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Aerial view of residential neighbourhoods in Carlsbad, California
Demographics

Who lives in Carlsbad.

Current figures for anyone deciding whether to open, hire, or expand here — every number sourced and dated.

People

The population.

Population
113,575

ACS 2024 1-year estimate

Median age
45

Years (±1.7)

Households
44,251

±1,959

Square miles
37.8

Land area

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 (via Census Reporter)

Income & education

A high-income, highly educated market.

Carlsbad's median household income and degree attainment both run well above the national average.

Median household income
$144,444

±$17,246

Per capita income
$74,395

±$6,315

Bachelor's degree or higher
61.7%

ACS 2024 5-year

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 (via Census Reporter)

The business base

What that means commercially.

The Chamber's own membership is a reasonable proxy for the size of the local business community.

Member businesses

1,100+

People employed by members

65,000+

Largest chamber in San Diego County

2nd

Serving Carlsbad since

1923

Source: Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce. Each figure is recorded with its origin in the site's content data.

Community characteristics

How the region segments Carlsbad.

SANDAG groups households into ten profiles across San Diego County. Carlsbad skews heavily toward the two most established and affluent.

Established & Enjoying
44%

Countywide: 14%

Active & Affluent
23%

Countywide: 14%

Imaginative & Innovative
11%

Countywide: 17%

Source: SANDAG Snapshots: Carlsbad Community Characteristics (2022 packet)

About this data

SANDAG's segmentation draws on a 2019 Claritas dataset and a 2016 household travel survey, and the packet states the data were compiled before the COVID-19 pandemic. SANDAG describes the groups as broad generalizations that are not intended to characterise any individual. Treat it as regional context, not a current profile — the Census figures above are the ones to quote.