SafekipediaSacramento County, California
Adapted from Wikipedia · Adventurer experience
Sacramento County is located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 1,585,055. Its county seat is Sacramento, which has been the state capital of California since 1854.
Sacramento County is the central county of the Greater Sacramento metropolitan area. The county covers about 1,026 square miles (2,660 km2) in the northern portion of the Central Valley, on into Gold Country. Sacramento County extends from the low delta lands between the Sacramento River and San Joaquin River, including Suisun Bay, north to about ten miles (16 km) beyond the State Capitol and east into the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The southernmost portion of Sacramento County has direct access to San Francisco Bay. Since 2010, statewide droughts in California have affected Sacramento County's water security.
History
Sacramento County was one of the first counties created when California became a state in 1850. It was named after the Sacramento River, which runs along its western side. The river was named by a Spanish cavalry officer named Gabriel Moraga. He named it after the Santisimo Sacramento, meaning the Most Holy Sacrament, to honor the Catholic Eucharist.
Geography
Sacramento County covers 1,026 square miles (2,660 km2). Most of this is land, with a small part being water. The county is mostly near sea level. The highest point is Carpenter Hill, which is 828 feet tall, in the southeast part of Folsom. Important rivers include the American River, Sacramento River, Cosumnes River, and Dry Creek.
Adjacent counties
- Sutter County - northwest
- Placer County - north
- El Dorado County - northeast
- Amador County - east
- San Joaquin County - south
- Contra Costa County - southwest
- Solano County - west
- Yolo County - west
National protected areas
- Stone Lakes National Wildlife Refuge
- California National Historic Trail
- Pony Express National Historic Trail
Demographics
As of the 2020 census, Sacramento County had a population of 1,585,055 people. The median age was 36.9 years, with about 23% of residents under 18 and 15% aged 65 or older. For every 100 females, there were about 96 males.
The racial makeup of the county was very diverse. It included 45% White people, nearly 10% Black or African American, and about 18% Asian. Nearly 24% of the population identified as Hispanic or Latino of any race.
Most people lived in urban areas, with only about 2% in rural parts of the county. There were many homes, with about 57% owned by people and the rest rented.
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 9,087 | — | |
| 1860 | 24,142 | 165.7% | |
| 1870 | 26,830 | 11.1% | |
| 1880 | 34,390 | 28.2% | |
| 1890 | 40,339 | 17.3% | |
| 1900 | 45,915 | 13.8% | |
| 1910 | 67,806 | 47.7% | |
| 1920 | 91,029 | 34.2% | |
| 1930 | 141,999 | 56.0% | |
| 1940 | 170,333 | 20.0% | |
| 1950 | 277,140 | 62.7% | |
| 1960 | 502,778 | 81.4% | |
| 1970 | 631,498 | 25.6% | |
| 1980 | 783,381 | 24.1% | |
| 1990 | 1,041,219 | 32.9% | |
| 2000 | 1,223,499 | 17.5% | |
| 2010 | 1,418,788 | 16.0% | |
| 2020 | 1,585,055 | 11.7% | |
| 2025 (est.) | 1,618,460 |  | 2.1% |
| U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010 2020 | |||
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980 | Pop 1990 | Pop 2000 | Pop 2010 | Pop 2020 | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 599,830 | 721,932 | 706,655 | 687,166 | 650,271 | 76.57% | 69.34% | 57.76% | 48.43% | 41.03% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 57,883 | 93,970 | 118,073 | 139,949 | 145,724 | 7.39% | 9.02% | 9.65% | 9.86% | 9.19% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 8,827 | 9,854 | 9,070 | 7,875 | 7,432 | 1.13% | 0.95% | 0.74% | 0.56% | 0.47% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 39,156 | 92,131 | 132,601 | 198,944 | 276,295 | 5.00% | 8.85% | 10.84% | 14.02% | 17.43% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) | x | x | 6,788 | 13,099 | 18,011 | 0.55% | 0.92% | 0.55% | 0.92% | 1.14% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 3,544 | 1,788 | 3,406 | 3,418 | 10,104 | 0.45% | 0.17% | 0.28% | 0.24% | 0.64% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | x | x | 51,016 | 62,141 | 102,784 | x | x | 4.17% | 4.38% | 6.48% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 74,141 | 121,544 | 195,890 | 306,196 | 374,434 | 9.46% | 11.67% | 16.01% | 21.58% | 23.62% |
| Total | 783,381 | 1,041,219 | 1,223,499 | 1,418,788 | 1,585,055 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Government and policing
Main article: Government of Sacramento County, California
Government
The Government of Sacramento County follows rules from the California Constitution, California law, and the Charter of the County of Sacramento. Many jobs of the Government of California are done by county governments like Sacramento County’s. Cities such as Sacramento and Folsom add extra services.
The county government has five elected supervisors who help make and enforce rules. Other important jobs include the Sheriff, District Attorney, and Assessor. There are also many departments that help run the county under a County Executive Officer. Some parts of California’s government, like the Sacramento County Superior Court, work in Sacramento County.
As of 2026, the supervisors are:
- Phil Serna, District 1
- Patrick Kennedy, District 2
- Rich Desmond, District 3
- Rosario Rodriguez, District 4
- Pat Hume, District 5
Policing
The Sacramento County Sheriff protects courts and manages jails for the whole county. The Sheriff also patrols and investigates in areas that do not belong to any city. Some cities, like Elk Grove, Citrus Heights, Folsom, Isleton, Rancho Cordova, and Galt, have their own police or work with the Sheriff.
Other police groups in the county include the Sacramento County Park Rangers, who watch over county parks, and police for the Twin Rivers Unified School District and the Fulton-El Camino Park District. The Fulton-El Camino Park District Police stopped working on November 26, 2024, because of money problems.
Politics
Sacramento County used to change between different political parties in presidential elections from 1976 to 2004. Now, it usually votes for Democratic candidates. The city of Sacramento strongly supports the Democratic Party, while rural areas lean toward the Republican Party. Suburban areas are more split.
In recent years, Democratic candidates have won in Sacramento County for the past eight presidential elections. The last Republican to win a majority there was George H. W. Bush in 1988. For state elections, Sacramento County often reflects the overall state result, choosing the winning candidate most of the time since 1962.
| Year | Republican | Democratic |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 42.5% 202,933 | 57.5% 274,680 |
| 2018 | 41.2% 212,010 | 58.8% 302,696 |
| 2014 | 37.7% 122,342 | 62.3% 202,416 |
| 2010 | 38.5% 162,369 | 56.7% 239,599 |
| 2006 | 60.5% 218,889 | 34.2% 123,685 |
| 2002 | 46.6% 147,456 | 40.8% 129,143 |
| 1998 | 39.7% 142,970 | 57.4% 206,870 |
| 1994 | 54.8% 196,229 | 40.9% 146,423 |
| 1990 | 50.3% 167,982 | 44.7% 149,215 |
| 1986 | 68.1% 207,086 | 30.1% 91,660 |
| 1982 | 52.4% 171,176 | 44.7% 146,167 |
| 1978 | 34.7% 88,445 | 54.9% 139,821 |
| 1974 | 45.9% 104,595 | 51.6% 117,711 |
| 1970 | 46.0% 105,523 | 52.5% 120,365 |
| 1966 | 50.9% 109,801 | 49.1% 105,861 |
| 1962 | 37.7% 71,788 | 60.7% 115,462 |
Crime
The following table shows the number of reported incidents and the rate per 1,000 people for different types of offenses.
Cities by population and crime rates
Education
Sacramento County has many places for students to learn. There are public universities such as California State University Sacramento and UC Davis Extension. UC Davis Extension includes the UC Davis School of Medicine and the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing.
Students can also go to community colleges like American River College, Cosumnes River College, Folsom Lake College, and Sacramento City College. There are also private colleges and universities, including University of the Pacific in Sacramento and many others.
For younger students, there are several school districts. Some of these include the Sacramento City Unified School District and the Elk Grove Unified School District. There are also many elementary and high school districts that serve students across the county.
Transportation
Main article: Transportation in the Sacramento metropolitan area
Public Transportation
The Sacramento Regional Transit District, called Sacramento RT, helps people move around the county. It runs buses and light rail services on the Blue, Green, and Gold lines. The Yolobus links Sacramento County to places in nearby Yolo County, like Davis. Both SacRT and Yolobus have buses to Sacramento International Airport.
Amtrak and its Amtrak California trains stop at the Sacramento Valley station. Trains such as the Coast Starlight, the California Zephyr, the Capitol Corridor, and the Gold Runner travel to many places in California and the United States.
Major highways
Airports
Sacramento International Airport is a large airport with many flights. It is owned by Sacramento County. The county also owns Sacramento Mather Airport in Rancho Cordova and Sacramento Executive Airport, which are for smaller planes. Sacramento McClellan Airport is privately owned and lies between North Highlands and Rio Linda. There are also smaller public airports in Elk Grove and Rio Linda.
Public roadways
The Sacramento County Department of Transportation (SACDOT) looks after about 2200 miles of roads outside city limits. These roads range from wide streets to quiet country roads.
Communities
Sacramento County has many places where people live. Some of the main cities are Citrus Heights, Elk Grove, Folsom, Galt, Isleton, Rancho Cordova, and the county seat, Sacramento.
There are also smaller places called census-designated places, such as Antelope, Arden-Arcade, Carmichael, and many others. One unincorporated community is Locke.
In the past, the county was divided into areas called townships, but this changed over time.
Cities
- Citrus Heights
- Elk Grove
- Folsom
- Galt
- Isleton
- Rancho Cordova
- Sacramento (county seat)
Census-designated places
- Antelope
- Arden-Arcade
- Carmichael
- Clay
- Courtland
- Elverta
- Fair Oaks
- Florin
- Foothill Farms
- Franklin
- Freeport
- Fruitridge Pocket
- Gold River
- Herald
- Hood
- La Riviera
- Lemon Hill
- Mather
- McClellan Park
- North Highlands
- Orangevale
- Parkway
- Rancho Murieta
- Rio Linda
- Rosemont
- Vineyard
- Walnut Grove
- Wilton
Unincorporated community
Former townships
In February 1851, the county was divided into eight civil townships. In July of that year, American township was divided off from Sacramento township. In 1856, the divisions were changed again.
- Alabama
- American
- Brighton*
- Center*
- Cosumnes*
- Dry Creek
- Franklin
- Georgiana
- Granite
- Lee
- Mississippi*
- Natoma*
- San Joaquin*
- Sutter*
Population ranking
The population ranking is based on the 2020 census of Sacramento County.
† county seat
| Rank | City/town/etc. | Municipal type | Population (2020 Census) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | † Sacramento (State Capital) | City | 524,943 |
| 2 | Elk Grove | City | 176,124 |
| 3 | Arden-Arcade | CDP | 94,659 |
| 4 | Citrus Heights | City | 87,583 |
| 5 | Folsom | City | 80,454 |
| 6 | Carmichael | CDP | 79,793 |
| 7 | Rancho Cordova | City | 79,332 |
| 8 | Florin | CDP | 52,388 |
| 9 | North Highlands | CDP | 49,327 |
| 10 | Antelope | CDP | 48,733 |
| 11 | Vineyard | CDP | 43,935 |
| 12 | Foothill Farms | CDP | 35,834 |
| 13 | Orangevale | CDP | 35,569 |
| 14 | Fair Oaks | CDP | 32,514 |
| 15 | Galt | City | 25,383 |
| 16 | Rosemont | CDP | 23,510 |
| 17 | Parkway | CDP | 15,962 |
| 18 | Rio Linda | CDP | 15,944 |
| 19 | Lemon Hill | CDP | 14,496 |
| 20 | La Riviera | CDP | 11,252 |
| 21 | Gold River | CDP | 7,844 |
| 22 | Fruitridge Pocket | CDP | 6,102 |
| 23 | Wilton | CDP | 5,958 |
| 24 | Rancho Murieta | CDP | 5,903 |
| 25 | Elverta | CDP | 5,435 |
| 26 | Mather | CDP | 4,698 |
| 27 | Walnut Grove | CDP | 1,452 |
| 28 | Clay | CDP | 1,252 |
| 29 | Herald | CDP | 1,160 |
| 30 | McClellan Park | CDP | 926 |
| 31 | Isleton | City | 794 |
| 32 | Courtland | CDP | 326 |
| 33 | Hood | CDP | 244 |
| 34 | Franklin | CDP | 167 |
| 35 | Freeport | CDP | 58 |
Images
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