — Durham (also uses 95958)
• 95954 — Magalia

Most of the county’s smaller CDPs and unincorporated communities — Thermalito, Palermo,
South Oroville, Berry Creek, Forest Ranch and the rest — have no ZIP code of their own; mail
there is delivered under Chico’s or Oroville’s code depending on which is closer by road.

Geography

Butte County sits in the northern Sacramento Valley, where flat farmland in the west rises into
the foothills and forests of the Sierra Nevada in the east. Of its 1,636 square miles, about 41
square miles are water, chiefly Lake Oroville, the state’s second-largest reservoir, formed by
the Oroville Dam on the Feather River. The county is named for the Sutter Buttes, a small volcanic
range visible from its southern edge, though the buttes themselves lie just across the line in
Sutter County.

Tehama County lies to the northwest, Plumas County to the northeast, Yuba County to the
southeast, Sutter County to the south, and Colusa and Glenn counties to the southwest and west.
Tehama County, Plumas County, Yuba County, Sutter County, Colusa County and Glenn County all border Butte directly.

Demographics

Butte County had a population of 211,632 at the 2020 census, and the latest estimate puts the
county near 209,211 residents by 2025, a slight decline tied to the loss of Paradise’s population
after the 2018 Camp Fire. Chico and Oroville are by far the two largest communities, together
holding well over half the county’s population. Median household income runs $67,928 (2024 ACS
estimate), well below California’s statewide figure of $95,521 (2023 ACS). Population density
works out to roughly 129 people per square mile of land, concentrated heavily around Chico and the
Oroville area, with the eastern foothills and mountains sparsely settled.

Economy & Local Life

Health care and social assistance employs the most workers in the county, about 15,379 people,
followed by retail trade at 10,692 and educational services at 10,689. California State
University, Chico and Enloe Medical Center in Chico each employ roughly 2,000 people, making them
the county’s two largest single employers. Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, the largest craft
brewer in the United States, is based in Chico and employs more than 1,000 workers. Butte College,
a two-year community college near Oroville, is another major local institution. Agriculture
remains central around Gridley and Richvale, long known for rice and grain farming in the flat
valley land west of the Feather River.

History

California’s legislature created Butte County on 18 February 1850, one of the state’s original
27 counties formed at statehood. It is named for the Sutter Buttes, the small mountain range on
its southern border, not for any single town or person. Oroville, once a Gold Rush mining camp on
the Feather River, became the county seat.

On 8 November 2018, the Camp Fire swept through Paradise and the surrounding ridge, destroying
most of the town and killing at least 85 people — the deadliest wildfire in California
history at the time. Paradise’s population fell more than 90 percent, from roughly 26,800 before
the fire to 4,764 at the 2020 census, and the town is still rebuilding. In 2024, the Park Fire
burned across the county’s eastern and northern reaches and became the largest wildfire caused by
arson in California history.

Getting There

No interstate highway crosses Butte County. State Routes 32, 70, 99, 149, 162 and 191 carry
most through traffic, with SR 99 running north–south through Chico and Gridley and SR 70
following the Feather River past Oroville.

• Sacramento — about 80 miles south
• Redding — about 70 miles north
• Reno, Nevada — about 105 miles east
• Marysville — about 25 miles south

Chico Municipal Airport handles general aviation only; commercial passenger service ended in
2014. Sacramento International Airport is the nearest major commercial airport. Amtrak’s Coast
Starlight stops at the Chico station, connecting north to Portland and Seattle and south to
Sacramento and the Bay Area.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Butte County located?
It sits in the northern Sacramento Valley of California, about 80 miles north of Sacramento,
bordered by Tehama, Plumas, Yuba, Sutter, Colusa and Glenn counties.

What is the population of Butte County?
211,632 at the 2020 census, with a 2025 estimate near 209,211.

How big is Butte County?
1,636 square miles (4,237 km2) of land, plus about 41 square miles of water, mostly Lake
Oroville.

What is the county seat of Butte County?
Oroville, a former Gold Rush town on the Feather River, is the county seat.

How many towns and cities are in Butte County?
Five incorporated places — Chico, Oroville, Gridley, Biggs and the town of Paradise —
plus 25 census-designated places and 7 unincorporated communities.

What ZIP codes does Butte County use?
95926 for Chico, 95965 for Oroville, 95948 for Gridley, 95917 for Biggs, 95969 for Paradise,
95938 for Durham and 95954 for Magalia, among others.

What is Butte County known for?
The 2018 Camp Fire that destroyed Paradise, Lake Oroville and the Oroville Dam — the
tallest dam in the United States — and California State University, Chico.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in California.