{"id":713,"date":"2023-01-17T07:16:42","date_gmt":"2023-01-17T07:16:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/?p=713"},"modified":"2026-07-31T18:07:35","modified_gmt":"2026-07-31T18:07:35","slug":"los-angeles-county","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/los-angeles-county\/","title":{"rendered":"Los Angeles County, California"},"content":{"rendered":"

Los Angeles County is a county in California, United States, on the Pacific coast about 100 miles northwest of San Diego. It had a population of 10,014,009 at the 2020 census, an estimated 9,757,179 by 2024, and covers 4,058 square miles (10,510 km2) centred near 34\u00b003\u2032N 118\u00b015\u2032W.<\/p>\n

Los Angeles is the county seat and the county’s largest city; its postal code is 90012. The county holds 88 incorporated cities and more than 120 unincorporated communities, and it runs on Pacific Time. Its FIPS code is 06037. It is the most populous county in the United States — more people than 40 of the 50 states combined.<\/p>\n

Towns & Villages in Los Angeles County<\/h2>\n

All 88 incorporated cities are listed below, from Los Angeles (population 3,898,747) down to Vernon (population 222). California has no civil townships, so the table below drops that column. A second list further down covers the county’s largest unincorporated communities and census-designated places (CDPs) — there are more than 120 of these outside the 88 cities, and the table shows the top 25 by population.<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
City<\/th>\nType<\/th>\nPop. (2020)<\/th>\nZIP<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Agoura Hills<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n20,299<\/td>\n91301<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Alhambra<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n82,868<\/td>\n91801<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Arcadia<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n56,681<\/td>\n91006<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Artesia<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n16,395<\/td>\n90701<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Avalon<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n3,460<\/td>\n90704<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Azusa<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n50,000<\/td>\n91702<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Baldwin Park<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n72,176<\/td>\n91706<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bell<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n33,559<\/td>\n90201<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bell Gardens<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n39,501<\/td>\n90201<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bellflower<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n79,190<\/td>\n90706<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Beverly Hills<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n32,701<\/td>\n90210<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bradbury<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n921<\/td>\n91008<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Burbank<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n107,337<\/td>\n91502<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Calabasas<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n23,241<\/td>\n91302<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Carson<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n95,558<\/td>\n90745<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Cerritos<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n49,578<\/td>\n90703<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Claremont<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n37,266<\/td>\n91711<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Commerce<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n12,378<\/td>\n90040<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Compton<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n95,740<\/td>\n90220<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Covina<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n51,268<\/td>\n91722<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Cudahy<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n22,811<\/td>\n90201<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Culver City<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n40,779<\/td>\n90230<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Diamond Bar<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n55,072<\/td>\n91765<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Downey<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n114,355<\/td>\n90241<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Duarte<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n21,727<\/td>\n91010<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
El Monte<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n109,450<\/td>\n91731<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
El Segundo<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n17,272<\/td>\n90245<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Gardena<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n61,027<\/td>\n90247<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Glendale<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n196,543<\/td>\n91201<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Glendora<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n52,558<\/td>\n91740<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hawaiian Gardens<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n14,149<\/td>\n90716<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hawthorne<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n88,083<\/td>\n90250<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hermosa Beach<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n19,728<\/td>\n90254<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hidden Hills<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n1,725<\/td>\n91302<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Huntington Park<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n54,883<\/td>\n90255<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Industry<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n264<\/td>\n91744<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Inglewood<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n107,762<\/td>\n90301<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Irwindale<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n1,472<\/td>\n91706<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
La Cañada Flintridge<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n20,573<\/td>\n91011<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
La Habra Heights<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n5,682<\/td>\n90631<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
La Mirada<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n48,008<\/td>\n90638<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
La Puente<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n38,062<\/td>\n91744<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
La Verne<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n31,334<\/td>\n91750<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lakewood<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n82,496<\/td>\n90712<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lancaster<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n173,516<\/td>\n93534<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lawndale<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n31,807<\/td>\n90260<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lomita<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n20,921<\/td>\n90717<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Long Beach<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n466,742<\/td>\n90802<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Los Angeles<\/td>\nCity · seat<\/td>\n3,898,747<\/td>\n90012<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lynwood<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n67,265<\/td>\n90262<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Malibu<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n10,654<\/td>\n90265<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Manhattan Beach<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n35,506<\/td>\n90266<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Maywood<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n25,138<\/td>\n90270<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Monrovia<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n37,931<\/td>\n91016<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Montebello<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n62,640<\/td>\n90640<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Monterey Park<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n61,096<\/td>\n91754<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Norwalk<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n102,773<\/td>\n90650<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Palmdale<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n169,450<\/td>\n93550<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Palos Verdes Estates<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n13,347<\/td>\n90274<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Paramount<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n53,733<\/td>\n90723<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pasadena<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n138,699<\/td>\n91101<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pico Rivera<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n62,088<\/td>\n90660<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Pomona<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n151,713<\/td>\n91766<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Rancho Palos Verdes<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n42,287<\/td>\n90275<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Redondo Beach<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n71,576<\/td>\n90277<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Rolling Hills<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n1,739<\/td>\n90274<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Rolling Hills Estates<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n8,280<\/td>\n90274<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Rosemead<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n51,185<\/td>\n91770<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
San Dimas<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n34,924<\/td>\n91773<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
San Fernando<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n23,946<\/td>\n91340<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
San Gabriel<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n39,568<\/td>\n91776<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
San Marino<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n12,513<\/td>\n91108<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Santa Clarita<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n228,673<\/td>\n91350<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Santa Fe Springs<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n19,219<\/td>\n90670<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Santa Monica<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n93,076<\/td>\n90401<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sierra Madre<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n11,268<\/td>\n91024<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Signal Hill<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n11,848<\/td>\n90755<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
South El Monte<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n19,567<\/td>\n91733<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
South Gate<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n92,726<\/td>\n90280<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
South Pasadena<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n26,943<\/td>\n91030<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Temple City<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n36,494<\/td>\n91780<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Torrance<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n147,067<\/td>\n90501<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Vernon<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n222<\/td>\n90058<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Walnut<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n28,430<\/td>\n91789<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
West Covina<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n109,501<\/td>\n91790<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
West Hollywood<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n35,757<\/td>\n90069<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Westlake Village<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n8,029<\/td>\n91361<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Whittier<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n87,306<\/td>\n90601<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Two pairs are easy to confuse. Rolling Hills and Rolling Hills Estates are separate cities on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, sharing ZIP 90274 with next-door Palos Verdes Estates. La Puente and La Verne are unrelated cities 25 miles apart — the first in the San Gabriel Valley, the second in the eastern foothills near Claremont. Industry (population 264) is almost entirely warehouses and factories with no residential neighborhoods, unlike its similarly small neighbor Irwindale.<\/p>\n

Largest Unincorporated Communities<\/h2>\n

Los Angeles County has more than 120 unincorporated communities outside its 88 cities, home to roughly 1 million people combined. They have no city government of their own; the county Board of Supervisors and sheriff serve them directly. The 25 largest by population:<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Community<\/th>\nType<\/th>\nPop. (2020)<\/th>\nRegion<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
East Los Angeles<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n118,786<\/td>\nSan Gabriel Valley \/ Eastside<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Florence-Firestone<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n63,387<\/td>\nSouth Los Angeles<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hacienda Heights<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n54,038<\/td>\nSan Gabriel Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Rowland Heights<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n51,437<\/td>\nSan Gabriel Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
West Whittier-Los Nietos<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n29,562<\/td>\nSan Gabriel Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Valinda<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n25,466<\/td>\nSan Gabriel Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Walnut Park<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n16,343<\/td>\nSoutheast Los Angeles<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
South San Jose Hills<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n18,860<\/td>\nSan Gabriel Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
West Puente Valley<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n15,733<\/td>\nSan Gabriel Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
North El Monte<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n3,714<\/td>\nSan Gabriel Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Altadena<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n42,777<\/td>\nSan Gabriel Valley foothills<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Willowbrook<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n34,144<\/td>\nSouth Los Angeles<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
West Athens<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n9,314<\/td>\nSouth Los Angeles<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ladera Heights<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n6,976<\/td>\nWestside<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
View Park-Windsor Hills<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n10,714<\/td>\nWestside<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Marina del Rey<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n8,262<\/td>\nWestside coast<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Universal City<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n1,232<\/td>\nSan Fernando Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Val Verde<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n2,569<\/td>\nSanta Clarita Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Castaic<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n29,969<\/td>\nSanta Clarita Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Quartz Hill<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n10,981<\/td>\nAntelope Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lake Los Angeles<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n12,046<\/td>\nAntelope Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Littlerock<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n1,442<\/td>\nAntelope Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Acton<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n7,596<\/td>\nAntelope Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Stevenson Ranch<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n19,454<\/td>\nSanta Clarita Valley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Topanga<\/td>\nCDP<\/td>\n7,997<\/td>\nSanta Monica Mountains<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Beyond these, dozens of smaller unincorporated places dot the county — from Antelope Valley hamlets like Lake Hughes and Pearblossom to Santa Catalina Island’s Two Harbors, population under 300. Their populations are not individually tracked with the precision of Census-designated places, so they are omitted here rather than guessed.<\/p>\n

ZIP Codes<\/h2>\n

Los Angeles County has roughly 200 ZIP codes, more than any other county in the country — every incorporated city above carries at least one of its own, listed in the table. A handful of well-known ones: 90210 is Beverly Hills; 90012 is the Civic Center, seat of both the city and county government; 90802 is downtown Long Beach; 91101 is central Pasadena; and 90265 covers all of Malibu’s 21-mile coastline. Some ZIPs, like 90201, are shared by more than one city (Bell, Bell Gardens and Cudahy all use it), which is why the population figures in the tables above — not the ZIP boundary — are the reliable way to tell the cities apart.<\/p>\n

Geography<\/h2>\n

Los Angeles County stretches from the Pacific Ocean to the San Gabriel Mountains and the high desert of the Antelope Valley, with land area of 4,058 square miles and another 693 square miles of water, including a 75-mile coastline and Santa Catalina Island offshore. The San Gabriel and Santa Monica mountain ranges divide the county into the Los Angeles basin, the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys, and the Antelope Valley desert to the north. The Los Angeles River, San Gabriel River and Santa Clara River drain the county, mostly channelized in concrete through the urban core.<\/p>\n

The county borders Ventura County<\/a> to the west, Kern County<\/a> to the north, San Bernardino County<\/a> to the east, and Orange County<\/a> to the southeast.<\/p>\n

Demographics<\/h2>\n

Los Angeles County had a population of 10,014,009 at the 2020 census, the largest of any county in the United States, and an estimated 9,757,179 by 2024 — a decline driven by high housing costs pushing residents to neighboring counties and other states. Los Angeles itself (3,898,747) and Long Beach (466,742) are the two largest cities. Median household income is $87,760, slightly above the California median of $87,001. Population density averages about 2,400 people per square mile, ranging from over 20,000 per square mile in parts of the urban core to under 10 in the Antelope Valley desert and the San Gabriel Mountains.<\/p>\n

Economy & Local Life<\/h2>\n

The county’s GDP was about $1.003 trillion in 2024, the second-largest of any U.S. county. The County of Los Angeles itself is the region’s largest employer, with more than 100,000 workers across 38 departments; the Los Angeles Unified School District, UCLA and the City of Los Angeles follow. Kaiser Permanente, with about 36,000 employees, is the largest private employer, ahead of USC’s roughly 20,000. The county is the historic center of the U.S. motion picture and television industry, centered on studios in Burbank, Culver City and Hollywood, and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is a major direct employer in its own right, with nearly 3,700 staff overseeing operations. Port cargo, aerospace, garment manufacturing and biotech add to the base. The Los Angeles County Fair, held each September in Pomona, is the county’s largest annual event.<\/p>\n

History<\/h2>\n

Los Angeles County was one of California’s original 27 counties, organized on February 18, 1850, when California became a state. It takes its name from the pueblo of Los Angeles, founded in 1781 by Spanish settlers and named for Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles — Our Lady, Queen of the Angels. The county’s boundaries have shrunk repeatedly since 1850 as Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside, Kern and Ventura counties were carved out of its original territory. The 20th century brought the aqueduct-driven growth of the 1913 Los Angeles Aqueduct, the film industry’s arrival in the 1910s, and the wartime aerospace boom that made the county a manufacturing power. The 1992 civil unrest and the 1994 Northridge earthquake, centered in the San Fernando Valley, are among its most consequential modern events.<\/p>\n

Getting There<\/h2>\n

Interstates 5, 10, 405, 605, 210 and 110 cross the county, along with U.S. Route 101 and dozens of state highways; the 405 through the Sepulveda Pass is among the most heavily traveled freeways in the country.<\/p>\n