Los Angeles County, sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is a county in the U.S. state of California, in the southern region of the state. It is the most populous county in the United States, with 9,694,934 residents estimated in 2025. Its population is greater than that of 40 individual U.S. states. Comprising 88 incorporated cities and 101 unincorporated areas within a total area of , it accommodates more than a quarter of Californians and is one of the most ethnically diverse U.S. counties. The county's seat, Los Angeles, is the second-most populous city in the United States, with 3,878,704 residents estimated in 2024. The county is globally known as the home of the U.S. motion picture industry since its inception in the early 20th century.

History

The County of Los Angeles is one of the original counties of California, created at the time of statehood in 1850. The county originally included parts of what are now Kern, San Bernardino, Riverside, Inyo, Tulare, Ventura, and Orange counties. In 1851 and 1852, Los Angeles County stretched from the coast to the state line of Nevada. As the population increased, sections were split off to organize San Bernardino County in 1853, Kern County in 1866, and Orange County in 1889.

Before the 1870s, Los Angeles County was divided into townships (many of which were amalgamations of one or more old ranchos):A partial listed can be found for the San Fernando Valley, the Los Angeles basin, the San Gabriel valley, and high desert Azusa – encompassed the foothill communities east of the San Gabriel River, including present-day Covina and Duarte El Monte – encompassed communities in the Whittier Narrows area, including present-day El Monte, La Puente, as well as Monterey Park Azusa and El Monte Townships – merged for the 1870 census City of Los Angeles – then consisting solely of its four-league Spanish land grant Los Angeles Township – consisted of areas surrounding the City of Los Angeles, including the San Fernando Valley and present-day West Los Angeles and East Los Angeles. Most of this area has now been annexed to the city of Los Angeles. Los Nietos – consisted of areas south of the Whittier Narrows and Puente Hills south to present-day Long Beach, centered on the early settlement at Los Nietos. Some of this area is now in Orange County San Jose – consisted of the eastern portions of the county drained by San Jose Creek, including what is now the cities of Pomona, Claremont and Walnut San Gabriel – consisted of the western San Gabriel Valley and foothill communities, including present-day Alhambra and Pasadena. Centered on the Mission San Gabriel Santa Ana – consisted of what is now northern and central Orange County, including what is now Fullerton, Huntington Beach and the City of Orange. (Centered on Santa Ana). For the 1870 census, Anaheim district was enumerated separately San Juan – consisted of what is now southern Orange County. Centered on Mission San Juan Capistrano San Pedro – consisted of the present-day South Bay communities, Compton and western Long Beach. Centered on the wharf of San Pedro. (Renamed Wilmington Township by 1870). Tejon – consisted of all of northern Los Angeles County and what is now southern Kern County. Centered on Fort Tejon When Kern County was formed, the portion of the township remaining in Los Angeles County became Soledad Township.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of , of which (85%) is land and (15%) is water. Los Angeles County borders of coast on the Pacific Ocean and encompasses mountain ranges, valleys, forests, islands, lakes, rivers, and desert. The Los Angeles River, Rio Hondo, Ballona Creek, the San Gabriel River and the Santa Clara River flow in Los Angeles County, while the primary mountain ranges are the Santa Monica Mountains and the San Gabriel Mountains. The western extent of the Mojave Desert begins in the Antelope Valley, in the northeastern part of the county. Los Angeles County is bordered on the north by Kern County, on the east by San Bernardino County, on the southeast by Orange County, on the south by the Pacific Ocean, and on the west by Ventura County.

Most of the population of Los Angeles County resides in the south and southwest, with major population centers in the Los Angeles Basin, San Fernando Valley, and San Gabriel Valley. Other population centers are found in the Santa Clarita Valley, Pomona Valley, Crescenta Valley and Antelope Valley.

The county is divided west-to-east by the San Gabriel Mountains, which are part of the Transverse Ranges of southern California, and are contained mostly within the Angeles National Forest. Most of the county's highest peaks are in the San Gabriel Mountains, including Mount San Antonio at the Los Angeles–San Bernardino county lines, Mount Baden-Powell , Mount Burnham and Mount Wilson . Several lower mountains are in the northern, western, and southwestern parts of the county, including the San Emigdio Mountains, the southernmost part of Tehachapi Mountains and the Sierra Pelona Mountains.

Los Angeles County includes San Clemente Island and Santa Catalina Island, which are part of the Channel Islands archipelago off the Pacific Coast.

Lakes and reservoirs

Bouquet Reservoir Castaic Lake Crystal Lake Elizabeth Lake Holiday Lake Hollywood Reservoir Hughes Lake Jackson Lake Las Virgenes Reservoir Malibou Lake Morris Reservoir Munz Lakes Lake Palmdale Puddingstone Reservoir Pyramid Lake Quail Lake Silver Lake Reservoir Stone Canyon Reservoir Tweedy Lake Westlake in City of Westlake Village Lake Lindero

Major divisions of the county East: Eastside, San Gabriel Valley, portions of the Pomona Valley West: Westside, Beach Cities South: South Bay, South Los Angeles, Palos Verdes Peninsula, Gateway Cities, Los Angeles Harbor Region North: San Fernando Valley, Crescenta Valley, portions of the Conejo Valley, portions of the Antelope Valley and Santa Clarita Valley Central: Downtown Los Angeles, Mid-Wilshire, Northeast Los Angeles

National protected areas Angeles National Forest (part) Los Padres National Forest (part) Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (part)

Climate The Northern part of the county has a Desert climate, while the rest of the county generally is a mix of semi-arid and a hot-summer Mediterranean climate. There is rainfall mostly in the wintertime, but the mountains in the north-central part of the county have snow during winter.

Demographics

+ Racial composition as of 2023 07 01 Total population 9,663,345 100% Hispanics 4,695,902 48.59% Non-Hispanic Whites 2,369,899 24.52% Asians 1,454,666 15.05% Blacks 709,583 7.34% Native Americans 16,890 0.17% Pacific Islanders 19,128 0.20% Multiracial Americans 336,840 3.49%

+ Racial composition 2020 2010 2000 1990 1980 1970 1960 19501940 Hispanics 48.0% 47.7% 44.5% 37.8% 27.6% 14.9%Lopez-Garza Marta; Diaz, David R. (eds.) Asian and Latino Immigrants in a Restructuring Economy SUP, 2002, p. 339 11%Waldinger, Roger; Bozorgmehr, Mehdi (eds.) Ethnic Los Angeles Russell Sage Foundation, 1996, p. 87. "Within Los Angeles County itself, the process of ethnic change took place at an even more rapid pace. Between 1960 and 1990, the Hispanic percentage jumped from 11 to 36 and the Asian percentage from 2 to 11." 5.8%2.2% Non-Hispanic WhitesFrom 1944 through 2023, the U.S. Census Bureau categorized people from the Middle East and North Africa as White. 25.6% 27.8% 31.1% 40.8% 52.8% 70.9% 79.3%Mid-decade Census U.S. Government Printing Office, 1962, p. 209. (Out of a total of 6,038,771 people, 5,453,866 or 90.31% were White. Note that in the 1960 census, Hispanics were counted as Whites.)87.9%93.3% Asians 14.7% 13.5% 11.9% 11% 5.6%Historical Census Records of Racial/Ethnic Groups, Los Angeles County, California, 1850 to 1980 Los Angeles Almanac. (The 93,747 Chinese, 116,543 Japanese, 99,043 Filipinos, 60,618 Koreans, 18,562 Asian Indians and 28,696 Vietnamese amount to 417,209 Asians, which is 5.58% of the total population of 7,477,503.) 2.9%Historical Census Records of Racial/Ethnic Groups, Los Angeles County, California, 1850 to 1980 Los Angeles Almanac. (The 40,798 Chinese, 24,509 Indians, 104,078 Japanese and 33,459 Filipinos amount to 202,844 Asians, which is 2.88% of the total population of 7,032,075.) 1.9%Historical Census Records of Racial/Ethnic Groups, Los Angeles County, California, 1850 to 1980 Los Angeles Almanac. (The 19,286 Chinese, 8,109 Indians, 77,314 Japanese and 12,122 Filipinos amount to 116,831 Asians, which is 1.93% of the total population of 6,039,771.)1.3%1.9% Blacks 7.6% 8.3% 9.7% 11.1% 12.6% 10.8%Historical Census Records of Racial/Ethnic Groups, Los Angeles County, California, 1850 to 1980 Los Angeles Almanac. (Out of a total of 7,032,075 people, 762,844 or 10.85% were Black or African Americans.) 7.6%Mid-decade Census U.S. Government Printing Office, 1962, p. 209. (Out of a total of 6,038,771 people, 461,546 or 7.64% were Black or African Americans.) 5%2.7% Native Americans 0.2% 0.2% 0.8% 0.5% 0.64%Historical Census Records of Racial/Ethnic Groups, Los Angeles County, California, 1850 to 1980 Los Angeles Almanac. (Out of a total of 7,477,503 people, 48,120 or 0.64% were Native Americans.) 0.35%Race of the Population by County: 1970 U.S. Government Printing Office, 1975, p. 7. (Out of a total of 7,032,075 people, 24,509 or 0.35% were Native Americans.) 0.13%Mid-decade Census U.S. Government Printing Office, 1962, p. 209. (Out of a total of 6,038,771 people, 8,109 or 0.13% were Native Americans.) - - Pacific Islanders 0.2% 0.2% - - - - - - - Multiracial Americans 3.0% 2.0% - - - - - - -

Whites reached their peak number (4,897,580) in 1960. Blacks reached their peak number (931,449) in 1990. Most of the growth has come from Hispanics and Asians.

Los Angeles County is home to the largest numbers of Burmese, Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Indonesian, Korean, Sri Lankan, Taiwanese, and Thai outside their respective countries. The largest Asian groups are Chinese (4.0%), Filipino (3.3%), Korean (2.2%), Japanese (1.0%), Vietnamese (0.9%), Indian (0.8%), and Cambodian (0.3%).

The county is home to the largest Armenian population outside of Armenia. It also accommodates the largest Iranian population outside of Iran of any other county or county equivalent globally.

The ASC aggregate data for 2006–2010 show that 43.59% of the population reported speaking only English at home; 39.38% spoke Spanish, 3.64% Chinese, 2.46% Tagalog, 2.02% Korean, 1.70% Armenian, 0.82% Vietnamese, 0.80% Persian, 0.63% Japanese, and 0.52% Russian.MLA Language Map Modern Language Association

Income

In 2024, the Area Median Income (AMI) for a one-person household in Los Angeles County was $74,600 ($6,217 per month); for a four-person household, $106,600 ($8,883 per month).Sharp, Steven. Here are California's affordable housing income limits for 2025 Urbanize (Los Angeles), 2025 04 30

As of 2024 12 12, the homeownership rate was 49.81%.Homeownership Rate (5-year estimate) for Los Angeles County, CA Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis As of 2025 12 23, the median home value was $859,958.The average Los Angeles County, CA home value Zillow.com Multi-unit structures comprised approximately 54.2% of the total housing inventory as of late 2025.

In October 2025, the number of homeless people in the county was 72,195, of which 47,450 were unsheltered.LAHSA Releases Finalized 2025 Homeless Count Results After HUD Review Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, 2025 10 20 LA County holds the undisputed title for the largest unsheltered homeless population in the nation—in 2024, only 30% of LA's homeless population was sheltered either in an emergency shelter, transitional housing, or a safe haven program, compared to 97% of New York's unhoused.Which US cities have the largest homeless populations? USAFacts, 2025 02 07

Religion